The Perfume of the Lady in Black(1974)
1974 · Francesco Barilli · 103 min
Sylvia, an industrial scientist, is troubled by strange hallucinations related to the tragic suicide of her mother.
Horror · Mystery · Drama
6.4109 votes
TMDB score
4/5
Intensity
2/5
Gore
4/5
Stays with you
How scary is The Perfume of the Lady in Black?
Watching this feels like slowly losing your grip on reality alongside the main character, with the line between memory, dream, and the present blurring more with every scene. The pace is slow and dreamlike, built on unease and disorientation rather than shocks or scares you can see coming. It leans hard into a woozy, off-kilter mood, with strange visions and quiet dread building toward something unsettling rather than loud or violent. This is for viewers who like their horror strange, artsy, and psychological, not for anyone wanting jump scares or action.
On The Horror Database's 0–5 scare profile, The Perfume of the Lady in Black rates psychological 5/5, visceral 2/5, gore 2/5, lingering effect 4/5, and overall intensity 4/5.
- Psychological: 5 of 5
- Visceral: 2 of 5
- Gore: 2 of 5
- Lingering: 4 of 5
- Intensity: 4 of 5
Slow burn vs Jump scares: 10 of 100 — leans Slow burn
Supernatural vs Real-world: 50 of 100 — balanced
Fun-scary vs Disturbing: 78 of 100 — leans Disturbing
Intensity over runtime
Shape only — no eventsReveal pacing shapeHide pacing shapeHidden by default — shows where the tension peaks and lets up.
A slow, dreamlike unease that thickens gradually into unsettling hallucinations before spiraling into a disorienting, intense finish.
Intensity across the runtime, 0 to 100: 0, 1, 1, 2, 2, 2, 3, 3, 3, 4, 5, 5.
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