American dancer Suzy Bannion arrives at an expensive ballet school in Freiburg, Germany only to find that strange, incredibly sadistic murders are happening. When one of the victims is her roommate, she can't let go and investigates Nancy Drew style, coming to the conclusion that the school is run by a coven of witches intent on taking out anyone they see as a threat. This movie is short on plot and logic but will overwhelm your senses with style, atmosphere, TECHNI-color, and creepiness. If you just sit back, absorb the tone and don't overthink things, you will more than likely love this haunting classic. Never have I seen a movie so full of psychedelic color and intense sound...the score (and soundtrack placement) by Goblin is overwhelmingly eerie. Like John Carpenter's THE FOG, it took me many years and views to finally "get" this movie and accept the nonlinear structure, but now that I do...I can't get enough of it! The opening double homicide scene is lavishly violent and disturbing, drawn out in a colored haze of rubber reality never seen before or again. It's here that I noticed Argento's obsession with black gloved maniacs, broken glass, and disjointed editing that elevates his splatter into high art. The ending to the movie, while irritatingly quick, obviously inspired directors like Sam Raimi and many others to do their thing (thinking EVIL DEAD here). There's something about SUSPIRIA that is highly addictive for me, once you experience it and understand where it's coming from in its surrea tone, you just want to watch it over and over again! Give it a try and keep an open mind. A high art, splatter classic from legendary director Dario Argento. Incidentally, this is the first entry in a trilogy of films about the evil witches. Follow-ups include INFERNO and MOTHER OF TEARS.
American dancer Suzy Bannion arrives at an expensive ballet school in Freiburg, Germany only to find that strange, incredibly sadistic murders are happening. When one of the victims is her roommate, she can't let go and investigates Nancy Drew style, coming to the conclusion that the school is run by a coven of witches intent on taking out anyone they see as a threat. This movie is short on plot and logic but will overwhelm your senses with style, atmosphere, TECHNI-color, and creepiness. If you just sit back, absorb the tone and don't overthink things, you will more than likely love this haunting classic. Never have I seen a movie so full of psychedelic color and intense sound...the score (and soundtrack placement) by Goblin is overwhelmingly eerie. Like John Carpenter's THE FOG, it took me many years and views to finally "get" this movie and accept the nonlinear structure, but now that I do...I can't get enough of it! The opening double homicide scene is lavishly violent and disturbing, drawn out in a colored haze of rubber reality never seen before or again. It's here that I noticed Argento's obsession with black gloved maniacs, broken glass, and disjointed editing that elevates his splatter into high art. The ending to the movie, while irritatingly quick, obviously inspired directors like Sam Raimi and many others to do their thing (thinking EVIL DEAD here). There's something about SUSPIRIA that is highly addictive for me, once you experience it and understand where it's coming from in its surrea tone, you just want to watch it over and over again! Give it a try and keep an open mind. A high art, splatter classic from legendary director Dario Argento. Incidentally, this is the first entry in a trilogy of films about the evil witches. Follow-ups include INFERNO and MOTHER OF TEARS.
