Well, what can I say that already hasn't been said. Dario Argento's 'Suspiria' is simply fantastic. A visual tour de force that has turned the heads of horror fans the world over since its release back in the late 70's.
The story, if anyone out there doesn't know (where the hell have you been hiding?!), is about a young girl Suzy Banyon (played by the gorgeous Jessica Harper) who goes to finish her dance schooling at a mysterious Bavarian dance school where things truly aren't what they seem. Witchcraft is the order of the day here and Argento takes the simple plotline and delivers one of the best slices of cinematic eye candy in quite some time.
An absolute delight to view and in fact view over and over again. Argento here utilises perfectly every aspect of the production. The direction, the strong use of lighting and Goblin's thumping soundtrack all lock into place to deliver a very strong finished piece.
Okay, I hear you...what about the disc! Well, while not being the most jam packed of discs which is strange considering this is meant to be a '25th Anniversary Special Edition' it still is a very welcome addition into my collection.
The widescreen print looks stunning, I haven't seen the film look so good (and I couldn't tell you the countless amount of times I've watched over the years!) There were several scenes when I was more than thrilled with the image quality, rediscovering the film again like a old lost friend and good image quality really is a bonus when you're watching such a significant work.
The audio is optional between a nice 5.1 Dolby surround in Italian or a 2.0 English stereo mix (which is slight shame really considering the great picture quality). The 5.1 Italian mix is great, though a lack of English subtitling options takes away from some non Italian viewers (but hey, it is an Italian release after all). The English stereo track is fine though not want I'd love to hear thumping through my surround system (roll on Anchor Bay's version).
The only extra on the disc is a great one - a 20 minute interview with the man himself. It opens with Argento seated at a private screening of 'Suspiria' and after the opening titles roll he then goes into great detail about the films production, its cast and more. But again, as this is an Italian release there are no English subs so this excellent extra is strictly for Italian speakers (or folk that just like the sound of Argentos voice!?)
As I said before, maybe not the most brim full Special edition, but CDE and 20th Century Fox have delivered a nice enough disc to keep most of Argento's obsessive fans happy (at least until Anchor Bay deliver their own Special Edition). If you can't wait any longer, go buy this now! You wont be disapointed.
Directed by Dario Argento |
Released by 20th Century Fox/CDE |
Region 2 - Pal |
Ratio - Anarmorphic widescreen |
Audio - 5.1 Dolby Surround Italian/2.0 Stereo English |
Extras : |
Exclusive interview with Argento |
Biography |