SUSPIRIA (1977)

Some sexy slumber party

Spot the film spotlight

It's curtains for you!

Title: Suspiria
Year: 1977
Director: Dario Argento
Format: Blu-ray
Label: Nouveaux Pictures

Notes:

One of the most memorable horror films I've ever seen with unforgettable music and bonkers visual design. The intermittently dubious dubbing of the cast adds a helpful touch of the surreal to a fairly crazy scenario (witches running a dance academy)!

I've watched this a few times before but this was this year's obligatory Halloween screening and there are few better choices. This time I took note of the blurb on the back of the blu-ray case and paid attention to Argento's roving camera. It struck me that he frequently had the camera behind the characters, following them in creepy silence.

The final ten minutes of the film play out at a breakneck pace and lead to a furiously condensed conclusion that might seem a little lacklustre to some but I find the abruptness a welcome respite from the brilliant sequences that precede it. Burn the place down, end the story - why linger?

A note on this edition; the colours look really over saturated and while this may be true to the original theatrical prints I can't help but think the film would benefit from a more restrained rendering.