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What Have They Done to Your Daughters? AKA La Polizia chiede aiuto AKA Coed Murders AKA The Police Want Help (Blu-ray)
[Blu-ray]
Blu-ray ALL - United Kingdom - Shameless Screen Entertainment Review written by and copyright: Rick Curzon (7th July 2025). |
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The Film
 Massimo Dallamano's razor-sharp thriller WHAT HAVE THEY DONE TO YOUR DAUGHTERS? masterfully fuses the stylized violence of giallo with the gritty realism of poliziotteschi in a thematic follow-up to his acclaimed ‘What Have You Done to Solange?’. Transforming genre conventions into vehicles for societal commentary, this newly restored film dares to expose the organized grooming and exploitation of young women – and the institutional corruption behind it. When a teenage girl's body is discovered hanging in an attic, it is District Attorney Vittoria Stori who leads the investigation. Toppling genre and period conventions, it is the captivatingly beautiful Giovanna Ralli who portrays the DA with striking gravitas, bringing both steely determination and sensitivity to the ground-breaking role of a woman heading a team of hardened police detectives. As her team- including the famed Mario Adorf (The Tin Drum, The Bird with the Crystal Plumage) - uncovers a web of high-level depravity and secrecy, a mysterious black-clad motorcyclist armed with a butcher’s cleaver begins eliminating witnesses and detectives alike. With their lives at stake, the officers race to uncover the truth before becoming the killer’s next victims. This definitive 2K restoration finally delivers Dallamano’s landmark thriller as he intended it, showcasing Tonino Delli Colli’s unforgettable action cinematography and the hauntingly elegant score by Stelvio Cipriani (‘The Frightened Woman’), heightening the suspense. This edition also includes a frank interview with the film editor Antonio Siciliano, Dallamano’s long-time friend and collaborator, who crafted the final cut of ‘Daughters’. He finally addresses the long-standing rumours about the film’s unused additional material…
Video
Effective mix of poliziotteschi and giallo tropes can't quite hit the top of the field due to it's uneven script. The leads (Cassinelli, Ralli, Adorf) are excellent and keep the film on track even when it becomes heavy-handed and clunky. The classic theme by Stelvio Cipriani was reused in many other European films. This popular Italian crime flick has been given a 2K restoration which is the source of this Shamless transfer, which is labeled as "Shameless Restored Edition" which would indicate to me that Shameless are behind the restoration. A Techniscope production which means that it was shot using the budget version of the 4-perf widescreen formats (CinemaScope, Panavision), the 2-perf half size 35mm format. This means that grain is massively increased (beautifully resolved by the encode) and it's ever present throughout this vividly shot, naturalistic yet colourful production. It's most obvious in dark or lowlight conditions in which it's courser; when in well lit sequences it's finer, less pronounced. The image has healthy flesh-tones, vivid primaries and solid greens; delineation is good with no bleeding. The image is very much a product of the 1970s and that means very filmic and filled with texture. It can be soft, especially during opticals (credits) and in scene transitions. Black levels are fulsome with plenty of shadow detail and no unintended crush; contrast allows detail to shine. The restoration has ensured no damage and the image looks untouched by digital tools to my eyes; a strong, satisfying presentation of the difficult Techniscope format ('A-') 1080p24 / AVC MPEG-4 / BD50 / 2.39:1 / 90:50
Audio
Italian DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 Mono (48kHz) English DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 Mono (48kHz) Subtitles: English (for the Italian track, optional), English HoH (for the English track) Right off the bat, lets just state that apart from scenes involving Farlay Granger, this film was obviously shot in Italian and that soundtrack was the one I watched. I sampled the English track but it hasn't been handled as sympathetically. Italian films at this time were mostly shot silent using a crude guide track to aid the construction in studio later, all versions are post synced and the Italian version sounds the best. It's better acted and more low key. Some mild hiss is evident and being mono it has limited range generally. The engines in the chase sequences tickle my subwoofer ever so slightly but for the lost part it's a track that just gets the job done clearly, emphasising dialogue. Both variations of subtitles are excellent ('B').
Extras
Audio commentary by film historian Rachel Nisbet (2025) A detailed, dense, academic analysis of the film. This commentary came over as more if a monograph rather than the usual yaktrak; probably because Nisbet is by herself and there's nary a quiet moment. The cast, significant behind the scenes crew and well as the film's themes, political significance of the film which was made in the middle of Italy's "Years of Lead". A period in which violence and unrest were ride (the Aldo Moro kidnapping and murder being the most well known incident). A top notch display of contextual added value in that it increases one's appreciation of this imperfect but effective film. Presented in lossy English Dolby Digital 2.0 mono (48kHz, 224Kbps) with no subtitle options. "Maestro Stelvio" 2022 featurette utilising a vintage interview with composer Stelvio Cipriani done before his death in 2018 (49:25) "Stories from the Editing Room" 2022 interview with editor Antonio Siciliano (22:15) We have a sizeable, chunky, satisfying interview with Cipriani conducted fours prior to his death. It covers his life and career in surprising detail. We also get samples of his music played on his piano (shades of David Huckvale!). Editor Antonio Siciliano takes through a potted history of him working with Massimo Dallemano (1917-76), dissects his work on this film and on a couple of his others with Dallamano. Around the half way mark we get Siciliano being shown the infamous five minutes of hardcore porn inserts, the provenance of which has been in question. Until now that is; Siciliano reckons that the film stock types, the style of shots (no heads of the actors are clearly seen) indicate that Massamo Dallamano shot the illicit footage. We see the foootage fogged out in side-by-side shots of Siciliano watching on a laptop, and the footage full-on but fogged. The US and German discs present the footage unfogged. Frankly, Shameless could probably have gotten away with it as well; Powerhouse Films presented the ten minutes of hardcore inserts used with Night of the Hunted (1980) on their UK 18-certified disc. Both are presented in 1080p24 1.78:1 with lossy Italian Dolby Digital 2.0 stereo (48kHz, 224kbps) with optional English subtitles. Startup Trailers: - Who Saw Her Die? (1:03) - Strip Nude for Your Killer (1:01) - The Frightened Woman (1:14) A cadre of newly created promos in 1080p24 2.39:1 with uncompressed English LPCM 2.0 stereo (48kHz, 24-bit). A limited edition outer card sleeve featuring the new key art Reversible sleeve with choice of original and new key art What it says.
Packaging
Slimline, clear BD Keepcase.
Overall
Another winner from Shameless with top notch image and sound quality, restored by Shameless the selves. Extras are solid if mostly culled from other prior release; the excellent Nisbet yaktrak is however unique. A strong release ('B+').
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