Common knowledge and mentions in established giallo lore by experts and even Italian film historians quickly told us that the production title was supposedly “Uno strano fiore con cinque gocce di sangue” which translated means “A strange flower with five drops of blood.” This has always been our understanding as well.

Imagine our surprise when we stumbled across this untrimmed clip that we found among some raw footage while working on the movie’s restoration. Pay attention to the clapboard in particular!

It does not read “Uno strano” as would have been the case if the accepted knowledge had held true. Instead, the clapboard reads “Una strana,” which quite obviously indicates that there must have been another title in play yet, but sadly the lower part of the clapboard had been cut off in the shot. It gave us the confidence, however, to dig deeper, and with that image in hand, the hunt was on.

We decided to find out what the original shooting title of the film had truly been, but none of the experts on the subject that we contacted had any knowledge of such an alternate title. In the end, with the help of our friends over at Freak-O_Rama, we decided to go to the source and ask the film’s writer Ernesto Gastaldi directly. While we had been shooting his interview footage for the bonus features a few weeks earlier, he had mentioned that didn’t recall the exact details about script’s title, and was not involved in the movie’s production on the set, but we hoped that the clapboard might help jog his memory. And so, it did…

Ultimately, he remembered that the production was originally titled “Una strana orchidea con cinque gocce di sangue” or “A strange orchid with five drops of blood.” He also recalled that the production team later renamed it to “Uno fiore con cinque gocce di sangue” when they found out that Umberto Lenzi was about to release “Sette orchidee macchiato di rosso”, or “The seven blood-stained orchids,” as you may know it. As a way of avoiding confusion because of the similarities in name, the filmmakers changed the “orchid” to “flower” while the production was underway.

This was an exciting bit of new knowledge about the film and our discovery was very quickly confirmed. As luck would have it, just a few days later, we located another stray behind-the-scenes shot from the set. This time, it was footage of elevator-victim Evi Farinelli, preparing for her shot. Once again, there was the clapboard in the shot, and this time, it was visible in its entirety… and the partial title read “Una strana orchidea!”

What a discovery! It completely corroborated Ernesto Gastaldi’s story and it gave us a chance to finally locate and reveal the movie’s original title for the very first time!

The movie was later retitled once again to “Perchè quelle strane gocce di sangue sul corpo di Jennifer?” shortly before its release into theaters, most likely at the behest of producer Luciano Martino, who thoroughly enjoyed these lyrical kinds of movie titles.

There you have it! The original production title of the movie finally revealed, so make sure to share this post on all your social media, your favorite forums, hangouts, groups and subreddits.

“Una strana orchidea con cinque gocce di sangue,” it is!

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The condition of the negative is such that there are large sections that have been severely damaged over time. The film emulsion is peeling, it’s deteriorating, and there are chemical splotches that cause severe discolorations that riddle several parts of the film. They range from small spatters and noticeable discoloration to blotches that cover the entire frame. We do not know what caused the issues, but something during the last 15 years has terribly affected the negative, causing irreversible damage.

In fact, there are several sequences in which virtually every frame is affected. Entire scenes, sometimes running up to 30 seconds or more, have been damaged to the point that regular clean-up methods no longer work. These shots need painstaking repairs and reconstruction—a task we were prepared to do. We are committed to bringing you the best presentation possible of the film. A presentation that will hopefully bely all the defects and damages we are dealing with and will allow you to enjoy the movie without visual distraction.

However, as it turns out, this process is a lot more time-consuming than we had originally anticipated, especially in light that we have run into many more sequences with such extensive damage than we had initially expected.

As a result, it is unfortunately impossible for us to release the film on April 9 as we originally intended, and we were forced to push back the release date to June 11 instead. We are exceedingly grateful for your understanding and ongoing support, and with every available minute, be assured that we are fully dedicated to bringing this beloved film back to its original glory.

While it may not make the wait any easier, we also wanted to assure you that we have two additional gialli already lined up and in the works. Both of them high-caliber films, and both of them eagerly anticipated movies.

Make sure to follow our social media (Twitter, Bluesky, Instagram, and Facebook) for the latest developments because we will unveil exciting information about our second release in short order. It is a film so many of you have inquired about, and we are proud to be the new home of one of the genre’s most anticipated films!

Watch this space…

The Celluloid Dreams Team