Review of Dario Argento: An Eye for Horror (2001) by Becca W — 12 Feb 2011

Dario Argento's days of making great horror films are long behind him, however it's nice to be reminded as to why the man is an important figure in cinema. This Mark Kermode-narrated documentary is a short, sweet piece that sums up Argento nicely, a great introduction for people who are unfamiliar and a solid look for seasoned fans as well. One expects it to merely go through a checklist of his filmography, fortunately the film is more interested in what Argento's work means as an artist, making it smarter than most puff pieces.

What I appreciated most about it was that it scoffed at the idea that Argento is the "Italian Hitchcock", a lazy comparison that often gets used, pointing out that Argento's films are far too impressionistic to draw comparisons to Hitch. The only similarity there are killers with gloves, and suspense often happens. The film also addresses the elephant in the room, which is Argento's odd relationship in cinema with the women in his life, specifically his ex Daria Nicolodi, who has died horribly in many of his films, and his daughter Asia, who has been subjected to horrible acts in his movies as well. While it doesn't go too deep, it does actually talk about it, which I didn't actually expect.