Suspiria Review (1977) Worth Watching?

It's about an American girl who travels to Germany to attend a ballet school that happens to be a front for a coven of witches.

Suspiria was directed by Dario Argento (who also directed The Sandman, Dracula 3D, Giallo and The Mother of Tears) and stars Jessica Harper (from Shock Treatment, The Evictors, Phantom of the Paradise), Stefania Casini (from The Bloodstained Shadow) and Flavio Bucci (from Night Train Murders, Late Night Trains).

Witchcraft's most Macabre Tale

Suspiria is more about witches than it is about ballet and it's more of a visual experience than anything else. It features one of the most intense opening scenes in all of cinema, thanks in part to the epic soundtrack, and is by far the best Giallo in existence. I personally think Phenomena is a close second, others might argue it's Tenebre. Both, along with Suspiria, are works of art by Dario Argento and feature an American lead in Germany, Switzerland and Italy, respectively. Oddly enough, the worst Giallo has to be Giallo (2010), also directed by Argento and also featuring an American lead running into trouble in Italy.

Apparently he's really into Americans getting screwed in Europe.

Suspiria is unrelentingly intense and mind-blowingly original. It's like a nightmarish fever dream that spans the full 92 minute runtime. The movie is known most for Argento's set design and very bold use of color. The color seriously pops, due partly to the creative use of Technicolor. The movie is a masterpiece in most every regard including its concept, characters, atmosphere, suspense as well as its many memorable scenes that have been forever burned into the minds of countless horror fans.

No movie is perfect, however, and the one thing Suspiria suffers from is the fact that it did not age well. The fake blood looks like bright red paint and many of the kill scenes are cheesy by today's standards.

Suspiria 1977

There's also the dubbing issue. No matter what version you watch, it's going to be dubbed. Dario had his actors speak in their native tongues and later had voice actors dub them into various languages as it was released.

Suspiria is the first of three spiritual sequels in The Three Mothers trilogy. Suspiria (1977) surrounds Helena Markos, Inferno (1980) surrounds Mater Tenebrarum and Mother of Tears (2007) surrounds Mater Lachrymarum.