Director: Giulio Questi
Cast: Donato Placido, Francesca Muzio, Saverio Vallone
Screenplay: Giulio Questi, Mauro Marchesini
77 mins. Not Rated.

In 1981, RAI-TV (the national public broadcasting company of Italy) produced and released a 6-episode anthology of hour-long genre films based on the works of several 19th century horror/fantasy writers, and what’s more, they cultivated an impressive roster of directors for their endeavors, including Mario Bava with what would be his final film. The series was titled The Devil’s Game, and the first of these films is The Sandman, directed by Giulio Questi (Death Laid an Egg).

Nathaniel (Donato Placido, Caligula) is haunted by the memory of his father’s death at the hands of a The Sandman, a mysterious figure of legend who sneaks into the bedrooms of children to steal their eyeballs. As he sets out for the final year of university, there is talk of poetry and mysticism and the appearance of an unusual woman and Nathaniel comes to wonder if the lawyer Coppola is indeed the Sandman of legend.

Based on the short story by E.T.A. Hoffman (which was also adapted for The Tales of Hoffman), this version of The Sandman is rough, too talky, and without forward momentum. It’s not a terribly long piece but it just doesn’t move forward, which is a shame because the individual elements of this story are rather fascinating, and seeing them play out with a horror television film made in Italy seems like a slam dunk. The story itself doesn’t seem all that short, so I don’t think it’s inherently that it was stretched too much, but it makes me curious to see The Tales of Hoffman as I’ve only heard praise and I’d love to break down more comparison to the version depicted in that film.

Dry performances and a poor script just lead to so much meandering about. There are a few slightly notable names here, but reading the lines they’re reading isn’t doing much, and the whole event feels without excitement, without pacing, and without much to remember. Just now, having just watched it, I feel my memory of events slipping away which is so sad I had to play it again while I was writing just to see if anything of note would occur. It did not.

The Sandman is the first episode of The Devil’s Game, and as an opener, this is an undercooked piece of disappointment that slips by with poor pacing and poorer delivery. At least it’s inspired me to seek out The Tales of Hoffman and read the original piece by E.T.A. Hoffman. Thankfully it seems like the standout episode is the follow-up, so I can look forward to that. As for The Sandman, this one is completely skippable.

2/5
-Kyle A. Goethe