Review of Suspiria (1977) by Craig T — 28 Mar 2012

Dario Argento has made a lasting impression in the horror film genre. With a million features under his belt, he has remained one of the best directors in his class. In Suspiria, Argento uses mood elements and music to successfully aid his creature-feature. The cast and performances are not what one would pinpoint here as even marginal but, again, the mood and visuals carry the film well. He somehow trains these hypnotizing colors to stand out in a vibrant effort and they are perhaps the strongest support structure on this project of terror.

When a young dancer arrives at a renowned ballet academy in Germany, she quickly realizes that she is in dark territory. Immediately, people start dropping like flies and she is engaged in a real life mystery... that includes her own life being in danger. The teachers and staff seem stiff and suspicious, especially when it is rumored that they leave the school at night but no one has ever seen them leave after lights-out. Here begins a mental frenzy of the story's puzzle, how do they leave undetected and are they the ones doing all the killing? Jessica Harper plays the lead here as young Suzy and we try to stick with her and see what turns up, no matter how diluted the plot seems.

This film displays a new look for blood and terror thanks to Argento. The pace and style mixture are a bit off, but somehow he made his ideas work beautifully. Suspiria has some thrilling moments and despite it being shot very well with attractive settings and soothing cinematography, it's plot seems a bit diluted. In the end, when we see what has been actually going on and why, the climax seems too quick and the credits seem to roll in a flash. This is a perplexing mixed bag and though flawed (annoying music might be the biggest flaw) this horror gem burns into the mind and becomes a permanent fixture. A brilliant sequence was when the blind man and his dog are walking in a dark, wide open area. I liked the outcome of this scene and the hiding suspense with a "right in front of your face" nature. Suspiria is a beautiful horror benchmark that more than makes up for any imperfections with genius direction and one of the coolest horror atmospheres I've ever seen. (B).