Ténèbres

The Italian mastermind behind the giallo movement, Argento once again provides another enthralling crime investigative thriller poised with provocative imagery and plenty of throat slashing. This representing my third foray into his filmography, I was both sceptical and excited to see what he would produce. As soon as that 80s horror score kicked in almost immediately, I was invested. The author of the recent hit "Tenebrae" travels to Rome for promotional events, but is quickly caught up in a murder mystery to which the killer utilises phrases from his book leaving clues to the next victim.

The backbone of the narrative is reminiscent of his directorial debut 'The Bird with the Crystal Plumage', but with Argento's style evolving throughout the years. He showcases his talent for balancing suspicious characters (the list is endless) with evocative camera techniques that allow the tension and suspense to naturally grow. Beautiful one take shots to enhance the eerie quality, POV handheld movements enabling the audience to enter the suspect's mind and inventive use of mirrors to reflect slashed corpses. It's clear that Argento, at this stage in his career, exhumed confidence in his directing. The editing however frequently felt disorientating. Quick cuts were exhaustingly utilised during scenes of frantic nature, such as a woman fleeing to her room whilst grabbing onto her towel, which detracted from Argento's minimalistic approach.

The story itself, whilst consistently engaging, contained a few segments that were questionable at best. Stabbing someone in the middle of a high street in broad daylight, with people only noticing when he is lying in his own pool of blood, lacked believability. Evidently Rome is a dangerous place during giallo season, but still. The final reveal was unsurprising due to the amount of suspects being killed off, and consequently was absent of surprise.

Ironically the countless female kills did paint the narrative in a coat of sexism, fortunately the second half counteracts that indicative viewpoint. A criticism that Argento's work has succumbed to in the past, therefore reacting to this by changing the deaths in the second act. Not particularly subtle, evolving the story to fit around this criticism was evident, however it made for a refreshing pace. The performances were perfectly hammy, although Franciosa weighed in a surprisingly strong nuanced performance as the sturdy author.

As giallo films go, this is most certainly one of the most accessible. Whilst not necessarily Argento's strongest narratively speaking, for I did prefer 'The Bird with the Crystal Plumage', it honed in on his trademark aesthetic style. Erotically staged murders with exquisite lighting accompanied by a euphoric score. If you are new to the sub-genre or want to trial Argento's techniques, then this will most likely be the easiest film to watch.

Perhaps one of the top mystery-thrillers of the 1980s; if you like films like "The 4th Man" (1983) or "Body Double" (1984), you'll fancy this one too. Well-constructed twisty-turny plot, virtuoso camerawork, sudden shocks, terrific synthesizer score, supremely good-looking female cast. It's also surprisingly self-reflexive: the character of the writer can be seen as a stand-in for Argento himself, who uses him as a means of addressing some of the most common criticisms made against his films. This is peak Argento. *** out of 4.

With its leather-gloved killer, amazing score, spectacular and innovative camera-work, and wonderfully gory murders, Tenebre delivers everything you could ask for in a giallo. Like many Italian murder mysteries, the story takes some swallowing, but if you can accept the convoluted plot, there's plenty of fun to be had.

Peter Neal (Anthony Franciosa) is a best-selling novelist who becomes involved in real life murder mystery when the victims of a razor-wielding killer are found with pages from his latest book stuffed in their mouths.

One of director Dario Argento's best movies, Tenebre is packed to the rafters with the kind of stuff that make good giallos such a trip to watch. As pretty girls are stalked and killed by a raspy-voiced maniac, the director offers genuine clues and red herrings aplenty, allowing the audience to have fun trying to figure out who the killer is. The movie's stunning cinematography is accompanied by one of Goblin's greatest scores, transforming what may have been mundane moments in the hands of a lesser director into pure works of art (in one amazing scene the camera simply prowls slowly around the outside of a building, but with Argento in control, it is simply breathtaking!).

Murder has never been so stylish, and even the most grisly deaths are stunningly captured. A particularly memorable moment has a young girl stumble into the house of the killer, before being chased through a garden; this scene is shot from the axe-wielding maniac's point of view, and is incredibly effective.

Fans of gore are also catered for with several gruesome murders, the best of which involves bucket-loads of arterial spray decorating most of a wall. Juicy!

Argento reveals the identity of the killer in a suitably silly finale (all gialli have them), before offing the murderer in a fittingly gruesome manner.

Check out Tenebre and witness one of the great works from one of Italian horror's finest.

This is a stylish, sprawling giallo from Director Dario Argento. Writer Peter Neale is played by 50-something Anthony Franciosa, surrounded by a cheery, adoring gaggle of young ladies whenever he flashes his pearly whites. Unlike a lot of giallo leading men, however, Neale is likeable and a gentleman, at least most of the time, and Franciosca plays him very well. Some nicely paced set-pieces put the victims through their paces in a memorably punishing manner, often topped off with more than a splash of thick red blood.

Supporting players include the appealing Christian Borromeo as possible suspect Gianni, and the familiar face of John Saxon, who was prolific in film and television at this time, is Bullmer.

The star of the show though, is undoubtedly Argento's wondrous directorial flourishes. The squealing, electronic prog-rock soundtrack is provided by the idiosyncratic band Goblin. Like their other incidental scores it is somewhat 'full on' at times, but nevertheless injects various scenes with a sense of perverse dread, and enters fully into the director's somewhat gaudy style.

'Tenebrae' saw the welcome return of Argento to the world of giallo after delving into pure supernatural horror for his last few ventures. It proved he hadn't lost his stylish approach to the genre and remains a favourite of mine. The ending, where there is revelation upon revelation, is particularly successful. If you are considering venturing into the world of 'Tenebrae' for the first time, I advise you to avoid spoilers! My score for this is 8 out of 10.

The successful American writer from Rhode Island Peter Neil (Anthony Franciosa) travels from New York to Rome to promote his new best-seller Tenebre. He is received by his agent Bullmer (John Saxon) that schedules an interview in a talk show. As soon as Peter arrives, there is the murder of a shoplifter and Detective Germani (Giuliano Gemma) is assigned to the case. He meets Peter and tells that the killer was inspired by his novel to commit the crime. Peter receives a letter from the murderer and soon two lesbians are murdered. The killer writes that perverts must be eliminated and Peter suspects of the host of his show. However, when you eliminate the impossible, whatever remains might be the truth.

"Tenebre" is one of the best "giallos" by Dario Argento. The story is very well constructed and technically speaking, there are long traveling with the camera and magnificent sound effects. The haunting music score from Goblin is also awesome. The VHS released by Anchor Bay in widescreen is spectacular and has extras in the end after the trailer. My vote is seven.

Title (Brazil): Not Available

Note: On 02 March 2017 I saw this film again on DVD. Note: On 07 June 2020 I saw this film again on DVD.

Title (Brazil): "Tenebre"