SUSPIRIA

Directed by Dario Argento
Written by Dario Argento and Daria Ncolodi
Cinematography by Luciano Tovoli
Music by Goblin with the collaboration of Dario Argento
Cast: Jessica Harper, Stefania Casini, Flavio Bucci, Miguel Bose, Barbara Magnolfi

1977/98 mins/Color/6.1 DTS
2.35:1 anamorphic/English/Italy/NTSC Region 0

Review from Blue Underground DVD

A pretty, young American girl, Suzy Bannion (Jessica Harper) arrives on a rainy night to a prestigious dance academy in Germany, but she is not allowed in. That night a horrific, brutal, double murder occurs. The next day, she is allowed in the school. But, as murders and weird occurrences begin to amount more and more, she begins to learn that the school is run by a coven of evil witches.

Dario Argento’s masterpiece remains, arguably, his best film. It is certainly his most beautiful, scariest, and creepiest movie. His style is at its most baroque here, with his stunning and haunting use of colors like blue, green, and red. The beautiful look of the film is further augmented by the viciousness of gore. The aforementioned double murder at the beginning remains one of splatterdom’s definitive and most powerful moments, ever.

Then, there is the stunning score by the Goblins. Along with their work on Argento’s own classic DEEP RED and George Romero’s DAWN OF THE DEAD, it ranks as their greatest work. The music is scary and powerful, and sucks the viewer into a nightmare of aural assault that completely captures you.

From a cast stand point Harper is perfect in the role, because her big, pretty eyes evoke an innocence that is perfect for the character, who is suddenly sucked into this horror. Perhaps, the story and narrative are not always the most linear, but the images, sounds, and terror of the film carry it well into the classic reputation the film has rightfully earned, itself, both amongst fans and critics.

Blue Underground bewitches us with this amazing edition of SUSPIRIA on DVD. Presented in its anamorphic widescreen aspect ratio of 2.35:1; most of this release is a direct port from the old Anchor Bay release. But for those who did not get to buy that version this is a most have. The transfer, itself, though, is new and looks truly breathtaking. This movie has never looked this beautiful! The colors are rich and vibrant, while the blacks are thick and full. And, the sound, in Dolby Digital Surround will blow you away. It is loud and powerful with a punching bass.

Of course, the extras are the same as in the Anchor Bay release. Sadly, that means the talent bios end in 2001, but really this is a minor and unimportant complaint. Also, featured on the first disc are the film’s international (which I never was really a big fan of) and US (which, on the other hand, I have always been fond of) trailers, as well as the TV spot, and three radio spots.

There is also a video for “Suspiria” by Daemonia, the curebt band of former Goblin musician Claudio Simonetti, which while looking a little on the cheesy side, is such a great, creepy song, that you won’t care about that. The very cool poster and stills gallery rounds out the extras.

Disc two is SUSPIRIA: 25th ANNIVERSARY an excellent documentary that covers all one needs to about this classic. The interviews with Argento, Daria Nicolodi, Harper, Udo Keir, Stefani Cesini (who still looks pretty good, by the way) and others are very informative and entertaining. They clearly are happy and pleased to have worked on such a magnificent film as this. I really loved it when they talked about their favorite anecdotes and scenes in the film, as well as the technical discussions on the making of it and the history behind the film’s story is truly fascinating.

The two disc set comes in a regular sized keep case which features a very cool cover. Inside, there is a spring 2007 Blue Underground catalog, and since the case is transparent, the twenty-six chapters, that the film is broken into, are listed on the inside cover. It does not list the nine chapters that the documentary is broken into, but that is OK. Both discs feature cool, interactive menus. Quite simply put, no true horror collection is complete without this film.

Image:

Audio:

Extras:

Packaging:

This Film Features:

Review by Giovanni Deldio. All Rights Reserved. 2007. ©

You can purchase this DVD at our official sponser by clicking on the image above.