All the Colors of the Dark

Lore & Background

Jane Harrison lives in London with her boyfriend Richard Steele, a pharmaceutical salesman often away on business trips. After losing her unborn child in a car accident, Jane has been unable to engage in sex with Richard, while still dealing with the trauma of witnessing her mother's murder at a young age. Despite Richard's skepticism of psychiatry, Jane's sister Barbara takes her to consult a psychiatrist, Dr. Burton, for whom Barbara works. Jane tells Dr. Burton that she has been having nightmares of a sinister man with piercing blue eyes murdering her mother, insisting that she has just seen the same man in the waiting room.

After encountering the blue-eyed man twice on her way back home, Jane meets Mary, a mysterious woman who recently moved into her apartment building. Jane confides her troubles to Mary, and the blue-eyed man later tries to kill Jane with an axe. Under the guise of helping Jane overcome her trauma, Mary takes her to a castle where a Satanic cult led by J. P. McBrian is performing a Black Mass. J. P. sacrifices a puppy and has Jane drink its blood, before forcing himself on her while surrounded by the other members. That night, Jane and Richard reignite their sex life.

Jane continues to attend the cult's rituals, but is horrified when the latest ritual results in Mary's sacrifice. After Jane awakens in a field, the blue-eyed man, Mark Cogan, brings her back to J. P., who explains that Mary allowed herself to be sacrificed after bringing Jane in as a novice, as it is the only way to leave the cult. Attempting to flee, Jane is attacked by two German Shepherds before Mark sedates her. Jane awakens in her own bed and rushes to Mary's apartment, now occupied by an elderly woman. The cult is a Satanic cult, and the mastermind is Dr. Burton, not Barbara; Barbara is a victim.

Reader's Guide

All the Colors of the Dark was the fourth giallo directed by Martino, and the second collaboration between the director and Fenech. An Italian and Spanish co-production, it premiered on 28 February 1972. The film grossed a total of 294,470,000 Italian lire domestically. Robert Firsching of AllMovie called the film 'tiresome'. The film's plot involves a drug ring disguised as a Satanic cult, with Barbara revealed as the mastermind. The film's exteriors were filmed in London and West Sussex, England, with studio interiors shot at De Paolis Studios in Rome. Martino originally considered shooting in Dublin due to lower production costs in Ireland, but was unable to find a suitable flat location.

Did You Know?

• The film was released in Italy on 28 February 1972 by Interfilm.
• The occultist’s manor was Wykehurst Place.
• The film was also released under the titles Day of the Maniac and They're Coming to Get You!.

Plot & Narrative Complexity

The film follows Jane Harrison, a London woman grappling with the loss of her unborn child in a car accident and the lingering trauma of witnessing her mother's murder as a child. Her psychiatrist, Dr. Burton, dismisses her nightmares of a blue-eyed killer, but Jane's life spirals when a mysterious neighbor, Mary, draws her into a Satanic cult led by J.P. McBrian. The narrative weaves through Black Mass rituals, a puppy sacrifice, and Mary's own ritual killing, before revealing that Jane's sister Barbara orchestrated the entire cult as a front for a drug ring. Barbara's true motive was eliminating Jane to claim their late mother's inheritance. The story culminates in Richard fatally stabbing the blue-eyed man Mark Cogan with a pitchfork, then shooting Barbara as she attempts to seduce him into the cult. A final rooftop confrontation sees Richard hurl J.P. McBrian to his death.

Production & Filming Locations

All the Colors of the Dark was an Italian-Spanish co-production that brought together on-location shooting across England with studio work in Rome. Director Sergio Martino initially explored filming in Dublin to save on production costs but abandoned the plan after failing to secure a suitable apartment location. The English exteriors were captured in London and West Sussex, with specific landmarks including Kenilworth Court as Jane and Richard's flat, Aldwych tube station, Bishops Park, and the Anchor pub. The cult's eerie manor was filmed at Wykehurst Place, a grand country estate that lent itself to the film's occult atmosphere. Interior studio scenes were completed at De Paolis Studios in Rome. This split-location approach gave the film a distinctly British surface—tube stations, English parks, a London apartment—while the production machinery remained firmly rooted in the Italian studio system that powered the giallo genre.

Creative Team & Cast

Sergio Martino helmed his fourth giallo with this project, teaming up once again with screenwriter Ernesto Gastaldi, whose co-written screenplay provided the film's layered narrative. The casting placed Edwige Fenech at the center as Jane Harrison, marking her second collaboration with Martino after their first pairing. Fenech was joined by George Hilton as her boyfriend Richard Steele, Ivan Rassimov in the role of the blue-eyed Mark Cogan, Nieves Navarro, Marina Malfatti, and George Rigaud. The ensemble blended Italian and Spanish talent, reflecting the film's co-production status. Martino's growing confidence within the giallo subgenre—having directed three prior entries in the style—allowed him to experiment with a more psychologically driven story, embedding the cult thriller within a framework of personal trauma, familial betrayal, and the slow unraveling of a woman's mental state.

Release, Reception & Afterlife

The film premiered in Italy on 28 February 1972 under the distributor Interfilm, earning a domestic gross of 294,470,000 Italian lire. Its international footprint was modest by comparison: Spain received it on 27 August 1973 under the title Todos los colores de la oscuridad. The film also circulated under alternative English-language titles, including Day of the Maniac and They're Coming to Get You!, suggesting a marketing strategy aimed at broader genre audiences. Critical reception was largely dismissive; Robert Firsching of AllMovie labeled the picture tiresome, a verdict that has stuck with the film in retrospect. Despite the lukewarm critical response, the film remains a notable entry in Martino's giallo catalog and a showcase for Fenech in a more psychologically complex role than her typical screen presence, bridging the gap between erotic thriller and occult horror.