“I want to start work on a new piece. A piece about rebirths — the inevitable pull that they exert, and our efforts to escape them.”
Suspiria, directed by Luca Guadagnino, is a horror film based on the original Suspiria made in 1977 by Italian director Dario Argento. Presented in six acts and an epilogue, a young midwestern woman Susie Bannion (Dakota Johnson) auditions for a dance company in 1970’s Berlin. After impressing the esteemed director (Tilda Swinton), she quickly moves to the role of lead dancer. Meanwhile, a grieving psychotherapist and a suspicious member of the dance company uncover a dark coven of witches.
Photo courtesy of Amazon Studios
The original 1977 film is hailed a classic by horror fans and is known for its garish, neon color palette, with blood spatters so bright red they look like acrylic paint. The 2018 version uses bright colors very sparingly. The entire film is dark and sepia toned. Any neon is only incorporated at the climax of the movie.
To me, the new film is not a remake but a rebirth of the original. It has the same basic plot, but there are major details that are different between the two. It is an hour longer, which gives it a lot of room to breathe. Though it is a bit bloated with historical context and themes at two hours and thirty minutes, the atmosphere is hypnotic. The unique cinematography and camera work and the soundtrack by Radiohead’s Thom Yorke had my attention from the start. It works perfectly with the unsettling tone, and the disturbing mystery that unravels on screen becomes increasingly mesmerizing.
Suspiria (1977), Photo courtesy of Pinterest
This film definitely has its fair share of horror that will stay in your mind. Dakota Johnson, the lead, said that she needed therapy after shooting. As an audience member, the scariest part of the movie was the body horror. Most of the effects in the movie were practical and made me uncomfortable in my own skin. A preview clip of Suspiria was shown at CinemaCon. One woman controls the body of another with her movements as she dances in another room, throwing her against the walls and contorting her into a mess. Audiences reacted to this preview with disgust.
Photo courtesy of Amazon Studios
The most special use of practical effects in Suspiria is the triple duty of Tilda Swinton. She plays three different roles: dance director Madame Blanc, the old man psychotherapist Dr. Jozef Klemperer, and the reclusive and monstrous Mother Markos. Two of these roles involve heavy makeup and prosthetics. I had no idea she played more than one main role the first time I watched, and I truly did not realize the entire time.
The concept reinforces the importance of feminine presence in the film. There are only three men in the entire narrative of the movie. One of them is played by Tilda and the other two men are useless detectives who get teased and ridiculed by the witches.
Photo courtesy of Amazon Studios
After watching Suspiria I was certain that it would be nominated for an Oscar. Even though it got many other film awards, the Academy Award is no doubt the most prestigious and I was disappointed when it ended up not being recognized at all. This movie deserved an Oscar nomination, especially Best Makeup, Best Original Score, and Best Supporting Actress.
Horror had a good Oscar season last year when Get Out was nominated for four awards and won Best Screenplay. The genre has always been looked down on by the Academy and some thought that might be a step in the right direction, but this year only A Quiet Place was nominated once for sound editing. A few other genuinely good horror movies with amazing female actresses that got snubbed from an Oscar are Hereditary and Annihilation.
Suspiria is out on Blu-Ray now. Watch the trailer here, and make sure to watch the Oscars on February 24th at 8pm.