''Autopsy'' (original Italian title ''Macchie solari'', also known as ''The Victim'' and ''Corpse'') is a

1975 It was also declared the ''International Women's Year'' by the United Nations and the European Architectural Heritage Year by the Council of Europe. Events January * January 1 - Watergate scandal (United States): John N. Mitchell, H. R. ...

Italian

giallo In Italian cinema, ''Giallo'' (; plural ''gialli'', from ''giallo'', Italian for yellow) is a genre of mystery fiction and thrillers that often contains slasher, crime fiction, psychological thriller, psychological horror, sexploitation, a ...

horror film Horror is a film genre that seeks to elicit fear or disgust in its audience for entertainment purposes. Horror films often explore dark subject matter and may deal with transgressive topics or themes. Broad elements include monsters, apo ...

directed by Armando Crispino. It achieved a ''

cult In modern English, ''cult'' is usually a pejorative term for a social group that is defined by its unusual religious, spiritual, or philosophical beliefs and rituals, or its common interest in a particular personality, object, or goal ...

'' status for its truculent morgue scenes. The Italian title translates as ''Sunspots''.

Plot

During a rash of unusual suicides in Rome that scientists theorize are being caused by

sunspots Sunspots are phenomena on the Sun's photosphere that appear as temporary spots that are darker than the surrounding areas. They are regions of reduced surface temperature caused by concentrations of magnetic flux that inhibit convection. S ...

, a young female morgue doctor (Mimsy Farmer) is told by a priest that he thinks his sister was murdered, although he is being told it was suicide. They team up to investigate the cause of his sister's death.

Cast

* Mimsy Farmer: Simona Sana *

Barry Primus Barry Primus (born February 16, 1938) is an American television and film actor, director, and writer. Career While Primus is primarily an actor, he has also worked as a writer and director in films in which he has acted. For the first decade ...

: Father Paul Lenox * Ray Lovelock: Edgar *

Carlo Cattaneo Carlo Cattaneo (; 15 June 1801 – 6 February 1869) was an Italian philosopher, writer, and activist, famous for his role in the Five Days of Milan in March 1848, when he led the city council during the rebellion. Early life Cattaneo was born i ...

: Lello Sana *

Angela Goodwin Angela Goodwin (born Angela Bucci, 1 August 1925 – 25 March 2016), was an Italian stage, film and television actress. Life and career Born in Rome, Goodwin was the daughter of an Italian-American father, and spent her youth in the US where s ...

: Daniela * Gaby Wagner: Betty Lenox *

Massimo Serato Massimo Serato, born Giuseppe Segato, (31 May 1916 – 22 December 1989) was an Italian film actor with a career spanning over 40 years. Serato was born in Oderzo, Veneto, Italy and started appearing in films in 1938. He played leading roles in ...

: Gianni Sana * Ernesto Colli: Ivo *

Antonio Casale Antonio Casale (17 May 1932 – 4 February 2017) was an Italian film actor of the 1960s and 1970s who appeared in mostly Spaghetti Western Italian films between 1965 and 1976. Although his later roles were more prominent, Casale is probably mo ...

: Inspector Silvestri

Critical reception

Allmovie wrote, "This creepy whodunit ..offers a few chills but is ultimately unsatisfying." Marco Giusti feels that the film, like all films by Crispino, is a little slow, a little boring. Rob Talbot wrote "You really do wonder what you’ve let yourself nfor when this one kicks off, but it’ll certainly make you sit up and pay attention, whether you love or hate it."

References

External links

*
''Autopsy''
at

Variety Distribution Variety Distribution is an Italian-based film distribution company. It distributes Italian films worldwide, produced from the 1930s onward. History Variety Distribution (formerly Variety Film and Variety Communications) has been in the film p ...

1975 films Italian horror films 1975 horror films Films scored by Ennio Morricone 1970s Italian-language films 1970s Italian films {{1970s-horror-film-stub