MOTW #2 Suspiria

[PackBacker]

Movie of the Week 2


"Suspiria" (1977)

Directed by: Dario Argento
Written by: Dario Argento, Daria Nicolodi
Starring: Jessica Harper, Stefania Casini



http://www.carrboro.com/carrborofilmfestival/AugustSecondCinema_files/suspiria.jpg


Have at it schmoes. I will be back in a couple hours with my impressions.

Beware possible SPOILERS throughout this thread!


Upcoming MOTW schedule:
#3 John Carpenter's Vampires
#4 Phantasm
#5 The Haunting (1963)

[spinetingler]

This is a great flick there are so many great things about it. I love the lighting effects in this movie. It has a great score. The kill scenes give me chill bumbs. There is not much of anything I can say bad about this film. I truly felt terrified while watching this movie.

10/10

[PaddieT]

With few jump moments Dario goes for a more unnerving atmosphere through out the film. Watched it this week again, beatifull colours, amazing and iconic scores, great kills, good story, great direction, some good acting.
But above all unique Argento is my hero

[Kikabi]

Suspiria

First of all, I was surprised this wasn't a foreign language film, even though it is an Italian film. I suppose I was expecting sub-titles, and, at first, thought, with disappointment, that it was dubbed. But I was quickly dissuaded from that. I know, it's an odd little nit-pick, but I was actually looking forward to hearing Italian!

I really enjoyed Suspiria, although I found to be very good but not great. The eerie mysterious atmosphere was just right for a movie about witchcraft. It was a good introduction to Dario Argento for me, although I suspect this isn't one of his best, just as I suspect this isn't the best example of giallo. Or, is it even considered giallo? This freshman doesn't know. Is Suspiria considered his best?

The direction and the look of the film is just terrific and the acting, all around is solid. At times I found the score disrupting, with the use of strange voices and sounds. For instance, when everyone has to bed down together in the dance room, I thought "how can anyone sleep through all that racket?" It was only when the noise quieted down did I realize that it was the score and not noise coming from the building itself. My other nit-pick is that the tomato-soup colored blood took away some of the reality for me.

It did leave me with some unanswered questions. What did the piano player do to have deserved having the spell placed on his dog? In the plaza scene, I was actually more afraid for the dog! Because it's become so cliched that if there's a dog in a horror movie (or thriller), it must die. So it was a scary twist for me when the dog turned on his master. Even worse when the dog began eating him, something a dog just wouldn't do in a normal situation. That was a great scary scene. That and Suzy discovering her wine was half blood. Goosebumps for me!

What I began questioning while I watched the movie was, why Suzy? Why did they pick her to mess with? What did she do that was so wrong? It's not until later in the film, after they started drugging her food, that Sara tells it was she at the door when Suzy arrived on that first rainy night. And later when Suzy remembers the words "secret" and "iris." (or am I not remembering the order of scenes correctly?) Anyway, I don't understand why the coven were so keen on killing Suzy. And if they were, why didn't they just do it, rather than have her hanging around drugged from the food? Of course, she did prove to be a threat - but how did they know that early on?

But all of that aside, as I wrote, I really enjoyed it and give it a 8.5/10

As for my Horror Movie High classes, it meets both Influential Horror Directors and Foriegn Horror: Italian assignments. :D

[JJFlamingo]

An okay film. A little hard to follow at times but that's true of most Eurohorrors. The style is something to see, though. Argento may be overrated, but he ain't no hack, either. And Jessica Harper is definitely one of my favorite actresses of the era. She even made Shock Treatment watchable. Here, the script doesn't give her much to work with, but her presence and charisma certainly carry the day...

[Cronos]

i'll have to try and give this another look later, there's 2 things i remember really loving about Suspiria, one was the cinematography, while Argento doesn't seem to know how to direct his actors he really has a great eye for visuals (at least in most of his pre-90's films). the other is Goblin's score, it fits perfectly with the film and adds a creepiness to a number of scenes, the dog attack in the square being a perfect example

[Frank the Tank]

5/10

Suspiria has a wonderful look to it like a deadly fairy tale. The soundtrack is amazing and the kills are creative. It does have a few suspensful scenes and the ending is disturbing. The style is here, but the substance is not. The characters are pretty poorly written, the script is pretty lame, their is a lot of unintentional comedy and the acting is bad at points. The only actor who is damn good is Jessica Harper. Suspiria is a movie that I admire more than I actually like.

[spinetingler]

My DVD actually has it in Italian if you choose to watch it that way. I don't mind the "tomato-soup colored blood" I think it fits with the over the top lighting. I just feel it matches the bright colors.

Alot of people argue Argento's best movie some say it's Tenebre (my favorite), others argue it's Deep Red. I also really enjoy Opera and Demons too.

[!MorganOnyx!]

The opening kill is one of the best and most effective of the genre to date. The acting is generally poor but because I have a genuine fear of creepy women this movie really got me good. Not as scary as what I would've liked but definately dread induced for the larger part.

[mattmanw54301]

Is Suspiria considered his best?

When looking at Argento's films, I choose to divide them into 2 categories: supernatural and natural(i.e., no ghosts or witchcraft, usually a killer). As far as supernatural Argento films go, Suspiria is the best IMO. As far as general giallos go, I think Deep Red is the best. Although I have not seen Tenebre.

[Kikabi]

Originally posted by mattmanw54301
When looking at Argento's films, I choose to divide them into 2 categories: supernatural and natural(i.e., no ghosts or witchcraft, usually a killer). As far as supernatural Argento films go, Suspiria is the best IMO. As far as general giallos go, I think Deep Red is the best. Although I have not seen Tenebre.

Thanks for that insight. I've heard a lot of good things about Deep Red. Adding it to my long list of rentals! I understand Opera is quite good as well?

[mattmanw54301]

Opera is weird. Good, but weird.

[MidnightAngel]

One of my favorite movies by Dario Argento. The soundtrack by Goblin owns!

[wheresdonnie?]

First Argento movie that I saw, and it's been my favourite since! Incredibly creepy atmosphere, a great soundtrack and utterly ridiculous in the best giallo tradition. The setpieces, especially the apartment and the square at night, are amazing. Jessica Harper is definitely one of Argento's better lead actresses. Better than Inferno. Also the use of colour is astounding. This is one of the best horror films ever made. "You can run from Suspiria. You can hide from Suspiria. But you cannot escape....Suspiria!"

[Ratlehed]

Originally posted by PackBacker



Upcoming MOTW schedule:
#3 John Carpenter's Vampires
#4 Phantasm
#5 The Haunting (1963)



Thats a really good line-up. I dont have Suspiria and I am reallly short on time this week. But I do have the next 3. So I'll be into those disscusions.

[Brendan M.]

Suspiria is defintly a cool movie but the ending did feel a bit abrupt.

Cool movie but I prefer Argento's Deep Red.

[Kings-Rook1]

The vivid reds, blues and other primary colors and lighting really make this one a visual treat. With Lush sets, wicked sounds from Goblin and Dario Argento’s camera work every scene has got something interesting to look at and hear. Unfortunately though the script and flow are another matter altogether. In general the acting is good but nothing stands out as noteworthy (positive or a negative). The general story line is good, but its delivery through the script is definitely one of the movies weak points. It seems as though Dario and Daria were trying to build suspicion and paranoia but only ended up with a slow pace and a near stand still flow in the middle of the movie. It seemed as though the blind piano player was killed just to have something spooky happen to fill this void. The film does pick back up for the climax and trailing action but it is so rushed that what should be an entire act is only a couple of scenes with little to no dénouement.

Favorite Scene: The Bat Attack! So cheesy, so good. I love the little critters teeth.

Favorite Line: Bad luck isn't brought by broken mirrors, but by broken minds.

7/10

As far as the color of the blood goes, during the first kill I got the impression that it was intentional bright red to match the color of the red tiles on the floor. Now during the dog attack the orange hue was just sloppy special effects. The color did improve for the nose and spit up shot that followed and was decent for when Jessica collapsed.

[ParileseMonster]

I like this flick and the score also! The deaths are pretty cool and those maggots in the hairbrush really disturbed me.
Blind piano man was amusing and the head unseen chick behind the sheet still gives me the friggin willies!
This one is in my collection!
The contrast between the airport and the opening of the stormy world outside is great. I love that part!

[PackBacker]

Sorry for the delay in getting back here. Life sucks sometimes.

It had been a couple years since I had last viewed "Suspiria". I remember just loving this film and falling head over heels for Argento. Re-watching the film I still think it's beautiful but it sort of lagged in parts for me.

The two most noteworthy things for me are the score and the colors/lighting. Often I find myself loathing the music in Italian films. I usually find it excessive or completely inappropriate. Nothing could be farther than the truth with this film. Subtle, creepy, and melodic is the name of the game.

"Suspiria" also breaks the mold with the lush colors and lighting throughout the film. The first thought with a horror film is that of darkness. There are some dark scenes but more often we see vibrant colors and some wicked red filters. It's oddly beautiful and a huge diversion from what I am used to seeing.

Similarly the camerawork is often exquisite with some sweeping shots and tracking shots. Love him or hate him, Argento has style oozing out of everything he does.

So what about the actual meat of the film- the story and acting? This time around I felt the film dragged through the middle. The beginning is solid as is the ending (with some noted dated effects). I actually nodded off once or twice which I don't remember on previous viewings.

The acting was so-so. I think the dialogue suffered from translation. Certain scenes just seemed ridiculously inappropriately placed--- ie the locker room scene between the two girls discussing the snake. WTF was that?

The effects are going to get a pass from me. The dog attack and bat looked rough but I'm going to chalk that up to being thirty years ago and the Italians. The outlined witch in the finale also has suffered with age but CGI would probably make things worse. The kills in general were effective. In fact my favorite scene in the film is the first death- incredibly well executed (no pun intended).

I'd probably slap this one with a 7-8 out of 10. While it doesn't live up to my past impressions it is still a beautiful film full of atmosphere.

[Kings-Rook1]

I know everyone seems to dig the first death scene, but am I the only one that found it needing some better editing? I know it’s 1977 and Italian and It was gory and elaborate and all, but just a bit too choppy (scene wise) for me. I liked it, I just don't think it as great as some are making it out to be.

[Kikabi]

I just checked out that scene again, and it reminded me that it confused me concerning sense of place and time. She's pulled out of the window, then suddenly she's somewhere else - on a wide ledge? on the roof? Then suddenly she's over the stained-glass. And when did the killer find the time to cut up that hole in her chest to get at her heart? Yeah, it is a bit choppy. But on the whole, it is a cool scene.

And I agree with you about your comments concerning the scene about the dog killing the blind man as being filler. I suppose that why I was confused about that whole thing. It never established what the blind man had done to deserved the witches wrath. There didn't seem to be a point to it.

I still want to know why they singled out Suzy after her first day. Why were they so suspicious of her?

[PackBacker]

Originally posted by Kikabi


And I agree with you about your comments concerning the scene about the dog killing the blind man as being filler. I suppose that why I was confused about that whole thing. It never established what the blind man had done to deserved the witches wrath. There didn't seem to be a point to it.



Didn't his dog growl and/or bite the scary, androgynous kid that was the apple of the headmistresses's eye? She threatened him and I think then set the curse and we get Fido on a rampage.

[spinetingler]

Or at least that's what they said I don't think the dog really did anything. They just told him that, why I don't know, cause Miss Tanner I believe it was, seemed to be laughing while she was tell the piano player about the dog biting the boy.

[Kikabi]

Originally posted by spinetingler
Or at least that's what they said I don't think the dog really did anything. They just told him that, why I don't know, cause Miss Tanner I believe it was, seemed to be laughing while she was tell the piano player about the dog biting the boy.

I just rewatched this scene and it's very interesting to really study it with this in mind, while also keeping in mind that Albert, the boy, is part of or connected to the coven, and perhaps the nanny, too. She's the one who put the sickeness spell on Suzy before the class where she collapses.

When the nanny and Albert approach the dog, who's lying outside by the door, Albert has a strange look on his face. At first, I thought it was fear of the dog, but it doesn't make sense he'd be afraid - the dog's chained up and is a familiar presense since he stays out by the dog every day that Daniel the piano player is there. Anyway, the dog just reacts to them by lifting his head and ears, panting. The only omninous thing about this bit is the kid's eyes.

The scene cuts to inside. A moment later, there's a muted sound coming from outside from the dog, then an "Ah!" from the kid and another dog sound. The thing is, the sound from the dog isn't an agressive growl, although it does kind of sounds like the sound dogs makes when they play tug-of-war. And the boy's "Ah" certainly didn't sound like a scream.

Either it was something staged, or the nanny (or Albert, perhaps) purposely made the dog attack Albert. That's my theory. Well, two of them, but I'm leaning to the staged theory. And yes, Miss Tanner did enjoy her power of Daniel. She didn't laugh, but she smiled and looked gleeful several times as she was giving him the boot.

Either that or I'm looking too much into it and the foley guys did a loosey job coming up with a decent menacing growling dog sound and a good kid's scream of pain. Would Argento allow the sound design to be that bad, though?

[Kings-Rook1]

Originally posted by Kikabi
I still want to know why they singled out Suzy after her first day. Why were they so suspicious of her?

The only thing I can come up with is the timing of her arrival coinciding with the murder. She also might have contradicted something the head mistress had told the police when she blurted out that she saw her talking to someone and running through the woods that night. The last bit was her telling the head mistress about the iris. Kind of thin but I guess motivation enough.

As far as the dog goes, maybe they just wanted a new piano player.

[spinetingler]

mabey the boy put a spell on the dog and that's the noise you hear from the dog. But the reason why? mabey cause he was an outsider and they were just plain evil.

[Kikabi]

Originally posted by Kings-Rook1
The only thing I can come up with is the timing of her arrival coinciding with the murder. She also might have contradicted something the head mistress had told the police when she blurted out that she saw her talking to someone and running through the woods that night. The last bit was her telling the head mistress about the iris. Kind of thin but I guess motivation enough.

Actually, Suzy contradicts herself. She tells Miss Tanner that she had arrived at 10pm but was turned away. Later in the same scene, as Miss Tanner is leading her upstairs, she overhears Madame Blanc telling the police that the murdered girl left around 11pm. She interrupts, saying that she saw a girl running from the school at 11pm. I've thought that was odd that she'd say 11pm when, in fact, it's established that she arrived at 10. Did Tanner or Blanc put the wammy on her?

She didn't tell Madame Blanc about secret and iris until after the nanny (or Albert) put the sickness spell on her - they did that to made sure she'd stay at the school rather than at Olga's apartment. And to keep her drugged. She didn't tell Blanc for a couple of days after that - after maggot night and dog attact night. So, again, why was she singled out? Yeah, maybe it's just the timing since she saw Pat run from the school.


As far as the dog goes, maybe they just wanted a new piano player.
Originally posted by spinetingler
mabey the boy put a spell on the dog and that's the noise you hear from the dog. But the reason why? mabey cause he was an outsider and they were just plain evil.
Probably the only semi-reasonable answers we're going to be able to come up with, since there doesn't seem to be actual reasonable ones I can think of.;)

[hrdude]

This film is all about the ambience, the lighting and atmosphere. Is the acting bad....most defintely however that doesn't detract from the skills of the filmaker.

[Kings-Rook1]

Originally posted by Kikabi
I've thought that was odd that she'd say 11pm when, in fact, it's established that she arrived at 10. Did Tanner or Blanc put the wammy on her?[/B]

Missed the whole 11pm/10pm deal, maybe they just don't like Americans? Regardless it's a week spot in the story and it might all just be something in the translation that did covert well. It could also be like spinetingler said, "they were just plain evil." it doesn't make for good story telling but it is a reason.

[PaddieT]

The bad acting, the pieces of the film that are hard to understand there are flaws but they give the film character and make it very Argento. Rather be uniquely flawed than cutter crap.