With the exception of diehard aficionados of European or Italian horror cinema most people may not have heard of giallo cinema or have seen many films in this subgenre of horror. Most academic film studies tend to ignore horror cinema in general and the giallo specifically. Critics often deride these films which reveal more about the reviewers own prejudices than any problem with the works themselves. As a counter to such biases Mikel J. Koven argues for an alternative approach to studying these films by approaching them as vernacular cinemadistinct from popular cinema. According to Koven to look at a film from a vernacular perspective removes the assumptions about what constitutes a good film and how a particular film is in some way artistic.In La Dolce Morte Vernacular Cinema and the Italian Giallo Film Koven explores the history and evolution of this aspect of cinema and places these films within the context of Italian popular filmmaking. He addresses various themes motifs and tropes in these films their use of space the murders the role of the detective the identity of the killer issues of belief excess and the setpiece.