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Documentarian Vittorio De Seta’s first narrative feature, Bandits of Orgosolo, builds upon several of the director’s shorts about the Sardinian region where the film is set. Featuring a cast of non-professionals, the film follows the shepherd Michele (Michele Cossu) as he and his young son, Peppeddu (Peppeddu Cuccu), end up fleeing deeper into the mountainous countryside when the father is wrongly suspected of livestock rustling and murder. With carabiners on his trail, Michele leads his child and his sheep into higher and rockier ground, and as vegetation and water become increasingly scarce, starvation rips through the flock. Eventually, and in a kind of self-fulfilling prophecy, circumstances force Michele into the sort of crimes of which he was initially innocent.

This overarching narrative recalls Vittorio De Sica’s seminal Bicycle Thieves. But where De Sica’s neorealist drama took a snapshot of postwar Italy’s shattered economic and moral torpor,...

After the lackluster reception of Inferno, the second entry in his supernaturally inclined Three Mothers trilogy, Dario Argento pivoted back to the giallo genre that he’d helped put on the world-cinema map with the release of The Bird with the Crystal Plumage back in 1970. Not content to merely “return to form,” and plagued by some personal demons of his own, Argento unleashed the supreme meta-giallo Tenebrae, an endlessly reflexive murder mystery about the solving of murder mysteries.

The notion that Tenebrae is primarily concerned with the conditions of its own making is signaled straight away. The first thing we see is a copy of a book also called Tenebrae. A voiceover narrator declaims a passage that describes murder as a liberating, creative act. What’s more, the scene introduces two of the most elemental bits of giallo iconography: the black gloves worn by the killer and a shiny cutthroat razor.

After helping to pioneer Italy’s budding giallo genre throughout the 1970s with influential titles like The Bird with the Crystal Plumage, The Cat o’ Nine Tails, Four Flies on Grey Velvet, and Deep Red, Dario Argento took a brief sabbatical from the lurid thrillers to explore supernatural elements in Suspiria and Inferno. When the latter failed at the box office, he made a triumphant return to gialli in 1982 with Tenebrae (sometimes spelled Tenebre; originally released in the US as Unsane).

While his American contemporaries were trying to come up with inventive instruments of death to propel slasher films, Argento was designing more lavish ways to film his kill scenes. Suspiria remains his crowning achievement, but Tenebrae finds the filmmaker bringing his honed visual panache to the giallo sandbox in which he made a name for himself. The result stands not only as one of Argento’s strongest efforts but also a landmark giallo work.

Tenebrae and Black Circle - Synapse Films Delivers Terrifying Sci-Fi Horror and Dark, Grisly Giallo in September: "On September 5th, acclaimed Spanish horror director Adrian Garcia Bogliano’s Black Circle comes to Blu-ray in an impressive edition that includes its original soundtrack on CD.

When sisters Celeste and Isa play a mysterious vinyl record from the 1970s, neither had any idea what they would unlock. They soon discover that the record, meant to induce calmness, created duplicates of themselves. As their doppelgängers grow in strength their only hope lies in finding the hypnotist who created the recording years ago. Featuring a mesmerizing score by Rickard Gramfors and a haunting performance by Christina Lindberg (Thriller: A Cruel Picture), Black Circle is a film you won’t soon forget.

The Blu-ray edition includes the original motion picture soundtrack on an included CD; an audio commentary with director Adrian Garcia Bogliano; the original...

Luigi Comenicini’s The Sunday Woman makes for an intriguing blend of police procedural and comedy of manners. It isn’t really a giallo, despite an investigation into a bizarre murder that fuels further misdeeds. As a satire of Turin’s upper classes, it isn’t nearly as trenchant, let alone grim, as other examples of commedia all’italiana like Dino Risi’s Il Sorpasso or Pietro Germi’s Seduced and Abandoned, though it does share their preoccupation with character types that border on the grotesque. Taken on its own terms, the film is absorbing, frequently amusing, and exceedingly well directed by Comencini, who keeps things moving with admirably brisk efficiency.

When sleazy architect Garrone (Claudio Gora) is found beaten to death with a large stone phallus (shades of Stanley Kubrick’s A Clockwork Orange), Commissioner Santamaria (Marcello Mastroianni) takes up the case. A handy clue soon puts him on...

Hello, everyone! We’re back after a brief hiatus to give you a look at the horror and sci-fi headed home this week on home media. As it turns out, the month of August’s releases are starting off on a quiet note, as we have two titles getting the 4K treatment this Tuesday—Dario Argento’s Tenebrae and Flatliners from Joel Schumacher—and then a handful of indie horror arriving on both Blu-ray and DVD: Scream at the Devil, Paranormal Devil, The Farm, and Joker’s Poltergeist.

Flatliners 4K

Some Lines Shouldn’T Be Crossed.

Known for his impressively eclectic filmography and for helping to launch the careers of several young Hollywood stars of the 80s and 90s, Joel Schumacher tackles the existential question that, at one time or another, haunts us all: what awaits us after we die?

At the University Hospital School of Medicine, five ambitious students...

40th Anniversary Classic Giallo Film Tenebrae Coming July 26 in 4K Ultra HD: "Italian horror master Dario Argento elevates the giallo genre to new heights with 1982's Tenebrae, a darkly humorous and notoriously grisly murder-mystery that many consider to be one of his finest works.

Now, Synapse Films, in conjunction with Arrow Video, makes this gory suspense classic available for the first time on Uhd in a new 4K restoration for Tenebrae's 40th anniversary!

American mystery author Peter Neal comes to Rome to promote his newest novel, Tenebrae. A razor-wielding psychopath is on the loose, taunting Neal and murdering those around him in gruesome fashion just like the character in his novel. As the mystery surrounding the killings spirals out of control, Neal investigates the crimes on his own, leading to a mind-bending, genre-twisting conclusion that will leave you breathless!

Co-starring John Saxon (A Nightmare on Elm Street), Daria Nicolodi (Phenomena...

It’s been eight years since the last film from Italian master Dario Argento, but we recently got the news he would finally be returning with a new feature titled Occhiali Neri (aka Black Glasses). The project would reunite him with his daughter Asia Argento, who would lead the film, following up their last collaboration Dracula 3D. We now have a few more details on the film, including a mightily enticing tidbit regarding the soundtrack.

“It will be my return to crime films,” the director tells the Italian outlet Repubblica. “It’s the adventure, in the nocturnal Rome, of a Chinese girl and child. In the second part, the escape takes them into the rocky, bushy countryside of Lazio. [It’s] different from the sweetness of the Tuscan valleys, but for me beautiful.”

In major news, he then revealed the involvement of Daft Punk, who will score the film. “They are my admirers,...

Synapse Films has already done some of the most impressive home media work of the 2010s with their stunning 4K restoration of Dario Argento's Suspiria, which was released on Blu-ray last year following its theatrical release. And they're not done yet, as they're releasing their 4K restoration of the film on 4K Ultra HD this November.

Exclusively announced by Rue Morgue, Suspiria will be released on 4K Ultra HD on November 19th. Here's what President of Synapse Films, Don May, Jr. told Rue Morgue's Michael Gingold about the latest version of their phenomenal restoration:

“Suspiria is the ultimate genre film to make the jump to Uhd. With the beautiful color palette and directional audio, there was no better candidate to set the standard for older catalog titles for this new 4K format. We went back to the original 4K files and basically started over, reconfiguring the theatrical Dci-P3 color...

Luca Guadagnino's Suspiria is now in U.S. cinemas and opens in the U.K. on November 16, 2018.Luca Guadagnino was a 10-year-old student at summer camp when he became transfixed by the poster advertising Dario Argento’s Suspiria, excitedly drawing versions of the key iconic bloodied ballerina image in his school notebook. But it wasn’t until he was 13, after seeing the actual movie broadcast on Italian television, that he knew for certain the terrifying tableaux of fantasy, fascination and fear would somehow feature in his future. And now the Oscar-nominated director has fulfilled his obsessive childhood dream of repurposing the cult shocker that so scarred his psyche in those formative years.But that has been the potent legacy of the original Suspiria for an entire generation of horror aficionados ever since it was released to huge global acclaim and box-office success to become continually listed as one of...

With Suspiria, it seems writer-director Luca Guadagnino is hoping to conjure up a “relentless experience” filled with “uncompromising darkness.” Yikes.

Over on The Hollywood Reporter, Guadagnino spoke at length about his approach to the 1977 film classic, and why his upcoming remake is much more muted in its design. So whereas we’re used to seeing splashes of blood and jump scares be woven into the fabric of any modern horror movie, Suspiria is more subtle in its nature, while the filmmaker also took the time to debunk that bizarre rumor claiming that Tilda Swinton was actually playing two characters.

But first, Luca Guadagnino reiterated his desire to leave viewers rooted to the edge of their seats.

I hope that the movie comes across as a relentless experience that’s going to go deep into your skin all the way down into your spine. I want the movie to perform as...

[this article may contain some minor spoilers for both versions of Suspiria]

If there’s anything more scrutinized than a remake of a movie that was good to begin with, it’s definitely a remake of a good horror movie. The last decade has given scary movie aficionados much anxiety and concern as they’ve watched countless favorites get a fresh coat of paint with a splash of glitz while sacrificing the quality that made the originals stand out in the first place, reaching a point where the remake craze became joke fodder in the late Wes Craven’s Scream 4 when potential victim Kirby (Hayden Panettiere) is asked to name the “remake of the groundbreaking horror movie” that jump started the craze. And what does she do? She lists practically every classic in a minute, a most damning reflection of the direction the genre had gone in the hands of major studios. Untouched at that time, one of those classics...

Suspiria

Blu ray

Synapse

1977 / 2:35 / Street Date March 13, 2018

Starring Jessica Harper, Alida Valli, Joan Bennett

Cinematography by Luciano Tovoli

Production Design by Giuseppe Bassan

Directed by Dario Argento

The story of a ballet school staffed by devil-worshipping harridans, Dario Argento’s Suspiria opened at New York City’s Criterion in the dog days of ’77. A friend was at one of those early matinees when, 26 minutes into the film, his companion leaned over and whispered, “This movie is evil.”

Jessica Harper plays Suzy Bannion, a transplanted New Yorker taking up residence at a German dance academy – just landed in the alpine splendor of Baden-Württemberg, the doll-faced ballerina makes her entrance emerging from an airport lounge lit like a broadway production of Dante’s Inferno.

A windswept taxi ride bombarded by a neon-colored thunderstorm is no less melodramatic but it can’t prepare Suzy for the stark sight waiting at journey’s...

Synapse Films preserved horror history and dazzled viewers with their theatrical screenings and SteelBook Blu-ray release of their Suspiria 4K restoration, but if you missed out on the limited edition SteelBook of Dario Argento's classic horror film, Synapse has you covered this March with two versions of a wide-release Suspiria Blu-ray, along with other March Blu-ray releases that may have you marking your calendar in anticipation.

As reported by Rue Morgue, on March 13th, Synapse Films will release both a two-disc and single-disc Blu-ray of their Suspiria 4K release, as well as Blu-ray releases for the Pet Sematary documentary Unearthed and Untold and the animated samurai movie Path of Blood.

You can view the full lists of special features and cover art for all four Blu-ray releases below. Will you be adding them to your home media collections this March?

Suspiria Two-Disc Blu-ray Special Edition: "Synapse Films Brings Their...

With Christmas now only a week away, there’s a big day of genre-related home entertainment releases to look forward to in the meantime, just in case you were in need of some last-minute gift ideas (or if you were looking to spoil yourself, which is totally cool). Easily my most anticipated Blu-ray release for all of 2017, Synapse Films' stunning 4K restoration of Suspiria gets the royal treatment via an incredible three-disc limited edition Steelbook set this Tuesday, and Severin Films is also keeping busy with their HD upgrade of The Amicus Collection, which includes Asylum, And Now The Screaming Starts, and The Beast Must Die.

Other notable Blu-ray and DVD releases for December 19th include American Gothic, Leatherface, mother!, and the limited edition Steelbook for Donnie Darko.

American Gothic (Scream Factory, Blu-ray)

A new tale of terror from the director of The Legend of Hell House and The Incubus.

It’s been a tough few years for Don May, Jr. and Jerry Chandler of Synapse Films, as they have worked tirelessly on the much-needed 4K restoration of Dario Argento’s Suspiria. The proverbial light is officially at the end of that tumultuous tunnel, though, as the Suspiria Blu-ray is set to be released on December 19th, and the film enjoyed a wonderful resurgence over the last few months, thanks to various theatrical and festival screenings of their efforts (which you can read my thoughts on Here).

Daily Dead recently caught up with Don May, Jr. about the long road that he and his partner have traversed together over the last three years while working on the Suspiria 4K transfer, and he chatted about all the hiccups along the way, working with the film’s cinematographer Luciano Tovoli, getting feedback from the Maestro himself, and more.

And be sure to...

*Updated with the reported release date* "Do you know anything about witches?" Having been shaken to my core by the Goblin score while watching the 4K restoration of Suspiria at this year's Flashback Weekend in Chicago, I highly recommend you seek out the remastered screening if it plays anywhere near you (or several states away—it's that good). If you can't make it to one of the screenings, though, it's coming out on a collectible SteelBook Blu-ray from Synapse Films, and DiabolikDVD.com has revealed the official release date.

According to multiple sources, including DiabolikDVD, the Suspiria Blu-ray SteelBook is slated for a December 19th release from Synapse Films. We have a look at the previously announced special features below, and keep an eye on DiabolikDVD, Amazon, and Synapse Films' official website for more information. In case you missed it, check out Heather Wixson's review of the dazzling 4K restoration.

Guillermo del Toro will have a busy fall promoting his new movie “The Shape of Water,” but he’s squeezing in time to plug another project that’s not his own: Dario Argento’s expressionistic horror classic “Suspiria.” As a guest curator at the upcoming 50th edition of the Sitges Film Festival in Spain, Del Toro will curate a series of Italian gothic and giallo films, but he’s particularly keen on returning Argento’s work to the big screen.

“Dario especially needs this now that we have a little historical perspective to position ‘Suspiria’ as the work of pure madness and cinematic joy it is,” said del Toro. “I think it’s very important to celebrate his place in history.”

Argento’s ominous, tonally complex work follows an American ballet student (Jessica Harper) who enters a German dance school that turns out to be a haven for witchcraft. For many genre aficionados,...

Yesterday, the Chicago Cinema Society sent out a press release detailing their plans on an recent and amazing discovery of finding an Italian print of Dario Argento’s phantasmagorical assault on the senses, Suspiria. I’m sure you have heard the news by now and are hyped up but I wanted to chime in and let you know that, while this is pretty great, this is probably not the best presentation for the film.

I am a lover of 35mm. I program and created a midnight theatrical film program called Late Nite Grindhouse back in 2010 here in St. Louis. I’ve had the opportunity to show plenty of 35mm film prints as well as digital. Some prints were in great shape, some…not so much. As a film programmer and a celluloid junkie, I typically would fight for presenting a film on 35mm vs. Dcp (Digital Cinema Package) or a Blu-Ray. Above all things, the film is the most important thing to be considered about programming. If I’m showing a film that relies on a certain color palette like Suspiria, Halloween or any Mario Bava film, if the elements available to me do not retain what I feel is a proper presentation of those color schemes, I see what other options there are. If there are no other options, I don’t book the film. I tend to program based on my tastes but also films that I think everyone should see as I feel there is importance in the film being presented and where it stands in genre cinema, if not cinema as a whole. One common obstacle is programming a film that will bring people in the door and balancing the payment of theatrical rights and cost of assets. Things have changed drastically just in the 7 years of doing Late Nite Grindhouse regarding the availability of assets. Restorations done for upcoming Blu-Ray releases afford the opportunity to screen something that would be financially irresponsible or it gives me an opportunity for a film that I feel deserves more respect. In the early days, we were lucky enough to be at a theater that didn’t sell off their 35mm equipment for digital. When they got a digital projector, they had 3 projectors in the the projection booth. Granted, the digital projector got the most use for day to day operation but the 35mm projectors would at least be used two times a month if it was a Late Nite Grindhouse show. If we are talking about pristine image, a pristine 35mm film print will win over any digital projection. However, as a ex-projectionist, I also know that since 35mm prints are susceptible to damage. Also, films that were printed on film stock before the early to mid-80’s were printed on a “cheaper” film stock. “Eastman Film Prints” were pretty common and if you have ever done any research on 35mm film prints, you know that those prints go “red” or “magenta” if they are not stored properly and/or pass through a xenon bulb (the light from a projector) multiple times. Hell, even if they are stored properly and untouched, they still fade. With these types of prints, the more the print is shown, the image degrades and has growing opportunities to be damaged. This is why it is important for theaters to have projectionists with experience.

Let’s rewind back a bit and let me tell you about when Late Nite Grindhouse showed Suspiria five years ago. We contacted Fox for the theatrical rights – as they are the rightsholders in the United States and agreed to their financial terms. However, they didn’t have anything to provide us to actually show the film. They didn’t have a print in their vault nor could they recommend anyone to contact (because it is not their job to recommend a third-party) to get a print from. After I did my research, most prints that were in private collections were of the heavily-truncated U.S. cut and I knew I didn’t want to show that. With no Dcp available, I knew that our next best bet would be to try and acquire a Blu-Ray. Once I acquired the best Blu-Ray available, we began planning for the show. In the Summer of 2012, we projected it and turned up the volume to a higher than normal volume (as previously said, the film is an assault on the senses and should be played loud). People were so happy to see it on the big screen and realized just how theatrical the film was and how it was best suited for a theater and not at home. While not the ideal way to show the film, it worked. Some people thought it was a film print and I let them know it wasn’t when asked. Again, while I prefer 35mm, for a film like Suspiria which was 35 years old at the time of showing it and knowing the condition of the Us cut prints, the way we showed it was the best possible. I think it was best for us to show it than to not show it as probably half of the audience had never seen the film before. Most of us have seen the film via Anchor Bay’s DVD or maybe even VHS. Imagine seeing Suspiria in 2012 for the first time on the big screen. Yeah, pretty mindblowing.

2017 is the 40th anniversary of Suspiria. To celebrate, a company called Videa in Italy teamed up with a German lab, TLEFilms, to restore the film for the anniversary. The restoration has already screen theatrically back in January and has since been released on Blu-Ray outside of the United States. However, based on the images I have seen, the screenshots seem muted and the color timing is not satisfactory – which is probably why you are not hearing more about it. This brings me to a common misconception that people think 35mm is better than digital. As said previously, if given a pristine 35mm film print on a first run vs. a digital print, I would agree that 35mm would be the best presentation. What the Chicago Cinema Society found was Not a pristine 35mm film print. They found what is probably the best 35mm print known in existence with the “uncut”/Italian cut of the film. Having said that, being a film fan, I’d love to see this presentation. However, I also know that this is not the best you will see Suspiria.

The Chicago Cinema Society and the other theaters that will be exhibiting this print will have a lot to deal with. First, this is a “frankensteined” presentation. Since the cut is the Italian print of the film, that means that the film language is in Italian. If you know anything about the film, or even Italian cinema, you know that most of the dialogue by the non-English speaking actors was spoken phonetically to give the illusion that they are speaking English. After the filming, in post-production English speaking actors would come in and dub their voices. Since this is the Italian cut, you will see people “speaking English” but hear only Italian. Also, the print itself doesn’t have subtitles. What Ccs is doing is projecting subtitles over the image via a digital projector in a process known as “soft-subbing”. I’ve seen a film presented like this once and I’ll just say that the subtitles were more of a nuisance than a blessing. Once you address that, let’s talk about the image. Assuming you have seen the film before, you know that color is a big deal in the film. It is what makes the film bleed into fantastical territory. The Ccs has stated that their film print has “minimal fading”. They have even filmed their projection of the print to show you the quality via 5 clips loaded on YouTube.

My observation of these clips is that it is pretty clean (especially given it’s age) and that Ccs is definitely true in their assumption that the print has only played a few times. With that said, the 40 years of being printed on what is probably Eastman Film Stock, have faded the blacks into a reddish-brown. The colors are pretty in tact from what I can see from these videos but they are not as potent as they should be. This is also apparent via their picture of the main title.

Courtesy of Chicago Cinema Society

This year, Synapse Films will be releasing their restoration of Suspiria. They have worked on this release for years and have always done great restoration work. In addition, they are working with Luciano Tovoli, the cinematographer of Suspiria to bring us the best and most accurate presentation of the film. Don May Jr. has released images in comparison to the Italian/Videa restoration as well. I have taken one image from his comparison shots that I think should definitely be considered. Also, since I’ve seen some confusion and/or misconception via Facebook, let’s straighten something out. This print is the same cut that Synapse Films is releasing. Ccs didn’t discover a print with new footage. This is the uncut print – which is hard to see on 35mm in the United States – which is the same version we will see when Synapse Films releases their Blu-Ray. In addition, while it is rare to see the “uncut”/Italian cut of the film in the States, it isn’t impossible. In fact, I was reminded about it showing back in October of 2013 (Thanks, Shade)!

Where did the blue go in Videa’s restoration? This image alone tells me that Synapse’s restoration is superior to Videa’s restoration.

To illustrate a point on why I think everyone should wait until Synapse announces their plans for the release, let me show you what Synapse’s presentation would look like versus a mock-up of the low-fade 35mm print that Ccs will be touring.

Here’s an image from Synapse’s restoration:

Here is a mock-up of a faded image:

The mock-up is exactly that, a mock-up, so don’t take this as gospel but it should give you a good idea for a quick comparison. Quite honestly, it is still pretty sharp (probably sharper than if you scanned this exact frame from Ccs’ print). Blacks become a reddish-brown and colors fade in their luminosity. The image is just to give you an idea of how something that even has a low-fade will damage image integrity. You can see from the YouTube clips that the blacks are a reddish-brown just from the camera shot quality.

Here’s the thing, this news is still exciting. I encourage you to support your local movie theater if they decide to show this print because they will be putting some work into it. However, you might notice that there are only a few dates announced. Could this be because programmers around the States are looking towards Synapse’s restoration? Do they know something the general public doesn’t know yet? Very possible. Again, Synapse’s restoration is nearing the end of completion and who knows what their plans are after they send it off to their duplicator to print up Blu-Rays. I know that if I worked on something for years, I’d want to show it to the widest audience available.

All I can say is give it a couple months. Be patient. Who knows what might be announced within the next few months. If you live near any of the screenings already planned by the Chicago Cinema Society, check it out. If you are hours away, please consider everything that has been said in this article. Here are the dates that have been announced so far. Please check out Chicago Cinema Society’s page for more dates as they are added.

7/28: The Metrograph, New York City, NY

9/16: The Belcourt Theatre, Nashville, Tn

Early Fall: Venue confirmed and Tba, Los Angeles, CA

10/14: Coolidge Corner Theatre, Brookline, Ma

10/26+27: Northwest Film Forum, Seattle, Wa

Late Fall: Music Box Theatre, Chicago, Il

11/18: Alamo Drafthouse, Littleton, Co

Feel free to comment below!

By H. Perry Horton

Shot by cinematographer Luciano Tovoli.

The article The Perfect Shots of Dario Argento’s ‘Suspiria’ appeared first on Film School Rejects.

Hungarian action-comedy Kills On Wheels and Icelandic-Danish coming of age story Heartstone take top prizes at Greek festival.Scroll down for full list of winners

Hungarian director Attila Till’s Kills On Wheels (Tiszta Szivvel) has been named best film at the 57th Thessaloniki International Film Festival (Nov 3-13) winning the “Theo Angelopoulos” Golden Alexander award.

The film beat out 16 first and second films screened in this year’s competition section.

Kills On Wheels’ three leading young actors, Zoltan Fenyvesi, SzaboIcs Thuroczy and Adam Fekete were jointly awarded the Best actor trophy.

The film, arriving from the Chicago film festival where it won the Roger Ebert award, deals with three wheelchair-using young adults who decide to offer their services to the mafia in an effort to overcome their daily routines. World sales are handled by the Hungarian Film Fund.

Icelandic-Danish co-production Heartstone (Hjartasteinn) by Icelandic director Gudmundur Arnar Gudmundsson, was awarded the Special Jury Prize, Silver Alexander...

By Todd Garbarini

It’s a scary thought, indeed, to think that it has been twenty-nine years since I first saw Dario Argento’s fifth giallo feature film which I had read about two years earlier in the pages of a back issue of Fangoria Magazine. The word giallo is the Italian word for the color yellow, and has found new life in describing a subgenre of the Italian horror film that refers to a who-done-it involving a killer who conceals their identity by wearing a large coat, a wide-brimmed hat, unisex footwear and gloves, their face always obscured or hidden completely. Very often we see the killer only in synecdoche. These stories all originated in the form of pulp novellas which sported yellow covers, hence the use of the term giallo.

Whereas the word giallo is always spelled one way, the correct spelling of the film’s title, Tenebrae,...

I’ll be honest and admit that it takes a lot to get me to drop 40 dollars on a single title release, but the recent limited edition Steelbook of Dario Argento’s slasher masterpiece Tenebrae was something that I just could not pass up. I’ve had a longtime fascination with the movie, so when Synapse Films announced they’d be putting out a definitive edition of Tenebrae, there’s no way I could resist. Thankfully, Synapse Films does the movie justice with an edition packed to the brim with a ton of extras, a CD featuring a remastered version of the soundtrack, an informative booklet, and stunning artwork to boot. This is also the best I’ve seen Tenebrae look, with the Synapse restoration giving Argento’s film new life and keeping his vivid blood-soaked vision purely intact.

Tenebrae follows American mystery writer Peter Neal (Anthony Franciosa) to Italy...

Special Mention: The Most Dangerous Game

Directed by Irving Pichel and Ernest B. Schoedsack

Written by James Creelman

USA, 1932

Genre: Survival Horror

The first of many official and unofficial screen versions of Richard Connell’s short story of the same name, The Most Dangerous Game was made in 1932, in the era known as “Pre-Code Hollywood,” a time when filmmakers were able to get away with sexual innuendo, illegal drug use, adultery, abortion, intense violence, homosexuality, and much more. It was during this time that a film like The Most Dangerous Game was allowed to be made and shown to the general public without fear of censorship. The film was put together by producer Willis O’Brien while in pre-production on King Kong, and features several of the same cast and crew members, as well as props and sets from Kong. Despite these obvious cost-cutting measures, Dangerous Game never feels like a second-rate production,...

Special Mention: Death Proof

Written and directed by Quentin Tarantino

USA, 2007

Genre: Slasher

The obvious reference points of Death Proof are such movies as Vanishing Point, Roadgames, Dirty Mary Crazy Larry, and even Spielberg’s Duel – but Death Proof is influenced by more than just vehicular horror. Tarantino’s homage to the road-fury genre is really two movies in one, offering two versions of the same story about two separate groups of beautiful women who are stalked by a homicidal maniac who uses his car (his weapon of choice) to terrorize and eventually kill his victims. Death Proof can easily be viewed as two slasher films, with the second half acting as a sequel, offering new, beautiful victims for the murderous Stuntman Mike (Kurt Russell) to terrorize. It’s a grim stalk-and-slash picture with a blaring commentary of female empowerment. Replace the typical sharp edged blade with a car, and...

By Todd Garbarini

I have been a fan of the Italian giallo subgenre for 30 years since my initiation into it was precipitated by my first viewing of Creepers (1985), the severely cut version of Dario Argento’s Phenomena, my personal favorite film of his. Subsequent viewings of films by both Mr. Argento and his mentor, Mario Bava, as well as Lucio Fulci, Lamberto Bava, Luigi Cozzi, and Michele Soavi solidified a love for the putrid and the fantastic, and anyone who has seen these movies knows how delightfully entertaining they are: off-kilter camera angles, ludicrous dialogue, and what writer Todd French referred to as “a maddening narrative looseness” are present in these films in a way that they are absent in other genres. There is just nothing like an Italian giallo film. With all of the mock horror films that have been made going back to 1981’s Student Bodies and the later,...

Even after nearly two decades of short films, documentaries and the success of his 1968 feature debut, L’enfance Nue, director Maurice Pialat’s celebrated sophomore feature, We Won’t Grow Old Together never received a theatrical release stateside, despite also winning a Best Actor award for Jean Yanne at the 1972 Cannes Film Festival. Remastered for an exciting Blu-ray release from Kino Classics, it’s a title ripe for reconsideration in the cinematic canon. Pialat’s filmography has proven to be a major influence on countless emerging artists, with the likes of Ira Sachs, Alex Ross Perry and a slew of others directly citing the filmmaker as inspiration for their own output.

We Won’t Grow Old Together basically features a string of interactions between an aging film director, Jean (Jean Yanne), and his much younger mistress, Catherine (Marlene Jobart). We assume they met when she had vague aspirations to become...

Dracula 3D

Directed by Dario Argento

Written by Dario Argento, Enrique Cerezo, Stefano Piani, Antonio Tentori

Italy, 2012

More than his fellow giallo maestros (Bava, Fulci, Martino, and others), Dario Argento has had to live and work in the burdensome shadow of his earlier successes. After nearly two decades of exceptional films boasting glorious cinematic artistry and blood-soaked thrills, Argento established quite the reputation. In recent years, though, since 1993′s Trauma, these prior landmarks of genre perfection have become a distressing caveat added to nearly every negative criticism of his newest release: “Ah, Argento, how far he’s fallen. Remember when….” His latest offering, Dracula 3D, now available on an American-issued 3D Blu-ray (an Italian disc, still playable in the Us, has been out for while), is no exception. Does it rank with Suspiria, Tenebre, Deep Red, or Opera? No. But is it as bad as some detractors would suggest? Certainly not.

Another year has come to an end, which means it's time for the Dread Central staff to weigh in with their picks of the best and worst of 2013's horror offerings. We're giving you a full dozen lists this time, and per usual they come in a variety of formats, each reflecting the unique styles of our writers.

We've also compiled them to come up with the year's overall winners and losers. We averaged out the top and bottom five vote getters on everyone's lists, and here are the results:

Best: Maniac

Runners-up: The Conjuring, Evil Dead

Worst: Texas Chainsaw 3D

Runners-up: The Purge, The Last Exorcism Part II

Check out the Dread Central staff's Best of and Worst of lists for 2013 by following the links below!

[Andrew Kasch]

[Anthony Arrigo]

[Brad McHargue]

[Buz "Danger" Wallick]

[Debi "The Woman in Black" Moore]

[The Foywonder]

[Gareth "Pestilence" Jones]

[Jinx]

[MattFini]

[Scott "Doctor Gash" Hallam]

[Staci Layne Wilson]

[Uncle Creepy]

Andrew Kasch's Picks

Stoker: Chan-wook Park delivered some next-level filmmaking and his best film since Oldboy with his U.

Every year, we here at Sound On Sight celebrate the month of October with 31 Days of Horror; and every year, I update the list of my favourite horror films ever made. Last year, I released a list that included 150 picks. This year, I’ll be upgrading the list, making minor alterations, changing the rankings, adding new entries, and possibly removing a few titles. I’ve also decided to publish each post backwards this time for one reason: the new additions appear lower on my list, whereas my top 50 haven’t changed much, except for maybe in ranking. Enjoy!

****

Special Mention:

Shock Corridor

Written and directed by Samuel Fuller

USA, 1963

Shock Corridor stars Peter Breck as Johnny Barrett, an ambitious reporter who wants to expose the killer at the local insane asylum. To solve the case, he must pretend to be insane so they have him committed. Once in the asylum,...

Scola comes out of retirement for first film in 10 years, How Strange to be Called Federico!.

Italian director Ettore Scola has unveiled more details of his upcoming tribute to his friend and fellow filmmaker Federico Fellini, which is due for release in Italy this autumn to mark the 20th anniversary of the La Dolce Vita director’s death.

Entitled How Strange to be Called Federico!, the hybrid work combining archive footage and re-enactments of Scola’s memories of Fellini is currently in post-production.

The original Italian title - Che Strano Chiamarsi Federico! - is an allusion to a line in a poem by Spanish poet Federico Garcia Lorca.

“I don’t know what will come out of this. I am as curious as you are to discover it. The intentions and emotions are all there but it’s not ready yet,” Scola told a packed news conference in Rome’s Cinecittà film studios on Tuesday.

The $2.6m (€2m...

Throughout the month of October, Editor-in-Chief and resident Horror expert Ricky D, will be posting a list of his favorite Horror films of all time. The list will be posted in six parts. Click here to see every entry.

As with all lists, this is personal and nobody will agree with every choice – and if you do, that would be incredibly disturbing. It was almost impossible for me to rank them in order, but I tried and eventually gave up.

****

Special Mention: Gremlins

Directed by Joe Dante

Written by Chris Columbus

1984, USA

Gremlins gets a special mention because I’ve always considered it more of a comedy and a wholesome Christmas flick than an actual horror film. This tribute the 1950s matinee genre stands the test of time from a time when parents would take their children to family films that pushed the boundaries of the MPAA. Joe Dante is...

The tale of the “Three Mothers” started with Suspiria in 1977 is continued in Inferno, released in 1980. Rose Elliot, a young poet (Irene Miracle), discovers some strange things about the building she is living in and writes her brother Mark (Leigh McCloskey) to tell him about what she has uncovered. Once Rose goes missing, Mark comes to New York City to try and figure out what has happened to her.

Dario Argento’s follow up to Suspiria is a classic case of execution over concept. Like the film before it, Inferno has a very thin plot. But that’s not what these films are about. Whether it’s the weird guy who owns the bookstore next door, or the eccentric woman with the odd valet, Mark’s adventure of discovery, much like Suzy’s in Suspiria is what drives the “plot” forward.

Irene Miracle does what she can her small and limited role.

Choosing my favourite horror films of all time is like choosing between my children – not that I have children, but if I did, I am sure I would categorize them quite like my DVD collection. As with all lists, this is personal and nobody will agree with every choice – and if you do, that would be incredibly disturbing. Also, it was almost impossible for me to rank them in order, but I tried. I based my list taking into consideration three points:

1- Technical accomplishments / artistry and their influence on the genre.

2- How many times I’ve revisited the films and how easily it makes for a repeated viewings.

3- Its story, atmosphere and how much it affected me when I first watched them.

Finally, there are many great films such as The Witchfinder General, The Wickerman and even Hour Of The Wolf that won’t appear here. I...

42 – Nosferatu: The First Vampire

Directed by F.W. Murnau

1922 – Germany

The earliest surviving film based on Dracula is Nosferatu, an unauthorized adaptation of Bram Stoker’s novel. One of the first vampire movies, it is perhaps on one of the best vampire movies ever made. Generally creepy from beginning to the last frame.

41- Spirits Of The Dead (Histoires extraordinaires)

Directed by

Federico Fellini (segment Toby Dammit)

Louis Malle (segment William Wilson)

Roger Vadim (segment Metzengerstein)

1968 – France

First thing to notice is the three directors: Federico Fellini, Louis Malle and Roger Vadim. Second you need to take notice in the cast which includes Brigitte Bardot, Jane Fonda, Peter Fonda, Alain Delon, Terence Stamp, Salvo Randone, James Robertson Justice, Françoise Prévost and Marlène Alexandre. Spirits Of The Dead is an adaptation of three Edgar Allan Poe stories that amount to one mixed bad, but with one incredible segment that needs to be seen.

The term “giallo” initially referred to cheap yellow paperbacks (printed American mysteries from writers such as Agatha Christie), that were distributed in post-fascist Italy. Applied to cinema, the genre is comprised of equal parts early pulp thrillers, mystery novels, with a willingness to gleefully explore onscreen sex and violence in provocative, innovative ways. Giallos are strikingly different from American crime films: they value style and plot over characterization, and tend towards unapologetic displays of violence, sexual content, and taboo exploration. The genre is known for stylistic excess, characterized by unnatural yet intriguing lighting techniques, convoluted plots, red herrings, extended murder sequences, excessive bloodletting, stylish camerawork and unusual musical arrangements. Amidst the ‘creative kill’ set-pieces are thematic undercurrents along with a whodunit element, usually some sort of twist ending. Here is my list of the best giallo films – made strictly by Italian directors, so don’t expect Black Swan, Amer or...

We haven't said much about Dario Argento's upcoming project Dracula 3D which is currently nearing the end of production in Hungary but that doesn't mean we haven't been keeping an eye on the proceedings. How could we not considering that 1) this is Argento (even if his work has been lagging a little the last few years) and 2) the great cast which includes Rutger Hauer, Thomas Kretschmann, Marta Gastini and Asia Argento.

An adaptation of Bram Stoker's novel, I must admit I wasn't particularly excited about the announcement of this picture which sees the all-too-familiar tale of Dracula retold once again, in dreaded 3D no less, but admittedly, the involvement of Argento, special effects guru Sergio Stivaletti, cinematographer Luciano Tovoli (who also lensed Suspiria) and ex-Goblin composer Claudio Simonetti caught my attention.

The film has been in full swing for a few months and there have been a...

Following the recent release of Argento’s debut film The Bird with the Cystal Plumage, Arrow Video’s next HD Argento instalment is his 1982 return to gialli, Tenebrae.

Italian cinema has been dominated over many decades by waves of popular genres and producers, screenwriters, directors et al have always been quick to the jump on the latest and most popular genre and flog it until it is all but dead. With the release of The Bird with the Crystal Plumage in 1970 Argento built on a solid raft of Italian horrors, mostly those directed by Mario Bava, and created a new singular vision of giallo cinema. This led to a lot of imitators, some good, some utterly dreadful but a lot of them nonetheless.

Argento was reportedly not too pleased about this and began to move in different directions with his films, opting to work in areas altogether more supernatural. With...

While Dario Argento is still trying to figure out how to work this 3D camera business, music maestro Claudio Simonetti (from the famed group Goblin) has been busy posting photos on Facebook from behind the scenes on Dracula 3D. Kidding aside, I have much respect and an endless love for the Italian director and sincerely hope that this new project lifts Argento out of the early grave he seems to be in. Dracula 3D has a talented director at its helm, and while looking through these photos, you will see an equally talented crew assisting the director on his first foray into 3D filmmaking. In the photos, which you can see after the break, you get a glimpse of Argento, Simonetti , the director of photography Luciano Tovoli (who previously worked on Suspiria and Tenebre), and Unax Ugalde (There Be Dragons), who Simonetti is saying is playing Harker! I thought Miguel Angel Silvestre is playing Harker?...

waterworks each weeknight at 11 in April

Have you ever had a flatmate you just didn't trust? Bridget Fonda as "Allie" thought she'd found a good one in Jennifer Jason Leigh "Hedy" after placing an ad in Single White Female (1992). But once Jjl moved in, things got so weird. Any of us could've told Bridget that'd happen since Jjl is rarely "right" in the head onscreen, yknow? So Hedy gets weirdly needy and steals Allie's whole look, complete with ginger helmet bob! So Bridget, who is pretty damn stupid even as thriller heroines still has enough functioning brain cells to know a good snooping opportunity when she hears one.

I'm going to take a shower."

Now's your chance, Fonda. 3...2...1... Snoop, Bridget, Snoop!!!

Oh, don't pretend like you haven't snooped on a roommate before! The Film Experience is a safe space. You can say. Show of hands? I thought so. And, besides,...

Filed under: Columns, Cinematical

Welcome to Framed, a column at Cinematical that runs every Thursday and celebrates the artistry of cinema -- one frame at a time.

Sometimes it's hard for me to steer clear of my horror proclivities (not that I want to). Chances are, none of us popped out of the womb with an encyclopedic knowledge of all the genre had to offer -- though, how great would that be? Instead, something probably crept into our subconscious as wee tots that we haven't been able to shake since. Several classic Disney film favorites feature themes that are darker than their technicolor smiles would have you believe. This has left horror fans like me salivating over the things that lurk in the shadows since childhood.

Disney's (and America's) first animated feature, 1937's 'Snow White,' has all the makings of a great horror tale -- and not a drop of blood is spilled.

Filed under: Columns, Cinematical

Welcome to Framed, a column at Cinematical that runs every Thursday and celebrates the artistry of cinema -- one frame at a time.

Sometimes it's hard for me to steer clear of my horror proclivities (not that I want to). Chances are, none of us popped out of the womb with an encyclopedic knowledge of all the genre had to offer -- though, how great would that be? Instead, something probably crept into our subconscious as wee tots that we haven't been able to shake since. Several classic Disney film favorites feature themes that are darker than their technicolor smiles would have you believe. This has left horror fans like me salivating over the things that lurk in the shadows since childhood.

Disney's (and America's) first animated feature, 1937's 'Snow White,' has all the makings of a great horror tale -- and not a drop of blood is spilled.

#7- The Crucible (1996)

Director: Nicholas Hytner

Tagline: “Arthur Miller’s timeless tale of truth on trial.”

Arthur Miller’s story of hysteria, persecution and social injustice, The Crucible, was written during Senator Joseph McCarthy’s House Un-American Activities Committee hearings (for which Miller was called to testify in 1956). Miller has never claimed that his story is historically accurate, but many of the facts correspond to events that actually occurred in Salem, Massachusetts in 1692 when a superstitious terror gripped the Puritan town. 19 villagers were hung as witches, four others died in prison and one was pressed to death when he refused to answer questions. The Crucible offers a layered examination of mob hysteria, and of the Puritan mindset on which America was founded in a community destroyed by guilt, prejudice, paranoia and betrayal. Well-paced direction, and fine performances from Daniel Day-Lewis, Winona Ryder and Joan Allen.

#6- Black Death (2010) -

Director:...

The Cinema Eye Honors, devoted to highlighting the best of the year's nonfiction films, have flipped for Lixin Fan's fantastic "Last Train Home," which follows a family of migrant workers as they struggle to stay connected while living separated by hundreds of miles. "Last Train Home" received the most nominations -- seven -- while Banksy's "Exit Through The Gift Shop" and Afghanistan documentary "Armadillo" each received six. The award ceremony will take place on January 18 at the Museum of the Moving Image in New York, and will be broadcast on the Documentary Channel.

Nonfiction Feature Filmmaking

Armadilllo

Directed by Janus Metz

Produced by Sara Stockmann and Ronnie Fridthjof

Exit Through The Gift Shop

Directed by Banksy

Produced by Jaimie D'Cruz

Last Train Home

Directed by Lixin Fan

Produced by Mila Aung-Thwin and Daniel Cross

Marwencol

Directed by Jeff Malmberg

Produced by Jeff Malmberg, Tom Putnam, Matt Radecki, Chris Shellen...

By Fred Burdsall (Part III of Fred’s “What Makes You a Fan” series)

My first glimpse into the world of European horror was, as usual, my mother’s fault. I came in after playing baseball and she told me to “put on 17.” I did, and was treated to the last 10 minutes of The Deep Red Hatchet Murders (Profondo Rosso). I had no idea what I was watching, but I liked what I saw and made a mental note of the title and director. Now, I am not a big fan of change, so I may have been the last guy in the city to get a Vcr, but once I did it was not long before I remembered that little snippet from Deep Red. Unfortunately, it was not on the shelf, but Suspiria was—and things would never be the same for me.

(Fright fans unacaquainted with Suspiria–beware!

"Life is disappointing." So goes the most common English translation of a famous line of dialogue in Ozu's Tokyo Story. As if to underscore that point, here is a British-released Region 2 Blu-ray disc of Dario Argento's 1977 Suspiria, quite probably the horror director's greatest work, a unique and uniquely deranged visual trip in which every shot seems charged with a near-kitschily elaborate jolt of Shock Horror. A picture I first saw in a once-majestic theater in Paterson, New Jersey, then in its final throes of fleabag-grindhousedom, some time in the late 70s. The projectionist omitted a whole reel from the thing and it didn't matter a bit. The story of an artless ballet student who discovers that the Austrian academy wherein she seeks advanced studies is in fact run by a coven of witches, or something, Suspiria is the greatest of Argento's films for several reasons, the most germane of...

Must...catch...my...breath. There is an Incredible retrospective piece on Dario Argento's Suspiria in this month's American Cinematographer. It's a great read in which they discuss filming with Argento's Suspiria cinematographer Luciano Tovoli. The entire 9-page article is available online and it truly provides a priceless look into the filming of one of the most unique horror films ever made. But that's not the best part. Buried deep within the article Tovoli mentions that he's just supervised a brand new HD transfer of Suspiria for Blu-ray. Hit the jump for full details. In Dario Argento's Suspiria an American ballet student discovers that the staff of her ballet school in Germany  is actually...

Horror fans across the UK, rejoice! A brand new release of Dario Argento’s classic supernatural masterpiece Suspiria will be hitting shelves across the pond on DVD and Blu-ray this January, courtesy of the folks at Nouveaux Pictures/Cine-Excess.

From the Press Release

Dario Argento's horror classic Suspiria comes to DVD and, for the first time ever, Blu-ray in January 2010, having undergone a brand new high definition transfer courtesy of Nouveaux Pictures and Cine-Excess. Digitally remastered from HD, this brand new presentation has already led critics to claim, "Suspiria has never looked better; it has never sounded as good, either" (John Millar, Film Critic, Sunday Mail) and to hail it as "a stunning makeover for one of the greatest horror films ever made" (David Edwards, Daily Mirror).

Both formats also come with a host of newly commissioned extras including a brand new documentary featuring director Dario Argento and composer...

You say you have a strong stomach? Then make your way to Bam Rose Cinemas on Saturday for "Suspiria" (1977), Dario Argento's ghoulish genre goodie.

The Italian scaremeister spares little in this perverse, frightening tale -- a hybrid of "Psycho" and "The Exorcist" -- of a young New York ballerina (Jessica Harper) who enrolls in "the most famous school of dance in Europe," only to find herself doing a pas de deux with a witch.

Some of what you can look forward to: an attack by bats,...

Frankfurt, Germany -- Oscar-winning editor Anne V. Coates received Festival Honors -- the highest honor awarded at the Edit Filmmakers Festival -- Sunday at the event's opening gala at the Cinestar Metropolis theater in Frankfurt.

A capacity crowd of 650 walked the red carpet and filled the theater to honor Coates, who is perhaps best known for "Lawrence of Arabia."

In the evening's other highlight, cinematographer Giuseppe Rotunno, a longtime collaborator with Federico Fellini, was honored with the first Tribute Award from Imago, the European Association of Cinematographers.

Tom Rolf, an Oscar-winning editor ("The Right Stuff") and past recipient of Festival Honors, presented the award to Coates, who was accompanied by her son, writer-director Anthony Hickox.

"Anne is one of the great editors of all time," Rolf said. "Anne cares about taking gifted performances and making them the focus of the story."

The program included a clip reel of Coates' body of work,...