'La Donna Del Lago' (aka) 'The Possessed’ (1965) is a splendidly enigmatic, darkly mysterious, almost impenetrable quasi-Giallo by the excellent film stylist, Luigi Bazzoni, the hugely talented, intellectual auteur behind the equally idiosyncratic, almost anti-Gialli, 'Footsteps on the Moon'(1975). Since 'La Donna Del Lago' was also written by fellow dramatic iconoclast, Gulio 'Death Laid an Egg' Questi, one might certainly expect a similarly oblique tone, and in terms of confounding genre conventions, he most certainly doesn't disappoint! While some might consider 'Lady of The Lake' to be just another example of overwrought nouvelle vague-esque cinematic doodling; but to dismiss this elegiac work as mere self- indulgence is to miss out of one of Italian cinema’s most singularly strange and glacial thrillers!

The Possessed (or La Donna del Lago) is a slept-on masterpiece of noir cinema. The film plays out like a fevered dream as we follow the writer Bernard who searches for a girl he wishes to reunite with romantically. However, he finds once he gets to the small lakeside town where they met that there is a great mystery surrounding her. The dreamlike inky B&W cinematography perfectly depicts the film's enigmatic events. The score is eerily dramatic, matching the desperate theorising of our protagonist in solving the mystery. The performances across the board are convincing, with each actor delivering their material in uniquely different ways for maximal suspense. The plot throws out red herrings through both its visuals and storytelling keeping the viewer guessing — and even once all is revealed, there is still a lack of objectivity. While toward the end there is a sense of explanation, the full truth remains shrouded. Ultimately, Bernard the protagonist and consequently the viewer must accept that what happened can never be fully known, but merely interpreted through fragments. I highly recommend. The Arrow restoration is absolutely stunning.