FULL REVIEW

Dario Argento is one of those obscure but influential directors who has not only contributed greatly to the genre but has inspired countless others in his works. It's funny because with his volume of work, sometimes I still get the impression that he is not as visible to most horror fans as he should be. Over the years, the ones who regard him as an inspiration not only cite him as an inspiration but as a major reason for their style of movie making. His body of work is impressive but because alot of his films took awhile to get ported to the US distribution, his work is somewhat lesser known in the states than it should be. Even today we find new releases of his former titles from years back.

There's is no arguing the impact his film 'Suspiria' had on horror fans and horror filmmakers but due to his newer works sometimes superceding his older works, the horror community has a fragmented impression of his style. The book titled Dario Argento authored by James Gracey approaches this fact and the works of this horror master with care, concern and admiration. It's explained in his beginnings and his earlier works that really invented a style he could call his own. Often described as poetic, harrowing, suspenseful and gory, Dario tackles a real horror lover approach to his films.

Not being content to repeat himself, he tries new things that either excel or fail to the wayside but regardless they all contain his touch of originality. The back cover of the book lists his volume of works. The book goes on further to do a critical analysis of each and its style. What I liked though about the author's writing was that he didn't get too far gone in philosophical speak so that the analysis are kept still within a consumer understanding. In other words, it wasn't boring to read.

Darios' relationship with his daughter Asia and his former wife are also examined which have also been largely a point of slight controversy. His daughter Asia who has appeared in a few of his films but has had to undergo rapes scenes, murder, nudity and torture. Not the likely choice of a father / daughter film collaboration, but then Dario is in a class of his own. A strong horror contributor to the Italian Giallo film style, Dario weaves in and out of unique camera approaches to his works. The film Suspiria with its vivid colors, multi film transfers and almost hallucinating atmosphere is still talked about in film circles today. New pieces continue to weigh firmly under the critic eye who often compare his earlier works to his new experiments today.

Masters of Horror delivered us 2 Dario pieces that also stand as shocking, brutal and highly unique. Jenifer with its sensual and disgusting mixing in ways that work for the screen and 'Pelts' with its extremely violent scenes too strong for network TV. All in all this book provides a roadmap for fans to embark on. If you are only a Dario dabbler, then you might find great satisfaction in his earlier mentioned works thru online venues. A few of his titles have re-surfaced with new packaging and releases. Do you yourself a favor, pick up this book, and let it

'Bone Digger'

www.horrornews.net

FULL REVIEW

I have never been a huge fan of gialli (the plural form of ‘giallo’). In my very limited experience with the sub-genre, they tend to be plodding and boring, usually preferring style over story or action. Concerning Dario Argento in particular, I have seen Suspiria and Trauma, both of which bored me to tears. Yes I know, Suspiria isn’t a giallo and Trauma isn’t considered one of his best films, whatever. Despite my obvious minority opinion on the subject, Argento is considered one of the greatest Italian horror directors of all time and still makes movies to this day, his latest entitled simply Giallo.

In March of this year relatively unknown (in the U.S. anyway) British publisher Kamera Books released the simply titled book Dario Argento by James Gracey. From Kamera’s website:

The stylistic and bloody excesses of the films of Dario Argento are instantly recognisable. Vivid, baroque and nightmarish, his films lock violent deaths in a twisted embrace with an almost sexual beauty. Narrative and logic are often lost in a constant bombardment of atmosphere, technical mastery and provocative imagery. Its a body of work which deals explicitly with death and violence, all the while revelling in perversely alluring stylistics and shot through with an unflinching intensity.

Setting the tone with earlier gialli films such as The Animal Trilogy and Deep Red, Argento has steadily pushed the boundaries; through his elaborately gothic fairytales Suspiria and Inferno, right up to his more recent contributions to TV’s Masters of Horror compendium and the conclusion of his Three Mothers trilogy, Mother of Tears: The Third Mother. Along the way, his prowling camera work, pounding scores and stylistic bloodshed have only gained in intensity and opulence.

After a very informative introduction describing Argento the man, his influence on horror films and an overview of his works, you are treated to a very in-depth analysis of each of his films. Each chapter is entitled with the different series (Animal Trilogy, Darkness & Milan, Blood Runs Deep, etc.) and contains the breakdown for each movie in the series. The examination of each film is broken down by the credits, synopsis, background, comments, style and technical, themes, music and finally the overall verdict. Some readers may find this format a little dry, but the knowledge dropped by Gracey is impressive and very thorough. As someone who is not a fan of Argento, this book actually put a bug in my ear to check out his early work.

Pick up the book on the Kamera Books website if you are at all interested in Argento, gialli or horror in general.

Greg B.

cinesploitation.com