Ænigma

I really enjoyed Lucio Fulci's film Aenigma it is set inside a College,just outside Boston, Massachusettes which is a boarding school for girls. A lonely student, called Kathy (Mijlijana Zirojevic), has a cruel practical joke played on her, by a gang of students. Kathy is tricked into going on a date with Mr. Vernon her gym teacher, Fred Vernon (Riccardo Acerbi). when she tries to make a move on him in his car which is in the woods as a joke, the students appear in their cars to taunt her. while she runs away from the other students, Kathy runs onto a busy street where she gets hit by a car and is admitted to the hospital in a coma. A bit later on a new girl called Eva Gordon (Laura Naszinski) arrives at the school where she is shown around by the headmistress Miss Jones, and she is given Kathy's old room. Eva ends up getting processed by the spirit of the Kathy who is in a coma whom begins using supernatural powers of to get revenge against all of the students who were involved in the prank that put her in a coma. The next night, Virginia Williams (Kathi Wise), one of the students involved in the prank against Kathy, is attacked in her bed and suffocated to death by tons of snails that appear and then disappear. This is quite a gory film. which most viewers will enjoy. Reccommeded!!

I've seen several movies made by Fulci. And this one is the least terrifying and scary among the others I've watched. For me it was much more easier to watch "Aenigma" then, for example, "Black Cat" or "House by the Cemetery" (which are, of course, the must seen ones). Nevertheless it has everything a good horror movie should have. I really like it, especially the ending, which shows brilliant work of camera and music together. This movie is an example of Lucio Fulci remarkable capability generated from his very own vision of reality to create the unique mood and atmosphere.

I am not surprised to see mostly negative reviews for Fulci's 1987 "Carrie" inspired "Aenigma". It does not stand up to his late 70's/early 80's gore epics that you all are familiar with. But wait, let's remember that Fulci is still visually inventive in 87, with lots of great camera moves and flair. The man knew how to tell a story, folks. He may have been a jerk to his colleagues, but what a great craftsman. He was trying to make a US style teenager quasi slasher popcorn movie here, a lighter less horrifying type of deal. I think it should also be said that this was well cast. The beautiful college girls each play their roles with unique personalities, something you won't find in most US films of this type. The geeky girl in the red dress is a hoot, and so is the famous snail scene. Best of all is the English new wave/pop sappy romance song that sets up the audience perfectly. It's an interesting and engaging story, even if it is clearly inspired by Carrie. And unlike so many other horror films, the ending is rewarding, logical AND suspenseful. I still haven't seen a Fulci film that I don't like, and this is no exception...check it out!

The spirit of a comatose teenage girl possesses the body of a newcomer to her girls boarding school to enact bloody revenge against the elitist, lingerie-clad coeds responsible for her condition.

Donald C. Willis described the film as a "episodic horror-fantasy variation on 'Carrie' by way of 'Patrick' and 'The Medusa Touch'" and that the "heavy-handed intro" makes the film get "off to a bad start". He forgot "Slugs", though this film is nastier than "Slugs" and may be worth watching for that very reason.

The interesting thing is how this is a Yugoslavian film. What? I feel like that deserves more of an explanation. I know that Romania was popular for a while to film on the cheap, but you rarely hear about Yugoslavia. What was Fulci doing there?

Judging by the amount of other user-comments and their content around here, this "Aenigma" (love the alternate spelling!) is a lesser known and thoroughly hated Lucio Fulci film. Well sure, it's not a patch on his earlier work but still it remains a remotely enjoyable bloodbath with some inventive killings (the snails!!) and an appealing cast of young & sexy schoolgirls. The story, although highly unoriginal, is easy to follow, unpretentious and fast-paced. Black sheep of Catholic girl's dorm Kathy is involved in a near-fatal car accident after a prank with the school's gym teacher. Shortly after, a new and extrovert girl makes her entry in the dorm but her mind seems controlled by the comatose Kathy. Through Eva Gordon, Kathy and her spiritual mother see a chance for revenge, starting with the death of the insufferable macho gym teacher. Fulci keeps the gore under control this time and focuses more on the brooding atmosphere. "Aenigma" features some beautiful camera-work, although admittedly, the same camera angles are often re-used several times. The girls' acting is extremely hammy and it's a good thing they all all look so cute, otherwise it would have been a lot more difficult to struggle yourself through the movie. Nothing spectacular or special, but it certainly isn't terrible, neither.