For the sake of giving you guys some affordable options as far as finding a suitable giallo-style costume for this GIALLOWEEN season...I'd like to offer to you my "TORSO KILLER" costume.
To be completely honest...I have sort of been working on this particular costume idea since...last April. My friend Jon Kitley did the Torso Killer years ago for one of his Halloween soirees...and I felt it to be...rather novice level. Don't get me wrong...Mr. Kitley's vast knowledge of the horror genre far supersedes mine...and pretty much most of the people that I know. However, when I found the photos of his Torso Killer costume...I felt that I could take it to that next level. So, I did my research.
Now...whenever I tackle a new Halloween costume concept...I tend to over analyze. I pretty much go into detective mode...and I study everything there is to know about said costume. In this case, Torso happens to be one of my very favorite films...not to mention a brilliant example of giallo. So, I had to honor the film the best way I knew how...by being as screen accurate as I could be...on a budget, of course. My first course of action was tracking down the right ski mask. This proved to be much harder than I had anticipated. However, as tough as that was...it was pretty much child's play compared to the absolute hardest part of my quest...the scarf.
So, off I went...scouring all corners of the earth in search of the perfect Torso Killer mask. I ended up just purchasing a standard 3-hole grey ski mask from one of those ski clothing places because it was the middle of Spring and no regular store had any ski masks for sale. So, I had to make the best with whatever options I had. I got a regular ski mask for about 8 bucks (it was on clearance) and when I got it...I cut it up and re-sewed the areas around the eyes because the holes were waaaay too large...especially towards the nose area. For the nose holes, because the yarn used to make the mask was rather big...I ended up using a Sharpie to simulate nose holes. Then, once I was satisfied with the outcome...I weathered the edges...making them appear tattered to match the look in the film. Once I was complete...it was off to find the scarf.
The scarf took me about 2 months to finally find. First I attempted to print my own in order to match, as close as I could...the look in the film. However, I pretty much gave up on that notion because I couldn't devote much time to it. Plus...the more I messed up...the more fabric I had to get. This proved to be a bit expensive. Then...I found a seller on eBay from Arizona who was selling a pretty decent match for about 11 bucks. I snatched it up quicker than you could say TORSO!!!!
Once the scarf was in my hands I needed to get perhaps the most important piece of this GIALLOWEEN costume...THE GLOVES! Now...this is where it gets a little dicey. The look of the killer's gloves from the film appear to have velcro closures...while the look on the iconic Torso poster look to be metal straps of some kind. I searched and found some on (where else??)...LeatherGlovesOnline.com...YES, SIR! I found some on clearance for about 25 bucks, plus shipping. It had velcro closures...so, that's what I went with. It was fairly easy to find a red bow-saw...as it was Springtime and Ace Hardware had them for about $10. I chose not to weather the handle...because I kind of liked the look of the bright red. Really striking!
The rest of the costume was fairly easy. I tend to mostly dress in vintage stuff...so, I already had a pair of older Diesel flared jeans. I had an older black sweater jacket thingy that matched up pretty well with the killer's in the film and the shoes were standard Italian leather dress shoes that I had. I wanted to keep it all Italian. Check it out...and let me know what you think...of THE TORSO KILLER!!!
Here are some closer shots of the mask and gloves...and you'll note where I made my alterations on the eye holes and the simulated nose holes. Please forgive the banner image all the way at the top...as I was playing around in photoshop in order to get the filters just right. The mask looks weird in that one. If I were to attempt this look again...I might go for a mask with a thinner yarn.
Overall...I'm quite happy with the way the costume turned out...and even happier that, when it was all said and done...I didn't spend more than about 50 bucks for the whole look. I must say that eBay is quite the resource when trying to find the perfect pieces for your GIALLOWEEN costume. I can't recommend them enough. Well...now that I have my perfect TORSO KILLER costume...all that is missing are some hot Italian college girls vacationing at a Villa.
HAPPY GIALLOWEEN!
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