The Case of the Bloody Iris (Italian: Perché quelle strane gocce di sangue sul corpo di Jennifer?, lit. "Why those strange drops of blood on Jennifer's body?", originally released in the UK as Erotic Blue) is a 1972 Italian Giallo film directed by Giuliano Carnimeo, identified in the credits as Anthony Ascott.
In Rome, the beautiful young model, Jennifer Lansbury, and her ditzy friend Marilyn Ricci, move into a luxurious high-rise apartment following a brutal murder of the previous tenant. However, their peace is soon shattered when Jennifer becomes the target of a sinister stalker. Among the possible culprits are a predatory lesbian neighbor, an eccentric elderly woman with her enigmatic deformed son, and even the handsome architect responsible for the building, who grapples with a debilitating fear of blood.
Tropes:
- Coat, Hat, Mask: The killer wears a black trenchcoat, fedora and stocking mask.
- The Corpse Stops Here: Marilyn is stabbed in a crowd outside the high-rise by the killer. She manages to grab Andrea, who was waiting for a taxi nearby, before collapsing and dying. Frightened by the blood, he flees the scene and is chased by Renzi, but evades capture.
- Cruel and Unusual Death: Sheila is scalded to death by a jet of hot steam from a boiler sabotaged by the killer.
- Cult: Jennifer used to be a member of a sex cult named 'Iris' before escaping into modelling. The leader, Adam, is harassing her to get her to return: warning her if she doesn’t come back to him, there will be consequences.
- Deadly Bath: The killer binds the naked Mizar into her bathtub and then turns the water on. As the tub fills with water, they stand by; watching dispassionately until she drowns.
- Disability Alibi: Jennifer realises that Andrea cannot be the Serial Killer because of his phobia about blood. He almost fainted when she cut her finger on a can opener and so could not have messily stabbed several women to death.
- Disney Villain Death: The killer plunges to their death down the centre of the stairwell from the top floor of the high-rise to the basement.
- Disposable Sex Worker: The first victim is a prostitute named Luna. She is buzzed into the high-rise apartment building of a potential client and stabbed to death in the elevator by a masked killer who vanishes before it reaches the top floor.
- Elevator Action Sequence: A prostitute, Luna, is buzzed into the high-rise apartment building of a potential client. She is stabbed to death in the elevator by a masked killer who vanishes before it reaches the top floor.
- Madwoman in the Attic: Mrs Moss is secretly keeping her deformed son David in her apartment; living in a room hidden behind a closet. David sneaks out of the apartment and spies on the nubile women living in the building.
- Murder by Mistake: The killer confesses that he murdered Sheila because they mistook her for Jennifer in the darkened basement.
- Politically Incorrect Villain: The killer Professor Isaacs is implied to be homophobic. His motive for killing is murdering the beautiful girls in the apartment for corrupting his daughter, Sheila. While it's left vague as to what he means by corrupting, Sheila is a lesbian and says she doesn't want her father to know. This, combined with his reaction when he finds Sheila comforting Jennifer in the apartment, suggests he's homophobic and doesn't approve of his daughter being a lesbian.
- Peek-a-Boo Corpse: Marilyn arrives back at the apartment and finds a blood-soaked iris on the floor before opening a closet and discovering Adam, who's been stabbed to death.
- The Peeping Tom: David, who was under the mask in all the non-lethal appearances as a peeping tom on the building's women. The killer copied his disguise after seeing David spying on Sheila.
- Recorded Audio Alibi: Professor Isaacs uses a tape recording of him playing the violin to make it appear he is still in his apartment when he is actually out committing the murders.
- Serial Killer: The Coat, Hat, Mask clad killer murders several young woman connected to a luxury high-rise apartment block.
- Slashed Throat: The killer murders David by cutting his throat. Jennifer discovers his body in Professor Isaacs' apartment.
- These Gloves Are Made for Killin': The film begins with someone following a woman onto an elevator with a ton of people. As the elevator is ascending, they put on a pair of translucent yellowish-brown gloves. When the rest of the occupants get off, they gag the woman with a rag and stab her three times with an oddly-shaped knife.
