Reviews (37)

BUY THE REGION 2 ITALIAN DISC!!!!!!!!!
First off the horrible DVD released in this country as Sleepless is pretty AWFUL in comparison to the Italian DVD. The Italian DVD has it's original title NON HO SONNO, the menus are nice, and if you own the Artisan disc you see this menu for a brief second before it switches to the horrible static frame of the [bad] cover picture.

The Italian DVD also offers a nice clean LETTERBOXED transfer, that offers an English language track as well as english subtitles for those who want to see the film in Italian.

The film is definately a return to form for Argento, it has good pacing, the story is excellent, and at times it is quite terrifying. It is definately better than Argento's last few films Phantom of the Opera and Trauma.

The Foriegn disc is definately the way to go, when buying this film.

The foreign disc has extras that are not on the Artisan print, The disc has a behind the scenes/making of segment , an interview with Agento(In italian w/no subs), Cast and crew information, trailers and more.

Read this before buying this DVD
If you are an Argento fan (like me) and are intent on owning this film on DVD, then do yourself a favor keep reading. I went to www.amazon.co.uk and bought the movie there. It comes as a two DVD set with all kinds of goodies, including the documentary "Dario Argento, An Eye for Horror". This European issue also has a much better quality transfer than is currently available here in the US version. It has 5.1 Dolby Digital sound and unlike the edited down US release, this copy contains the full 117-minute film shown in 1.85:1 widescreen. The Amazon UK site mistakenly states that the DVD is Region 2, but it appears that the DVD is in fact Region Free. I have a Region 1 DVD player and it plays fine. One UK reviewer did mention that the DVD is in fact Region Free.

Now for the film. It's not a bad movie, but I would rate it as mediocre for the genre. It's certainly not Dario's best effort, but there are still lots of good scares. Argento returns to his use of vivid color themes, and though not as dramatic as in some of his earlier films, the technique still makes for interesting cinema. "Sleepless" also marks the return of "Goblin" to an Argento soundtrack. This provides one element that has certainly been missed in recent Argento films. The movie wastes no time in getting things going with a highly suspenseful and sexually charged opening scene. As the "Italian Hitchcock", Argento once again proves that he currently has no equals in the creation of pure suspense! Unfortunately, after that initial intense 20 minute beginning, the film begins to fade a bit and never quite seems to make it back to those levels. Finally, there is Max Von Sydow. Not much can be said given his illustrious carrer. I'm a big Von Sydow fan, but he is almost too talented for this film! He is a very high quality actor trapped in a somewhat shallow role. All the other actors and characters in this film seem pale by comparison.

If you're new to Argento or just exploring; then go for Tenbre, Deep Red, Phenomena, or Suspiria. If your a big Argento fan, make sure to order from Amazon.co.uk!

Heeeeere's Argento!
I really couldn't tell you why I have yet to watch every film in Dario Argento's filmography. A few years ago it was easy to claim ignorance of many of this Italian director's important works because it was often so difficult to find any of them anywhere, let alone in an uncut form. Fortunately, DVD arrived on the scene and eager film fans with dollars to spend inspired numerous companies to start churning out any movie they could get their hands. Even Troma, the flagship of flaccid filmmaking, released a so-so version of Argento's "The Stendhal Syndrome." It wasn't too long before practically every Argento film arrived on store shelves, many of them in uncut, unrated formats. Unfortunately, most viewers have most likely never heard of Dario Argento. These days, more people are familiar with the director's beautiful daughter Asia than with the horror maestro himself. What a shame. Argento's films, at least the ones I have seen, are masterpieces of style injected with truly cringe inducing violence. For a few years in the 1980s and 1990s, Argento drifted away from his tried and true giallo formula, only recently returning to some semblance of form with "Stendhal" and this gruesome little shocker, "Sleepless." Starring Max Von Sydow and Italian horror fave Gabriele Lavia, the director once again resurrects the old giallo format and marries it with upsetting scenes of gory violence.

Von Sydow plays the role of a retired detective named Moretti, a cop who had an amazing record of solving murder cases but has since suffered from rampant insomnia and a fading memory. Moretti now spends more time ambling around his house talking to his pet bird and trying to remember the specifics about the one case that eluded his grasp than anything else. That case, called the killer dwarf crimes, seemed solved when the supposed killer died as police officers closed in. Now, years later, the killings have started up again, gruesome crimes that resemble in many ways those of the original case. Moretti finds himself sucked back into working on the case even though the cops on active duty wish he would just go back to his bird and leave the investigating to younger men. Our aging cop soon teams up with the son of one of the victims of the first spate of killings and the two men embark on a quest to discover what exactly is going on. The path to solving the crime is fraught with peril: arcane clues abound, strange nursery rhymes play a big part, and Moretti's ailing memory prevent him from making connections between the latest victims and those killed in the first wave. Even worse, the killer knows Moretti is looking for him and plans on doing something about it. The conclusion to "Sleepless" recalls the numerous plot twists of "Deep Red" and "The Bird With They Crystal Plumage," two of Argento's better films. There is a lot to like with "Sleepless."

Arguably, the best part of the film is the first twenty minutes. Argento turns a stalk and slash sequence on an empty passenger train speeding along a track into a masterful exposition of oppressive, claustrophobic atmosphere matched with a pounding music score produced by none other than Goblin. Moreover, the great cinematography employed in this extended scene reveals that the director has lost none of his imaginative abilities with the camera. Even better, the beginning of the film gives the audience two amazingly beautiful women of a type rarely seen in a horror movie. Seeing these two lovely girls convinced me, more than anything else I have seen or heard, that I must visit Europe as soon as possible. Sadly, Argento dispatches the two ladies quite quickly, but that shouldn't stop a dedicated viewer from making liberal use of the rewind button on the remote control.

The rest of the film is a mixed bag, since the performances from some of the principals are mediocre (excluding the always great Max Von Sydow). The pacing occasionally lags in "Sleepless" as well, as the film feels like it runs too long in places. What helps move the film along are the gory killings that pop up to say hello every now and again. We get a gruesome decapitation, a nasty looking--and sounding--flute stabbing (!), an ink pen punched through a head, and a face repeatedly introduced to a brick wall in grisly close up. You come to expect imaginative and stylistic violence in an Argento film and "Sleepless" delivers it all in bright, flashy color. The mouth kissing brick especially brings out the cringes even though it was done better with sharp furniture corners in "Deep Red." Anyway, don't go into "Sleepless" expecting a bloodless movie that zips along at mach speed.

I've seen a lot of grumbling about the Artisan DVD version of "Sleepless." Since I haven't seen the European release that is supposedly much better than the American version, I will say that I thought this DVD wasn't as bad as some think. The picture quality is good even if it is a full screen release. The extras are lacking, but at least there are a few: a trailer for the movie, bios, and some sneak peeks at a few other films. Maybe it's because I have seen some "classic" films lately with absolutely nothing in the way of goodies on the DVD, but I did not feel cheated with the extras for "Sleepless." Could Argento's most recent film receive better treatment from someone else? Probably, but the movie is entertaining enough to watch even in fullscreen. If you enjoy Dario Argento films, be sure and check out "Sleepless" if you haven't done so already. Despite a few problems, it is still a roller coaster of a ride.

Argento fans rejoice!!!
THIS REVIEW IS OF THE DUTCH RELEASED UNCUT VERSION.
Ok, Ok, it's lightyears behind DEEP RED and SUSPIRIA but hey, it wipes the floor with TRAUMA.
I must say that my reaction to this film was so mixed that I immediately had to watch it again and I'm glad I did. Firstly, if your an Argento-file then you'll be happy to know that the murder scenes are graphic and gory but the film really looses out with it's atrociously dubbed voices and some miscasting in the major roles (Von Sydow excluded). Whilst this can be mainly overlooked, to a point, I also found the killer's identity to be blazingly obviously from my first viewing (something I don't like in an Argento movie) and the silly ending where all is revieled to be both unconvincing and particularly weak (I mean, this is Argento here). Also, whilst the film looks fine (don't expect the hallucination-inducing lighting of SUSPIRIA here), it looks like it was shot by the makers of the german horror/thriller ANATOMIE and not by a master like Argento.
Overall though, this is ten times better than the horribly inept TRAUMA and will satisfy many hungry Argento-files on those dark, rainy nights.

Class act!
Sleepless lacks some of the magic of Argento's earlier films such as Deep red, inferno and Phenomona but is obviously an "Argento" film. Good acting and a compelling plot keep the movie interesting throughout. Typically the body count continues to rise at a pace as actors suffer inventive deaths at the killers hand. Camera work is at times superb as the hunted try and out run the murderer and the "long carpet shot" is brilliant (see it and you will understand). Goblin provide yet another superb sound track. This film is worth watching a few times to appreciate it properly. ... Read more

Amazon.com

Italian horror maestro Dario Argento made his name by turning homicide into modern art with a cinematic flourish, but with Phenomena he takes his stylish mayhem in new directions. The film opens with the dreamy grace of a fairy tale: a young girl wandering the green meadows of Switzerland and discovering a gingerbread house, wherein lives a monster more modern than mythic, a psychopathic maniac who plunges the picture into a lush nightmare. Jennifer (Jennifer Connelly in her first starring role), a gifted young girl at a Swiss school, has a psychic link to the insect world and develops a connection with the killer through midnight sleepwalks. With the help of a lonely, wheelchair-bound entomologist (genre stalwart Donald Pleasence, who inflects his sonorous tenor with a gentle Scottish burr) she turns telekinetic detective, which only draws her closer to the killer's lair. The densely plotted story becomes muddled at times (this is the busiest film in Argento's oeuvre) but the lyrical cinematography and gorgeous nocturnal imagery--dreamy sleepwalks, nightmarish murders, hideous horrors that emerge in the dark of night--take on a poetic elegance not seen in his previous work, providing the tale with a kind of dream logic. This is a slasher film reborn as an exquisitely grim fantasy: Jennifer in Argentoland. --Sean Axmaker ... Read more

Reviews (80)

A real jolter!
In Switzerland, an American girl named "Jennifer" ( Played by Jennifer Connelly) is attending a girl school there but unknown to her she has special telepathic powers that communicates with insects. An insane murderer is butchering young girls at night, only Jennifer with her insects, a crippled bug researcher ( played by Halloween's Donald Pleasance) and his Chimpanzee assistant must join together to put a stop to the raving mad killer or else it will find her.

An entertaining and very bloody horror mystery thriller that is completely original and interesting, it's from the mind of Italian horror master Dario Argento ( who did " Tenebre", "Demons" and "Suspiria"). This movie is the debut of Jennifer Connelly before she was a big star, she looks good as ever in this movie especially in the nightgown scene, oh man! Jennifer Connelly is a perfect woman.

This movie is quite smart, scary and gory at times but keeps you on the edge of your seat. Originally released here in the U.S. by New Line Cinema called " Creepers" then heavily cut to 82 minutes, Anchor Bay thankfully has re-issued this movie under it's true name " Phenomena" and with the original length 118 minutes of extra footage not seen in the U.S., if you love good suspensful and gore ridden thrillers then add this to your collection.

Also recommended: " Silence of the Lambs", "Suspiria", "Tenebre", "City of the Living Dead", "Cannibal Ferox", "Caligula", " Day of the Dead", " Re-Animator", "Scanners" ," Making Contact ( a.k.a. Joey)", " Inferno", "Sleepless", " The New York Ripper", " Maniac ( 1980)" " House of 1000 Corpses", " Carrie", " Demons", " Akira", "Firestarter", " The Fury", " The Toxic Avenger", " Battle Royale", " Riki-Oh The Story of Ricky", " Ichi The Killer" and "Audition".

Awesome Argento! Original and Creative!
It's hard to find horror movies that haven't taken some kind of thought or idea from a previous one but Dario Argeto's ("Tenebre", "Susupiria", "Deep Red") Creepers seemed to be in a class all by itself (at least to me anyway).

Jennifer Connelly plays Jennifer, a girl who is sent to a boarding school while her father is out of the country working on a film. Unfortunately for Jennifer and the other girls in the school there is a raving psychopath wandering the grounds and butchering the students. When Jennifer meets up with entomologist Dr. John McGregor, played by the late, great, Donald Pleasance (Halloween) she learns of her great power to control insects. If she is going to survive and save the other girls in the process she'll have to learn how to use her gift to stop the killer.

Creepers is very entertaining and moves at a good clip, it's original and well acted for a horror movie. From reading the other reviews I see that this seems to be a shorter version of Argento's "Phenomena". Where Creepers runs about 82 minutes, Phenomena is 110 minutes. I haven't seen Phenomena yet but plan on it. If your a fan of Argento's or horror movies in general this movie is for you.

Hope you're not afraid of bugs
Dario Argento's "Phenomena" is the story of young Jennifer (a very young Jennifer Connelly), who is sent to a Swiss boarading school for girls. She has a special talent for communicating with insects, especially maggots and flys. And it is a good thing, because she is going to need it to help solve a series of murders in the area. My first problem with "Phenomena" (which was relesed in the U.S. under the name "Creepers") is that it bears a large resembelence to Argento's earlier film "Susperia"; also about a young girl who moves into an all girls boarding school where weird stuff is happeneing. This film is another one of those movies that only work when you are caught up in the moment and do not think too hard about what is going on in the long run. Believe it or not, the fact that Jennifer can talk to animals is probably the most plausable aspect of the movie. Then you start trying to connect the dots, it makes for spotty work at best. For example, the characters seem to be able to make intuitive deductions without much evidence to go on; they seem to show up at the right place at the right time for no appeareant reason. And the pet monkey seems to be able to find a weapon just in the nick of time (I didn't know people just throw away perfectly good, never been used, streight razors all the time in a trash can in the middle of the woods) and know just how and when to use it. The audio mix on the DVD is also a little off, and I don't mean because it was dubbed into English from Italian. The soundtrack (which by the way is very cool, Iron Maidon and Motorhead!!) seems to have been placed in at the most inappropriot places in the movie. The actors just did what they had to do; Jennifer Connelly was playing the Nancy Drew bit to the hilt. Donald Pleasents basicly plays Dr. Sam Lomis (from "Halloween") again, this time wheel chair bound with a monkey and maggot covered severed head for company. The others are pretty forgetable. I did like the photography, it was well lit and the locations and settings were phenominal (no pun intended). So, it is just an interesting foot note in Italian cinema.

Horrors fans only
Occasionally I watch a gross-out horror movie, if I like the actor and it has high reviews. I tend to forget that the high reviews always come from horror fans.

And I have yet to see such a movie that was really good by ordinary film standards. This is no exception. Basically the story and logic is sacrificed for cheap horror effects, like maggot-eaten faces.

The one good thing about it is Jennifer Connelly, who even at this tender age was the prettiest thing on two legs.

4 words...
Jennifer Connelly, Iron Maiden.

That says it all. Any movie with Jennifer and the Maiden in it is just freaking awesome! ... Read more

Reviews (40)

Seriously good psychological thriller
CONTAINS ONE MINOR SPOILER
The Stendhal Syndrome was the second movie I saw by Dario Argento. Since then I've become a huge fan of his work. Many people find this multi-layered thriller to be one of his failures and I find that hard to believe. Granted, it's more character driven than most of his movies tend to be and the movie's pace and athmosphere change dramatically in the second half. Still, I found out that it's got a lot of his trademarks (having now viewed all his movies except Four flies on grey velvet, which I can't find anywhere). It's stylish as hell, with great use of artworks (as metaphors that is; the scene where Asia covers herself in paint had me wondering), the music score is excellent (by Ennio Morricone; not Goblin) and the violence is at times extreme (the rape scenes particularly, since you know Asia's father is directing them).
The real difference with this film considering Dario's other films is the psychological undertone. I have watched this movie now three times and I'm always seeing something I didn't figure out the last time. That's what great complex thrillers do, they always keep you wondering. This is without a doubt Dario Argento's most complex film, it demands the audience pay attention to what's happening. As far as psychological thrillers go, this one ranks high.

SERIOUS TROMASONE DAMAGE
Despite an incredible opening 20 minutes, THE STENDHAL SYNDROME
soon meanders into tedium and never manages to recover. Although initially disappointing Argento titles such as TRAUMA, for example, have blossomed with the passage of time, this film seems particularly resistant to reappraisal. Certain elements work extremely well, with Thomas Kretschman's forceful performance, Morricone's repetitive score and Asia Argento's hypnotic visit to the Uffizi Gallery being the major assets. Unfortunately, the film soon abandons it's one truly original idea - the "Stendhal Syndrome" itself - and heads in a more mundane killer vs. police direction. Of course, Argento tries to spice this up with abherrent psychology, grotesque sadism and narrative trickery, but the end result never approaches the high standard set by classics such DEEP RED or TENEBRAE. Scenes between Anna (Asia) and the police psychiatrist are interminably boring, whilst the less said about the unconvincing family relationships and romantic scenes, the better. Although this is my least favourite Argento film, it certainly didn't deserve the humiliation of being released by Troma! Lloyd Kaufmann's inane, ill-informed introduction claims the DVD contains the digitally re-mastered director's cut. What this actually means is a BADLY transferred version of the TRUNCATED export print. Compared to the luminous image quality of the French DVD, the Troma disc's muddy, washed out colours are extremely unimpressive. The largely irrelevant extras and promos for idiotic junk only add to the bargain basement atmosphere. If you're an Argento completist, wait for a more definitive release - shelling out for this contemptible mess from Troma would be murder.

Horrible DVD Quality, Interesting Movie
Troma should feel ashamed by the horrible quality of this DVD. Argento's films are usually released on Anchor Bay, who does a stellar job with the transfers. This DVD, though, is so full of artifacts in dark scenes that it felt like I was watching a 5 year old video from a rental store. It also didn't feel like it was a FULL letterbox version as parts of the opening credits were cut off on the left and right edges.
One of the interviews was OK, but it was really an interview all about Argento's 'Phantom of the Opera'. The other interviews were extremely cheesy as they weren't even done in person -- it was just Dario holding a microphone answering questions that were coming to him over the phone.
The movie is quite interesting and better than I expected. It deserves a much better DVD than this extremely cheesy production from Troma, though. Movie gets a 4/5, DVD gets a 1/5.

deep but disturbing
I am a little torn on how to judge Dario Argento's "The Stendhal Syndrome". The movie is about a Rome police inspector Anna Manni (director Dario's daughter, Asia Argento; who seems a bit young to play a police detective), who is assigned to the anit-rape unit. Manni's current case is to track down a serial rapist and killer who is stalking girls in Rome and Florence. The killer finds her in an art museum. While she is there, she falls victom to the stendhal syndrome (that is, having a physical reaction to a powerful emotional piece of art) which catches the attention of the killer. Shortlyu there after, Anna is captured and savagly raped and beaten by the killer. The attack leaves her seriously damaged mentally and emotionally. She now must hurt and mutalate herself just to feel. While on vacation, Anna is captured and tortured again by the killer, but this time mangaes to escape and kill the man. But this only leads to deeper despair. "Stendhal" has it's good points and it has it's bad points. Well, first the good. This is a powerfully disturbed movie; unflinching and brutal. I must praise Ms. Argento for having the guts to play such a demanding role; what she lacks in talent (and she dose lack), she makes up for in courage and effort to play on such raw emotions. She has made a career out of playing victoms who, after they are damaged in whatever way, can only respond to new world with equal amount of venom. The violence is very disturbing, not so much the amount of gore (although there is plenty of that), but because it is so mean spirited. However, if you're a Dario Argento fan, you're probably, um, if not used to it, at least you're expecting it. Now onto the bad. Structurely, the movie seems disjointed. At first it is a serial killer movie, and then it is a tour through the mind of victom turned killer Anna. The twist of having Anna turned into the killer at the end seemed a little strange, but I guess it isn't too terrible a streach. The acting is pretty bad, but I blame dubbing the language from Italian to English. The movie also has long straches where seemingly nothing happens. This scene is the most offensive: Manni's partner and sometime lover comes over and tries to suduce her right after her first rape. How insensitive can the jerk be! But as if that wasn't bad enough, Anna turns the table on him and psudo-rapes him! How very disturbing. All in all, this is an Italian horror film, so it is intensly violent and gory. But it is Dario Argento, who knows that the more scary violence is done to the mind, not nessisarily the body.

Terrible DVD of an impressive film
The Stendhal Syndrome is an effective, stylish thriller from horror maestro Dario Argento. The film alone would rate at least 4 (out of 5 stars)but the Troma DVD is pretty appalling. The audio is hissy and the volume low and the picture is incorrectly letterboxed and riddled with digital artifacts. If the DVD weren't bad enough it's made even worse by having a horrible, embarrassing introduction and foolish, faux interviews with Troma president Lloyd Kaufman. A good film is severely cheapened by a garbage presentation. A big, fat ZERO for the disc. Hopefully, Blue Undergroud or Anchor Bay will be able to obtain the rights soon. ... Read more

Reviews (13)

good direction, solid scares, horrible acting
This was the only movie directed by Dario Argento that my local Blockbuster carried, and even though it was in a censored R-rated cut, I must say I liked it. At its best, "Trauma" invoked late-70's/early-80's John Carpenter, and was easily one of the scarier films I'd seen in a while. However, the acting (by a predominately American cast including Frederic Forrest, Piper Laurie, and Brad Dourif) was mostly over-the-top and horrible. And now, after seeing such Argento masterpieces as "Deep Red," "Suspiria," and "Tenebrae," "Trauma" really pales in comparison but is still good. It might be more easily accessible to someone who hasn't been exposed to Argento before, but for hardcore fans it's only a lukewarm offering.

All the ingredients of an Argento film BUT...
Argento seems to be able to make GREAT horror as POOR ones. With a plot he already used a couple of times and filmed like he did also a couple of times, Dario Argento offers his daughter, not a bad actress at all, in one of his average work. It's no his worst movie but it's not fantastic either. The Hitchcock theme sounds sometimes like a very low budget music score, a pity! For me, not the revelation of Dario Argento's Art...This film could have been released decades ago, it's more like he didn't evolve at all and he simply makes the same recipe again and again. For ARGENTO fans only : You will find the mark of the master in this.

Fascinating Guilty Pleasure
Well, this is THE movie that trapped me into Dario Argento's horror world in no time-- the first one of his I've ever seen (not counting Demons which wasn't directed by the master himself.) Filled with bloody violence, sickly twisted family liaison, and absolutely over-the-top campy fun. A masterpiece? Depends what your definition is. I think it's one of it's own kind. Asia was adorable (and still is.) Above all, I love Piper Laurie in this movie, period. Can't wait for the DVD to come out.

Not one of Argento's masterpieces
I was lucky enough to find a tape of the uncut edition of TRAUMA. Yet again the story features a serial killer, this one named the Head Hunter because his prefered method of killing is decapitating his victims with a bandsaw. After a teenage girl, Aura (Asia Argento, the director's daughter) witnesses the deaths of her parents at the hands of the Head Hunter the trauma lands her in a mental hospital... but still the killer comes after her, determined to finish what he started. The psycho also has a strange M.O: he only kills when it's raining.
TRAUMA is generally pretty tedious, with little evidence of the director's trademark stylistic flourishes. Rather disappointing, though Asia Argento gives a good performance; and there are a couple of memorable bits: the sequence where a woman's decapitated head speaks; and Brad Dourif's death scene. Piper Laurie co-stars, but you're better off watching PHENOMENA (aka CREEPERS) or SUSPIRIA. And what's with the reggae music at the end?

Weird yet compelling little horror movie.
Weird yet compelling little horror movie brought by Dario Argento, Trauma was his first production done in America.The story is,in most of its part,typical of 80's slasher pictures, but the idea of a "Head Hunter" killing people around is somewhat original and also responsible for some of the most grotesque scenes I've seen in a horror movie(like the scene of a decapitated woman whose head keeps talking for a while).The usual Argento stuff is all over Trauma: the different and frantic camera movements, the violence and the strange characters.For those who like Euroshock films, Trauma is a good buy from Amazon[.com]. ... Read more

Reviews (4)

Great 1968 Spaghetti written by Dario Argento
This title was originally released in 1968 as "Oggi a me... domani a te!" in Italy, or "Today is Me... Tomorrow You" in the US. Directed by relatively unknown Tonino Cervi (at least this seems to be his only western) it seems that the storylines of Dario Argento can never fail. Most interesting is how this movie has borrowed ideas from "The Magnificent Seven" yet still succeeds very well. There is one scene in a gunshop where Brett Halsey purchases a revolver and it is so uncannily similar to "The Good Bad and the Ugly" the viewer is left wondering who is borrowing from whom in these 60's spaghetti's! The film moves fairly well but is a bit slow in places, it is a fairly typical story of revenge where Nakadai's character borrows heavily from the character played by Gian Maria Volonte in 'For a Few Dollars More'. Nakadai plays a thoroughly weird character without the brilliance of Volonte but still a great character and to some extent makes this film. Bud Spencer fans will probably be disappointed with a rather shallow role and traditional 'John Wayne' western fans will probably dislike this rather bizaree European creation. But for Spaghetti fans highly recommended.

Tatsuya Nakadai in a Dario Argento scripted western
I saw a Variety ad for an Italian western with the ad copy is the Samurai sword faster than the six gun. Have never seen that one. This has him as a Mexican Comanchero who mostly uses a pistol but has a few scenes where he uses a machete as a Samurai sword. For Nakadai fans this is a must though he has a supporting part as the bad guy. It is no Illusion of Blood or Sword of Doom but worth a look. Montgomery Ford is really Brett Halsey who is also in the Mario Bava Roy Colt and Winchester Jack. As entertainment I enjoyed the overall story, the action was well done, ditto the direction. Give it a try. When I saw it in a cheapo theatre the print had a greenish hue. This was a clean print for the most part.

One good western!
I bought this movie because Bud Spencer was in it, and I was pleased! Its about Bill Kiowa was framed for killing his wife and sent to prison for 5 years. When hes released from jail he goes to his fathers house to see how his dad was doing and to get all of his money. After this he rounds up a few people (including Bud Spencer) and he wants to kill the buddy who killed his wife. One bad thing about this movie is Bud Spencers voice! Its very high, usually its dubbed low, and this is annoying. The best scene is where Bud is tied to the chair and he tears the arms of the chair right off! Its a good film....3 stars.

Decent Spaghetti Western
If you are buying this as a Bud Spencer fan skip it. Bud's voice is dubbed in a voice higher than his which might bother you. The story is about a man kiowa(Ford) who's framed for robbery and his wife killed. After 5 years in jail he's released he than hires Bud and some others to help him catch and kill the guy. A decent western but thats it. ... Read more

Reviews (13)

good direction, solid scares, horrible acting
This was the only movie directed by Dario Argento that my local Blockbuster carried, and even though it was in a censored R-rated cut, I must say I liked it. At its best, "Trauma" invoked late-70's/early-80's John Carpenter, and was easily one of the scarier films I'd seen in a while. However, the acting (by a predominately American cast including Frederic Forrest, Piper Laurie, and Brad Dourif) was mostly over-the-top and horrible. And now, after seeing such Argento masterpieces as "Deep Red," "Suspiria," and "Tenebrae," "Trauma" really pales in comparison but is still good. It might be more easily accessible to someone who hasn't been exposed to Argento before, but for hardcore fans it's only a lukewarm offering.

All the ingredients of an Argento film BUT...
Argento seems to be able to make GREAT horror as POOR ones. With a plot he already used a couple of times and filmed like he did also a couple of times, Dario Argento offers his daughter, not a bad actress at all, in one of his average work. It's no his worst movie but it's not fantastic either. The Hitchcock theme sounds sometimes like a very low budget music score, a pity! For me, not the revelation of Dario Argento's Art...This film could have been released decades ago, it's more like he didn't evolve at all and he simply makes the same recipe again and again. For ARGENTO fans only : You will find the mark of the master in this.

Fascinating Guilty Pleasure
Well, this is THE movie that trapped me into Dario Argento's horror world in no time-- the first one of his I've ever seen (not counting Demons which wasn't directed by the master himself.) Filled with bloody violence, sickly twisted family liaison, and absolutely over-the-top campy fun. A masterpiece? Depends what your definition is. I think it's one of it's own kind. Asia was adorable (and still is.) Above all, I love Piper Laurie in this movie, period. Can't wait for the DVD to come out.

Not one of Argento's masterpieces
I was lucky enough to find a tape of the uncut edition of TRAUMA. Yet again the story features a serial killer, this one named the Head Hunter because his prefered method of killing is decapitating his victims with a bandsaw. After a teenage girl, Aura (Asia Argento, the director's daughter) witnesses the deaths of her parents at the hands of the Head Hunter the trauma lands her in a mental hospital... but still the killer comes after her, determined to finish what he started. The psycho also has a strange M.O: he only kills when it's raining.
TRAUMA is generally pretty tedious, with little evidence of the director's trademark stylistic flourishes. Rather disappointing, though Asia Argento gives a good performance; and there are a couple of memorable bits: the sequence where a woman's decapitated head speaks; and Brad Dourif's death scene. Piper Laurie co-stars, but you're better off watching PHENOMENA (aka CREEPERS) or SUSPIRIA. And what's with the reggae music at the end?

Weird yet compelling little horror movie.
Weird yet compelling little horror movie brought by Dario Argento, Trauma was his first production done in America.The story is,in most of its part,typical of 80's slasher pictures, but the idea of a "Head Hunter" killing people around is somewhat original and also responsible for some of the most grotesque scenes I've seen in a horror movie(like the scene of a decapitated woman whose head keeps talking for a while).The usual Argento stuff is all over Trauma: the different and frantic camera movements, the violence and the strange characters.For those who like Euroshock films, Trauma is a good buy from Amazon[.com]. ... Read more

Reviews (17)

Argento's Most Under-rated Movie
I have every Dario Argento in my collection except for the not yet on home video Four Flies on Grey Velvet. Out of all Dario Argento films, this is the one I've watched the most. I am also a fan of the original Lon Chaney film, and have the Leroux novel but haven't read it yet. Like any Argento, this is to shock and disturb the viewer rather than to make a "quality" film. In this case, argento is shocking his diehard fans and Phantom fans. This is radically different than any other Argento because of the extent of plotting and character development in between a few gore scenes. Argento suffered the same fate as the heavy metal he used in Phenomena and Opera in the 90s- it was passe and most didn't think it was even halfway as good. As much as I love this film, it is not even close to essential viewing or essential Argento, but a rare commodity that you will eaither love or hate.

Another Argento failure!
As a fan of Argento i am starting to wonder what the heck is happening to him? He is really losing his touch. This is his third straight failure. It was recieved with mixed reaction in Italy and i feel the same. There is some good and bad in this film. The good: Nice scenery and costumes, competent leads, an impressive musical score by Ennio Morricone and good special effects. The bad: the story itself. This is the first time Argento has adapted a novel to the screen and it is also the first time he has made a movie set in an old time period. This shows that he should stick with contemporary time periods and his traditional giallos. This version retains some of the basic story about the mysterious man known as "The Phantom" who lurks the paris opera house and who is in love with one of the opera singers, Christine Daae. Julian Sands is an okay phantom but Asia looks out of place in here. Don't be fooled by the front cover of this film, the phantom has no mask this time. He has been reduced to a rat loving, psychopathic killer with little humanity. I won't spoil it in case you see this but let me say that the relationship between Christine and The Phantom is totally different in this version and almost nothing that was originally in the book , is here. It looks like every time Argento works with his daughter Asia, the film is destined to fail.

Destroyed Themes..just wrong.
I saw this film with high hopes. I am very much into giving credit where it is due, but it's a bit difficult when you spend half of the film wanting to strangle the bejesus out of the filmmakers.

I am a huge fan of Leroux for his tale which shines off a classic story of love and mystery.The careful treatment that Hal Prince and A.L.W. gave to the story created an incredible and haunting show, and the ONLY phantom is Michael Crawford. He loved this character, and made a whole new outlook on Erik, as a tragic and enigmatic figure. All of these things come together to create a story which I adore and has evidently gained admiration from oh so many others.

Maybe this director was bored or something. Tossed ideas around..wanted to make an artistic statement..

First of all, this Phantom isn't horrifcally deformed but passable in appearance. You know that mask on the cover? Don't let that make you think that it's even THAT true to the story.The famous unmasking scene is left out, instead showing the guy abusively tossing her about. A Michael Crawford, he certainly is not. All this Phantom is is a flat character;a psycho with a passion for rats *another moronic change in the story* and a killer with bizarre methods. I (and hopefully you) could do without the gruesome rat trap effect..with a bunch of moving dying creatures in it..And the view of Christine as a Pin-up. Thanks for showing off the animalistic side of the phantom, but we have the rest of the movie to be sicked out of.

The number one thing that bothered me..The Phantom and Christine's relationship.Erik is supposed to be honorable to her in the sense that he never touches her, like the mere idea of love is forbidden to him. This Phantom takes advantage happily..and Christine really does not give off the array of innocense that makes her character so powerful and keeps the story afloat.

Not to spoil it for you, but the end is worthy of an oscar for most overdone and SAD excuse for a SOAP OPERA I have ever seen. Although..the music and the last shot of the film was somewhat ethereal.

Some of the cinematography is beautiful, I must admit, and the costumes are tops.

But hey..if you don't like the original story, or the show, this might float your boat when in the mood for upclose blood guts and gore and horrendous acting.

Oh..wait.....

A More Vulgar Version...
I simply could not stand to watch this movie. I am a very loyal fan to both Webber and LeRoux, having enjoyed both of their versions of the tale. However, I was very disturbed as to how this movie portrayed the story. The Phantom is a derranged pervert who has nothing but a sexual obsession with Christine. There are several vulgar occurances that go on between Christine and the Phantom that I'm sure neither Webber or LeRoux had in mind when writing their masterpieces. The Phantom is seen as someone who kills for pleasure, a lunatic; certainly not a Michael Crawford. Whether you fell in love with the book, or saw the musical and were in awe of the theatre, this movie will definitely ruin the idealistic tale of the Phantom for you.

Dario's darkest hour deserves ZERO stars...
Fans of "Suspiria," "Deep Red," "Tenebrae," "Phenomena" or any of Dario Argento's other accomplished horror films will be appalled by his inept retelling of "The Phantom of the Opera." It goes to prove that a bulk of prolific directors from the 1970s and 80s (such as John Carpenter, Tobe Hooper, George Romero) somehow went astray when special effects began to consume horror.

This movie is loaded with gaudy set design, underdeveloped characters, and gore scenes that--surprise!--seem to rip off the late Lucio Fulci (i.e.--the phantom bites off one victim's tongue and face in close-up)! There is no atmosphere and no pulsing Goblin music to set an ominous, spooky mood, so what does that make this "Phantom"? A load of junk that feels like a rerun of that old "Beauty and the Beast" TV show (you know, with Ron Pearlman and Linda Hamilton), rife with horrible acting from Julian Sands ("Naked Lunch") and the director's daughter... ... Read more

Amazon.com

Legendary horror directors George Romero and Dario Argento team up to direct a pair of short films inspired by the writing of Edgar Allen Poe.In Romero's story, a woman (Adrienne Barbeau) and her lover hypnotize her ailing, older husband into signing over his riches. But when he dies while still under their command, his soul haunts them, seeking to be freed from their hypnotic spell. In Argento's tale, a crime-scene photographer (Harvey Keitel) kills his live-in girlfriend in a fit of jealous rage, but her black cat continues to torment him after her death. While Romero's piece toys with horror conventions and Argento's plays out in his typically elongated fashion, their dramatic story lines, unexpectedly gruesome imagery, and ironic endings shock some life into the movie. It is rumored that this was originally meant to be a quartet of horror tales with contributions from Wes Craven and John Carpenter, but at least we got these two. --Bryan Reesman ... Read more

Reviews (15)

Two horror greats in one film.
While George A. Romero and Dario Argento worked together on the production of Dawn of the Dead, this was the first movie the two actually 'worked' on together as directors. Each contributed a short film based on a story by Edgar Allen Poe. Romero adapted The Facts in the Case of M. Valdemar while Argento chose The Black Cat. Romero's comes first and it is routine EC comic style stuff, solidly made yet hampered by pacing that is a tad too methodical. But the payoff is worth the trip and the cast (Adrienne Barbeau, Ramy Zada, and Bingo O' Malley) contribute nice work. Argento's segment is far more energetic, a surreal trip into madness as a crime scene photographer (Harvey Keitel) is driven by his art to kill his live-in girlfriend's black cat. Of course the cat returns, again and again, and things get even worse in that surreal nightmare way that only Argento can pull off. Not content to just adapt The Black Cat, Argento also tosses in references to other Poe stories; namely The Pit and The Pendulum, The Tell-Tale Heart, Bernice, and several characters have famous Poe names (Usher, Pym, etc.). If he didn't go overboard, then he wouldn't be Argento, now would he? Blue Underground has done another first rate job with this wonderful disc. The maligned movie has never looked or sounded this good and the extras are more than worth the bonus disc. Romero and/or Argento fans will love it. Recommended.

Animal-Handling AND Masonry: Components for Perfection
When directors get together, they have the potential to make interesting things happen. When great directors join forces and decide to take on a project, even better results areexpected. It honestly doesn't matter what type of material they're doing or if the viewing population has tasted it time and time again. They, the silver screen's version of power coupling, know their art, understand the little versions - or perhaps perversions - of atmosphere that balance the viewing scales, and have the most cards to play when it comes to forging complete pictures. Unfortunately, both don't always deliver a knockout punch like you'd like.

In this initial piece, it's a story you've heard before. An older fellow with dollarsign-laced pockets decides to marry a younger woman. People jeer it in the community and friends seem appalled by it, but attraction is attraction and a little IWantATrophyWife-itus is sometimes what wealth is all about. In our tale, we join an ex "airline hostess" and her much older husband as he's teetering on that painful plateau just outside of dying. Plans are in the works on how to acquire some of his fortune before his estate and the long years of "settling" are addressed, with hypnosis and the application of falsified doctor reports working fairly well. It all seems to be going splendidly, too, and three million dollars is all set to arrive in two weeks - providing the wife, Jessica, can keep her husband around that long. As movies would have it, however, he dies and the planning gets worse and worse and worse until....

This Romero addition to the power duo has some serious flaws in it. The plot is thin, the effects are a little drowsy, and what seems to start off well dances down the corridors of lackluster architecture. Honestly, it's a good thing that things happen the way they do in these tales, because the atypical plan thrown into this type of movie would normally end up with someone going to jail for a very long time. Money or not, you wouldn't want to bury someone in your own backyard with a couple of bullet holes in them and you wouldn't want them kicking it with you ice-cream and getting freezer burn. This is worse than that in some ways, however, because it seems to say that a master in his field and Savini can't get together and make something that hasn't been seen a hundred times over. Instead of illustrating a story the way an audience knows they can, they take a Poe idea, splash a little effect work on it, and somewhat go through the motions.

In Argento's version of The Black Cat, things play out a lot better. Our focal point, a man with a gruesome day job, brings home a little hatred and finds himself in a not-so-happy position of trying to conceal what he's done. When things get a little stressed and push come to shove (and hack and slice), it seems that things can get a little ugly at home. This seems especially when you're the owner of a cat you hate and don't want to keep up with, and moreso when you're half of a marriage that will ultimately self-destruct. Without giving all the gray matter away, this ultimately becomes a testament to revenge going awry, why you should treat animals a little bit better, and why post-it notes are a good thing if you don't want to leave out any small details to a crime.

In my personal opinion, the Argento piece is a short film made in gore heaven. Not only does it make a show of force with all its little pieces coming together and working out all-too-well, but it also gives little shout-outs to other Poe stories as well.
And then the eye candy begins to make its rounds.
The first effects, mutilated bodies, birth even better effects. The deaths seem to get worse and worse until, in one place, I saw something that I could almost feel because of the way the image evoked words like "pain." Still, it didn't stop there. With little kitties doing things little kitties shouldn't do; hairless, nasty, and bathed in the debris brought to you by a mind that has imported images of this variety time and again, it gets even more graphic. And that's all I really ever wanted.

Combine that with build, a good plan that twists until it morphs into something horrific that the main character couldn't foresee, and nice acting and you can even overlook Romero's shoddy addition to this collection. Simply be warned that it does have a little kick in the "gruesome" department.

The Evil Eyes are crossed---but it's still good stuff.
I have to confess: I was thrilled beyond words when I heard Blue Underground was releasing this 1991 collaboration between two of my favorite horror masters, George Romero and Dario Argento. I bought the DVD sight-unseen, having only seen a few snippets of sequences from the second story in this two-movie collection, Argento's adaptation of Edgar Allen Poe's "The Black Cat".

I had seen those snippets as part of a larger Argento documentary called "Dario Argento: an Eye for Horror"---and they were ghoulish indeed! Harvey Keitel impaled on a stake? Mewling, hairless baby cats walled up with a gore-caked corpse, 'Cask of Amontillado' style? The gruesome final finishing touch---death by merciless, razor-sharp pendulum---that even Poe himself had shied away from?

I had to have it, just for the Argento work alone! As for the Romero adaptation of "The Facts in the Case of M. Valdemar", well how could you lose, with the evil mastermind behind "Night of the Living Dead" helming up a short movie about a miser left in hypnosis after death?

Blue Underground has done an excellent job with their Limited Edition DVD: the DVDs themselves are nicely decorated with two of the more chilling sequences from the film, and the material on the bonus DVD (including---hey!---a tour of make-up guru Tom Savini's home!)is worth the price of admission alone. It's a handsome DVD, and a nice addition to any horror movie aficionado's collection.

As for the movies---well, they're not what I had expected, highly uneven, and not the best examples of either Argento or Romero's work. But they're enjoyable, gory, ghoulish fare, with Romero's piece more subtle and stylish and Argento's entry an over-the-top assault on the senses that pays tribute to some of the nastiest of Poe's nuggets, including "The Black Cat", "Lenore" (ah yes, her lovely 32 teeth! nice touch, Dario!), "The Pit and the Pendulum", "The Cask of Amontillado", "The Tell-Tale Heart", and even a glib nod to "The House of Usher".

Taken together, the two pieces that comprise "Two Evil Eyes" give the film a "Creepshow"-like feel, not surprising given that Romero helmed that movie. Romero's piece here has been unfairly savaged, and while it seems sedate in comparison to Argento's gory Italian Grand Opera, it's a stately, stylish little chiller. Adrienne Barbeau plays the crafty youngish wife of financier Valdemar (played to the hilt by Bingo O'Malley, who gave me the creeps!---he also shows up as Stevie King's dad in the Meteor episode of Creepshow), who plots with her hypnotist lover to get rid of the sick old man and abscond with a fortune.
Not surprisingly, things don't go as planned; look for an opening shot right out of "Night of the Living Dead" and a scene-chewing contest by movie veteran E.G. Marshall and Barbeau (who holds her own).

But it's really Argeno's sanguine little number you should check in for. Ostensibly an adaptation of "The Black Cat", it features Harvey Keitel as a demented crime photographer whose lifestyle and pre-occupations would make his "Bad Lieutenant" character cry for his mommy. It's not Dario at the height of his game, but it's wicked, depraved, gory stuff.

All told, these two shorts make a jolly, gory little evening of Poe-vian goodness. Break out a nice cask of Amontillado from your cellar (don't mind the knocking from the other side of the wall), open up a tin of caviar for your trusting black cat, put a blanket over your pet raven's cage, and enjoy two horror masters having some fun with their medium.

Good horror, great directors
This movie is based on the writings of Poe. The first film is okay. It drags a little, but once things pick up it gets very interesting. The second film is probably the BEST horror short ever made. If you're a fan of episode horror films, (Creepshow, Trilogy Of Terror and the like), then this is a MUST HAVE DVD. The extras alone are worth the purchase. It's a limited edition, so make sure you snag it up before it's gone!

for completists only
I bought this movie only because I am an Argento nut and wanted to have everything he has done. His segment is the only reason I gave this three stars; Romero's segment is a real let-down. I can't even believe it was made by the same guy who made Dawn of the Dead and Martin! ... Read more

Amazon.com

Outside of devoted cult audiences, many Americans have yet to discover the extremely stylish, relentlessly terrifying Italian horror genre, or the films of its talented virtuoso, Dario Argento. Suspiria, part one of a still-uncompleted trilogy (the luminously empty Inferno was the second), is considered his masterpiece by Argento devotees but also doubles as a perfect starting point for those unfamiliar with the director or his genre. The convoluted plot follows an American dancer (Jessica Harper) from her arrival at a European ballet school to her discovery that it's actually a witches coven; but, really, don't worry about that too much. Argento makes narrative subservient to technique, preferring instead to assault the senses and nervous system with mood, atmosphere, illusory gore, garish set production, a menacing camera, and perhaps the creepiest score ever created for a movie. It's essentially a series of effectively unsettling set pieces--a raging storm that Harper should have taken for an omen, and a blind man attacked by his own dog are just two examples--strung together on a skeleton structure. But once you've seen it, you'll never forget it. --Dave McCoy ... Read more

Reviews (261)

Stylish, beautiful, and mesmerising
I first saw Suspiria a few years ago as a VHS rental but I couldn't remember too much about it. But suddenly, the world of Italian horror has been broken wide open so I picked up this three disk limited edition. Watching Suspiria is sort of like dreaming awake. Colored lighting is used to great effect and the sound track just sort of lulls one into submission. The plot makes about as much sense as a dream, that is to say, the movie all makes sense while watching but looses cohesion quickly once one returns to the "real" world. I think that is why I only remember watching the VHS rental but not too much of the movie.

The three disc set includes a newly made documentary and a Goblin soundtrack from the movie. The documentary suffers from subtitles that are sometimes washed out against a light background. Otherwise, it is informative. The Goblin CD is a lot fun to listen to and I find myself humming the main theme all the time. Unfortunately, I do not find a listing for the names of the songs. The main disk also includes trailers and radio spots and a Goblin music video of Demonia, which appears to be the main theme song.

Terrific DVD for a terrific movie
What many claim is the definitive Dario Argento movie(some say "Deep Red" but I say this), has been put into a wonderful DVD. I waited for weeks for the limited edition. It was well worth the wait. The limited edition throws in everything, but the kitchen sink. While the laserdisc was in letterbox, the colors were washed out. Pity too, since that was they used a technique which enhanced the colors into a deeper, richer texture (in letterbox to show the entire picture). Thankfully, the DVD lets us see this wonderful enhancement beautifully. On the second disc, we see interviews with the filmakers and stars of the film. We also get a bit of a hint why we still haven't seen the conclusion of "Three Mothers" Trilogy. It also has an interesting interview of the composer of the bizarre music to the movie. The third disc is a CD soundtrack to the movie, which contains a terrific updated version of the theme song (a music video of the song is in the first disc). All in all, an excellent DVD set. Bravo to Anchor Bay!

"SUSPIRIA"-Dario Argento's stylishly artistic masterpiece!
Okay, to all those fans of the Italian horror genre (or 'giallo' films as some would call them) I'd like to say that I am a longtime fan of horror movies and am also new to the Italian horror genre. I'd have to say as strange as it is, "Suspiria" (1977) was actually the first one to get me into the Italian horror films. Considering that I personally do NOT like any of Lucio Fulci's work (e.g. "Zombie") Dario Argento is quite better and the atmosphere of his movies are a lot better to draw you into.

Jessica Harper (a very talented actress indeed!) plays the heroine, Suzy Banyon, a young female American ballet dancer who attends a German dance school run by the mysterious Madame Blanc and Miss Tannr (given eerily performances by Joan Bennett & Alida Valli) From there, all hell breaks loose as horrific "accidental" deaths occur as many individuals are picked off one by one by an unseen supernatural entity. There are numerous secret passageways in the school (my favorite being the rose painting on the wall), a cruel and sharply grotesque hanging scene, a flesh eating dog, & many other shocking surprises which await as Suzy must discover the school's true revelation before it's too late!

This 3 disk set is in its WIDESCREEN Presentation(2.35:1) & is enhanced for 16x9 T.V. sets. It also includes the theatrical trailer (including T.V. spots), radio spots, a Daemonia music video, poster and still galleries, and talent bios. The third disk is the soundtrack of the film performed by the Italian rock group, Goblin and is definately one of the creepiest scores I've ever heard in a film. (Though maybe not as scary as Godfrey Salmon's orchestrated and conducted score for the sequel, "Inferno")

It's also one of those rare items which requires you to think, but keep in mind that sometimes it may take more than just one viewing to understand it all. The Dance Academy is also the most beautifully, artistic movie sets to ever be used for a horror flick (but in a grotesque and fun way) Without doubt, this is one of Dario Argento's BEST work! (I haven't seen his first masterpiece, "Deep Red" yet) In fact, as he explained in an interview for "Inferno" this, along with that film was one of the hardest films to make in his career and required A LOT of his own imagination and style. I recommend this to those who don't prefer Lucio Fulci's work and I also recommend the sequel, "Inferno". (it carries some of the same resemblance to the first film but the storyline starts to come together more in that one) Truly, this is a non-stop nightmare into the terrifying unknown! I will most definately be checking out the rest of Mr. Argento's work.

Kcin's review of Suspiria
I suck at introductions so I'm not even gonna try. This movie is very good. I like it. If you are interested in Horror cinema or just visually intriguing films in general you need to check this out. All right then, on with the specifics.

The plot is easily summarized. Suzy Bannion is an American ballet student in Germany. There a bad goings-ons at the academy and she must investigate and defeat the evil to survive blah blah blah. None of that really matters. Even the staunchest defenders of this film often admit that the plot/script/dialogue are not particularly inspired, and frequently kinda lame. I tend to agree with this belief, but as I said before, it doesn't really matter. However, contrary to what many people say, I didn't find this film to be the least bit confusing. I'll admit that not necessarily everything that occurs makes a whole lot of sense, and that some things are shown which are not terribly vital to the plot, but it's hardly difficult to follow. The acting isn't so great either, with the protagonists coming off a bit flat much of the time, and the antagonists overdoing it, particularly the whacky Miss Tanner, whose got a weird female concentration camp commandant thing going on.(or maybe I'm thinking of Madame Blanc, I get the names confused. If you see it you'll know who I'm talking about.) Still, it's a masterpiece visually.

When people talk about this movie they almost invariably describe it as being nightmareish. I don't really care for this description, because it exaggerates the surreality of the film. Visually, it isn't hyper-abnormal, it's really just surreal enough to seem just beyond the bounds of reality, so that nothing in the film seems quite real. This is particularly effective in the Academy itself, which mixes stately, classical looking architecture with extremely garish and tacky, extremely 70s-ish decoration. The night/horror scenes are all the more effective, with natural coloring being essentially abandoned, with everything then being bathed in eerie colored lighting. The two most prominent colors are blue and red, with a smattering of green now and then. On the whole it is startlingly eerie, and can add immense power and atmosphere to scenes where essentially nothing happens. A good example of this comes when they are forced to sleep out in the ballroom due maggot infestation.(which is itself an example of a creepy thing that happens that has nothing to do with anything) Nothing really happens here, but it's bathed in an intense, absolutely hellish red light which gives it immense power. To accompany these visuals is the much-hyped score by Goblin. It is extremely effective, though occasionally weakened by the odd cheesy synth line. It's mostly eerie keyboard lines playing menacing, repetitious melodies, thunderous percussion and random, rumbling bass overlaid with demonic voices whispering and howling. It also gets points for sounding like actual music, rather than the auditory exclamation points that most horror films provide you with. Despite all this, this movie isn't all that scary, but it's pretty eerie and atmospheric, and is just damn cool.

The film suffers slightly from starting off too well, so it's unable to maintain it's level of excellence, and suffers from a rather anti-climatic ending. Still, the opening scenes of the film are absolutely great. Suzy's arrival in Germany during a fierce storm sets the tone for the film, and establishes most of the visual motifs. It is perhaps the most surreal portion of the movie, with the heavy rain obscuring most everything, and particularly random seeming uses of lighting.(The weird forest they pass through is especially cool) The first murder scene, which is early in the film, is easily the best of the horror set-pieces. Although it isn't really all that gory it's a truly brutal scene and ends with some genuinely horrific imagery.(I'll admit that the effects are dated, but they still work very well in this scene, imo) The other horror scenes are reminiscent of the first, indoors, with the use of phony looking set decoration and colored lighting, with one exception. It takes place out in the open, and the normal colors are abandoned, instead opting for utter blackness and plain white and grey coloring on the surrounding, neo-classical architecture. It's also got some great, Leone-esque staging and camera work, as it drags the scene out as long as dramatically possible, alternating between extreme long-shots and extreme close-ups. It's a great scene (other than some dated gore) which is made all the more effective by how it contrasts with the rest of the film.(I should mention that despite the supernatural trappings of the film, the killings are generally done manually, with slasher-esque staging and methods. This film has witches, but they ain't much like what you usually see.) As I said before, the ending isn't so great. It's a bit abrupt, and doesn't show us anything we haven't seen before, but just re-iterates old motifs in an inferior manner, and suffers from some bad acting on the part of the main antagonist.(Well, now that I think about it, it does have one great scare, which is unexpected and unlike what we've seen before, but overall it's just not nearly as good) Also, there's a scene with a bat which is unintentionally funny. That bat's just so damn adorable.

Well that's about it. Some flaws, but it's a horror masterpiece anyway.

The Look of Horror
I could of probably lived without 10 over-the-top seconds of "Suspiria." Those 10 seconds are graphic to the point of porn. No doubt Argento fans would say that such scenes are what make Argento Argento. Whatever. That said, this is a really good movie with a terrific look. Argento's use of colors and architecture to establish mood (dread) is simply astounding. I have to believe Kubrick borrowed from Argento, heavily, in his making of "The Shining." I almost didn't finish watching "Suspiria" due to a graphic murder in the beginning. What kept me hanging in there was the stylish way Argento was framing his scenes. Hairy and taloned arms appearing out of the dark, a haunting run through the woods, wild and/or garish art deco interiors that have you thinking Jack the Ripper picked out the colors and patterns, and a building that looks like it was designed in Hell.

The plot? It's ok. Not as weak as some have suggested, but it does have holes - holes you don't spend much time pondering, since it's your eyes and ears Argento is after. Acting? Almost seems beside the point. You have your various grotesque characters, some with very big teeth, doing evil things. Jessica Harper is, however, very good as the waif-like ballet student. Her physical slightness, her big eyes, all contribute to the impression that she is surrounded by monstrous horror. How will she escape? Watch and see. The soundtrack, especially if you have surround sound, is effective and eerie. Lots of evil whisperings and other ominous sounds jump from unexpected directions. So the makers of the dvd are also to be applauded. It's as crisp a picture as you can imagine. (Guess Argento wanted those "reds" to really show.) ... Read more

Amazon.com

After several excursions into supernatural horror, Dario Argento returned to the homicidal frenzy that made his reputation with this mystery that plays more like a grown-up slasher movie than a detective thriller. Anthony Franciosa stars as Peter Neal, a bestselling horror novelist whose promotional tour in Italy takes a terrible turn when a mysterious killer re-creates the brutal murders from his book with real-life victims.The first to die are so-called "deviants," Neal's own friends, and finally there comes a promise that the author himself is next on the list.Columbo it ain't, but Argento has always been more concerned with style than story and his execution of the crimes is pure cinematic bravura.From the simple beauty of a straight razor shattering a light bulb (the camera catches the red-hot filament slowly blacking out) to an ambitious crane shot that creeps up and over the sides of a house under siege in a voyeuristic survey that would make Hitchcock proud, Argento turns the art of murder into a stylish spectacle. He even lets his kinkier side show with flashbacks of an adolescent boy and a teasing dominatrix in red stiletto heels that become a key motif of the film. The objects of Argento's homicidal tendencies are traditionally lovely, scantily clad Italian beauties, and with self-deprecating humor he even inserts a scene in which Neal is taken to task for the misogynist violence of his stories--an accusation Argento himself has weathered for years. --Sean Axmaker ... Read more

Reviews (74)

Argento's On A Roll
Argento takes a break from the supernatural to return to his giallo roots. Many fans consider this one of his best and I'd agree with that. As I said before, it's a return to giallo, so the plot isn't 100% original, but it has some original ideas put into it. Plus, with the way Argento films his movies, does it really matter what it's all about? Tenebre is an awesome whodunit slasher flick that actually manages to keep you in the dark about the killer's identity. It's also got some of his most stylishly orchestrated murder scenes(you know which one I mean in particular). I've noticed upon repeated viewing that alot of modern so called "horror" films have freely borrowed from this film. That's an old story coz most Italian horror films have had their ideas stolen for modern horror. But, no matter how young and pretty you make the cast or how much you MTV it up for today's AD&D audience, no one can get close to Italy's style. And it's probably impossible to get anywhere near Argento's in particular. This leaves me totally flabbergasted by the rumors of a Suspiria remake! Think about that for a second, will ya-THERE ARE RUMORS THAT SUSPIRIA IS GONNA BE REMADE BY AN AMERICAN STUDIO!!!

Argento's true masterpice
Absolutely marvelous! Featuring sophisticated, super-stylish cinematography, an engrossing plot, a hauntingly eerie score, and overly gratuitious gore, Tenebre is a must see for any true horror fan. Argento was inspired to write this after an obsessed Suspiria fan sent him a death threat, and the result is a raw, thoughtful piece of Italian horror. Once again, a trademark Argento killer with a predilection for black leather gloves is on the loose...inspired by murders from the protagonist's latest novel Tenebre. Of course, the movie is superbly shot and utilizes suspenseful vouyeristic angles. The music couldnt be more suitable, but the acting could have used some work. Among the most memorable scenes include flashbacks featuring real life transexual Eva Robins; these scenes are beautifully shot and quite vague until the end. Also this film contains the bloodiest axe murder i have ever seen in my eighteen years...it will send shivers down your spine! Granted, Tenebre is an extremely violent and gory film, but make no mistake; the kills are elegantly executed and done with such finesse that one almost forgets that murder is wrong. In comparison, over-top-gore films such as Dead Alive or Dawn of the Dead seem rather crass and childish. Though many consider Deep Red (an excellent film, by the way) to be Argento's masterpiece, I side with Tenebre. The pace is much, much quicker, the camera work is more complex, deaths are more dramatic, and the plot held my attention the whole way through. Deep Red (the full, uncut 126 minute version),with all due respect, suffers from pointless, lengthy dialogue and a few uneventful sequences..great ending though! If you have a choice, pick Tenebre. What Im trying to say is that Dario Argento is unequivocally the master of horror. Don't miss this one!

AWESOME SUSPENSFUL THRILLER!!
This was the first film of Dario Argento I had the privledge of watching and I must say I loved it. The film kept me on the edge of my seat, wondering who the killer was. Interesting, nicely paced plot, decent acting, eerie soundtrack and great killing scenes make for an amazing flick.

I was so impressed with Tenebre that I wanted to check out other Argento works as well but "Suspiria" was the only one I could find around here. So if you have the privledge of seeing any Argento films I would check them out starting with Tenebre. That's how good this movie is!!

one of argento's best
I've seen 7 of his movies total after being very impressed with
the first movie I watched by him suspiria. Out of Suspiria, Phenomena, Deep Red, Stendhal Syndrome, Sleepless and Inferno I would have to say this is one of my favorites. I even own the soundtrack its great !@#

One of Argento's best
This easily ranks among my top 5 from Dario Argento.

This gem tells the tale of a horror author Peter Neal and his newest book, Tenebre. The book is deemed by some to be sick and sexist (since the victims in the book are females). However, a homicidal fanatic is killing people in the same fashion of the book! The movie definately has the stylish touch of Mr. Argento. Also, I found the cast to be rather superb (John Saxon is in it, and he always gives a good performance). A nice surprise ending too (though it would be somewhat copied in Stendhal Syndrome). Definately worth watching. Hell, buy it! ... Read more

Reviews (28)

Broad appeal for Argento's debut feature
Even those who don't care for writer-director Dario Argento's later baroque extravaganzas may warm to his debut feature "The Bird With the Crystal Plumage" (L'Uccello dalle Piume di Cristallo, 1969), a well-received thriller in which an American writer living in Rome (Tony Musante) witnesses an assault on a woman in an art gallery and is subsequently targeted by the would-be assassin, a crazed psychopath who's been terrorizing the city with a series of brutal murders. Typical of an Argento thriller, the hapless hero's investigation unleashes a cycle of violence which culminates in a climactic unmasking that will take some viewers completely by surprise. Loosely inspired by Fredric Brown's novel 'The Screaming Mimi' (filmed under that title in 1958), Argento's first film is a fairly straightforward thriller with horror asides, anchored by a strong narrative, an increasingly bizarre series of supporting characters, and a strong Everyman hero who slots the puzzle together piece by piece before realizing that the most important clue to the killer's identity was there in front of him all the time. Musante is given excellent support by English actress Suzy Kendall as his girlfriend (the scene in which she's besieged alone in her apartment as the killer hacks through the door with a knife is truly the stuff of nightmares) and Enrico Maria Salerno as the cop charged with finding the killer before he/she strikes again.

Despite Argento's prior screenwriting credits, including significant contributions to the script of Sergio Leone's "Once Upon a Time in the West" (C'era una Volta il West, 1969), producers were unconvinced of his directorial abilities and wanted to pull him off the picture during the first few weeks of shooting, but Argento persevered under an iron-clad contract and ultimately proved his critics wrong with the finished product, a genuinely engrossing mystery punctuated by scenes of explicit horror. The film puts a late-1960s Italian spin on the kind of movie that Hitchcock had already popularized in America, and is leavened with the same kind of uproarious humor: Salerno gets the best line of dialogue during a police line-up when he despairs: "How many times do I have to tell you? Ursula Andress belongs with the transvestites, not the perverts!" And later, an outrageously camp antiques dealer offers a jaw-dropping description of one of the killer's former victims: "It was said she preferred women. I couldn't care less - I'm no racist, for heaven's sake!" Briskly edited by Franco Fraticelli, and featuring a brief appearance from distinctive character actor Reggie Nalder ("Mark of the Devil", "Salem's Lot") as an assassin-for-hire, "Bird" is arguably Argento's warmest, most humane thriller until "Tenebrae" (Tenebre) in 1982.

VCI's region-free DVD runs 95m 47s (not including the UMC logo at the beginning, which wasn't part of the original film) and restores all of the violence that was cut from the initial US theatrical release. The restored material is derived from a separate source - possibly VHS - and is of lesser quality than the bulk of the film, which offers a bright, colorful rendition of the Cromoscope image, slightly reframed to 2.20:1 (from the original 2.35:1), anamorphically enhanced. VCI were forced to issue a 'corrected' version of the disc when it was discovered that one of the restored sequences - the bedroom murder - had been edited incorrectly. However, both versions offer an unnecessary two-channel stereo 'enhancement' of the mono original which sounds more than a little forced and unnatural, made worse because the dialogue is badly out of sync for the duration of the movie, and while the film relies primarily on Vittorio Storaro's widescreen visuals, the audio blemish provides a hideous distraction during prolonged conversation sequences. Ennio Morricone's lilting, melancholy music score is cut off at the end, just as the last credits disappear from the screen, whereas it continued for almost another minute in the theatrical version. There's a letterboxed trailer and an audio-only soundtrack option, but no captions or subtitles of any kind.

Fast-paced and clever
There are two types of Dario Argento films: those after "Four Flies on Grey Velvet" (excluding "The Five Days of Milan," which was never released in the U.S.) and those before it. "The Bird With the Crystal Plumage," Argento's first film, belongs to the category of the before and includes the noticeable differences between the two. While the entire body of Argento's work is something to admire, his first three films are surprisingly well-plotted, given Argento's notorious lack of interest in matters of narrative structure. "Bird" begins with Sam Dalmas, an American writer living in Rome, witnessing an attempted murder in an art gallery. Though he is unable to do anything, his fortuitous arrival saves the victim from almost certain death. His passport confiscated and at first held as a suspect, Sam is told by the police that this is the fourth attack in one month. The only difference is, the victim, a beautiful woman named Monica Ranieri, was the first to survive. Troubled by the idea that he saw something that didn't quite fit, he soon begins his own investigation, putting both his life and the life of his girlfriend at great risk. Several attempts are made on their lives, and everytime Sam is able to learn of someone who might be able to help him, that person is murdered. Finally, in a double-twist ending, Argento reveals the identity of the killer in a cleverly constructed manner. A pure delight from start to finish, "Bird With the Crystal Plumage" is one of the most entertaining (if minimal) thrillers since Hitchcock. Another attribute is Argento's knack for always creating a cast of wonderfully offbeat characters. Be sure to catch Inspector Morosini's exclamation regarding the "perverts" in the line-up sequence. Black humor is equally interwoven with generous amounts of suspense to create a fast-paced and clever mystery/thriller.

A brillant debut!!!
I saw this movie after seeing many other films from the master of horror Dario Argento and I was a little scared about this one but surprisingly I found it very interesting for a first picture from a new director. The cold colors, the calculating plot and suspense keep you into a nail bitting tension from the start to the end. The only bad thing from the movie is probably the english traduction but this is very often from foreign motion pictures. It`s a must for the fans of Dario but also a great thriller for the others.

His first and arguably one of his best
I really couldn't tell you why I have yet to watch every film in Dario Argento's filmography. A few years ago it was easy to claim ignorance of many of this Italian director's important works because it was often so difficult to find any of them in an uncut form. Fortunately, DVD arrived on the scene and salivating film fans with dollars to spend prodded numerous companies to start churning out any movie they could get their hands on to satiate the masses. It wasn't too long before practically every Argento film arrived on store shelves, with many of these releases being the uncut, unrated editions. Even Troma, the flagship of flaccid filmmaking, released a so-so version of Argento's "The Stendhal Syndrome." People outside of the world of Italian horror cinema have most likely never heard of Dario Argento, unfortunately. These days, more people are familiar with the director's beautiful daughter Asia than with the horror maestro himself. What a shame. Argento's films, at least the ones I have seen, are masterpieces of style injected with truly cringe inducing gore. And to think it all started in earnest with this engaging Hitchcockian thriller, "The Bird With the Crystal Plumage." Argento and his fans never looked back, but this is an apt starting point for those unfamiliar with this director's work.

An American reporter staying in Rome witnesses a truly shattering event one evening when he sees a gruesome assault takes place inside of an art gallery. Barred from interfering with the proceedings due to huge sliding glass doors, Sam Dalmas can only look on with horror as two figures, one clad entirely in black and the other a woman, struggle with each other over a very shiny knife. The person in black flees the scene of the crime, leaving behind the hapless woman with a knife wound to the abdomen. When Dalmas does his duty by calling in the police, his story leads the officers to cast a doub