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THE PERFUME OF THE LADY IN BLACK
Il profume della signora in nero
(Francesco Barilli, 1974, 104 mins)
Release date: 22 September 2025
Limited Edition 4K UHD (World premiere) and Blu-ray (separate releases)

Pre-order the 4K here and the Blu-ray here

Mimsy Farmer (Four Flies on Grey Velvet), Maurizio Bonuglia (Ludwig), and Mario Scaccia (We Still Kill the Old Way) lead the cast of The Perfume of the Lady in Black, a surreal giallo thriller directed by Italian polymath Francesco Barilli (Hotel Fear.

Silvia (Farmer) is tormented by hallucinations from her troubled childhood, including her mother applying perfume in a black dress. Her mental state unravels as she struggles to separate her surreal visions from a series of violent occurrences.

Photographed by Palme d’Or-winning cinematographer Mario Masini (Padre Padrone) and scored by Academy Award-winner Nicola Piovani (Life Is Beautiful), The Perfume of the Lady in Black is an eccentric and stylish classic of the Italian giallo.

INDICATOR LIMITED EDITION 4K UHD SPECIAL FEATURES

• New 4K HDR restoration from the original negative by Powerhouse Films
• 4K (2160p) UHD presentation in Dolby Vision (HDR10 compatible)
• Two presentations of the film: Il profumo della signora in nero, the Italian-language version; and The Perfume of the Lady in Black, the English-language version
• Original mono audio
• Audio commentary with film historians Eugenio Ercolani and Troy Howarth (2025)
• Francesco Barilli on Francesco Barilli (2025): in-depth interview with the director, in which he reflects on his life in art and film
• Barilli (2016): the director talks about the inspirations for The Perfume of the Lady in Black
• Portrait in Black (2008): lengthy archival interview with Barilli
Lara Wendel on ‘The Perfume of the Lady in Black’ (2025): interview with the German Italian actor, who plays the young Sylvia
• Notes of Black (2025): DJ and soundtrack enthusiast Lovely Jon analyses Nicola Piovani’s sumptuous score
• The Locations of the Lady in Black (2025): ‘then-and-now’ tour of the film’s locations
• Original English and Italian theatrical trailers
• Image gallery: promotional and publicity material
• New and improved English translation subtitles for the Italian soundtrack
• New and improved English subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing for the English-language soundtrack
• Limited edition exclusive 80-page book with a new essay by Paul Duane, a career-spanning archival interview with director Francesco Barilli, an archival profile of actor Mimsy Farmer, and full film credits
• World premiere on 4K UHD
• Limited edition of 5,000 individually numbered units (4,000 4K UHDs and 1,000 Blu-rays) for the UK
• All features subject to change

#PHILE439U
BBFC cert: 18
REGION FREE
EAN: 5060697925036

Anyone pining for a truly worthy, satisfying presentation of the film finally had their patience rewarded in 2025 with a U.K release from Indicator as separate UHD or Blu-ray options. If any film would benefit from the advantages of Dolby Vision, this is it, so the UHD is the way to go if you're able. The HDR10-compatible color grading is gorgeous and brings out many layers of vivid but subtle colors that weren't even hinted at before; the lush production design worthy of a Rousseau painting really has a luster here that increases the film's impact tenfold.

Not to be hyperbolic, but the resulting 2160p, 1.85:1 framed transfer on Indicator’s UHD release is downright glorious. The image is pin-sharp, small details are impeccably defined, and the contrast balance is consistently sublime, with solid black levels, excellent shadow detail, and no hint of burn-out on the highlights. And oh, the colour! The pastel hues of Mario Masini’s gorgeous cinematography have been beautifully reproduced here and sing from the screen, doubtless due in no small part to the Dolby Vision HDR. It’s something that really doesn’t come across at all in the distinctly non-HDR screen grabs here. Dust spots have been eliminated, a fine film grain is visible, and the image sits consistently solidly in frame. Seriously, this is one of the most impressive 4K UHD transfers I’ve seen since I first embraced the medium.