Suspiria

HALLOWEEN SPECIAL! IMPORTED 35mm PRINT! ► Join us — or don’t, if you’re squeamish or easily offended! — for this special Halloween presentation, in a 35mm print imported from Europe, of Suspiria, widely regarded as the magnum opus of Dario Argento, shock maestro of the Italian film genre known as giallo (a stylish mix of mystery, horror and, often, eroticism that takes it name — literally, "yellow" — from the lurid yellow covers of Italian pulp-fiction paperbacks). American cult actress Jessica Harper plays a young ballet student newly arrived at a prestigious German dance academy plagued by a murderous coven of witches. Argento choreographs a stomach-churning, sensory-overload ballet of bravura technique, vivid colour and surreal, bloody mayhem. The score is by Italian prog rockers Goblin. "Never has gratuitous bloodletting seemed so ornately beautiful...Long admired in cult circles, Suspiria stands as one of the most visually striking horror films ever made, and the high watermark of a first-rate splatter stylist" (Scott Tobias, The Onion). "Argento’s masterpiece pulses with profondo rosso...Argento has yet to top the spectacular overture of driving rain and double homicide...[But] Argento’s delectation in female suffering [is] a possible stumbling block for any newcomer to his work" (Jessica Winter, The Rough Guide to Film). Colour, 35mm. 98 mins.

Print on loan from the archives of the National Media Museum, Bradford, England.

Program Note!
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Suspiria patrons advised to expect a true grindhouse experience!

We have discovered, to our trick-or-treat surprise, that the print of Dario Argento’s Suspiria, imported from the National Media Museum in the United Kingdom and currently on North American tour, is in fair condition only. More specifically, while the colour quality of the print is excellent, there is some scratching and wearing evident at times in image and sound.

Please note also that while this print is six minutes longer than the version of the film originally released in Canada, there still appears to be approximately three minutes of Argento’s original blood-and-gore missing — excised, it seems, by British censors.

We’re just as spooked by this as you are. ALL SEATS to this event will now be offered at the concession price of $8.

Annual membership requirement and 18+ age restriction remain in force.
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