Suspiria (1977)
86%RT Audience Score: 83%
Awards & Nominations: 24 wins & 74 nominations
Suspiria is a cinematic masterpiece that transcends the horror genre with its stunning visual and auditory elements. Argento’s use of lighting and music creates an otherworldly atmosphere that immerses the viewer in a surreal and dreamlike experience. While the plot may be convoluted and the dialogue stilted, the sheer exuberance of the film’s baroque expressionism is a feast for the senses. Suspiria’s impact on the horror genre cannot be overstated, and its influence can be seen in every death dream that pits bloody madness over surreal macabre imagery. It’s a film that demands to be seen on the big screen, where its technical and aesthetic composure can overwhelm, astound, and shock its way into the annals of all horror, giallo or otherwise.
Suspiria is like a wild ride through a haunted house, but instead of ghosts, you’re confronted with stunning visuals and a killer soundtrack. It’s not for the faint of heart, but if you’re looking for a horror movie that’s more art than jump scares, this is the one for you. Just don’t expect to understand everything that’s going on – sometimes it’s better to just let the madness wash over you.
Production Company(ies)
Warner Independent Pictures, Castle Rock Entertainment, Detour Filmproduction
Distributor
Anchor Bay Entertainment, Joseph Brenner Associates Inc. [us], Fox Lorber
Release Type
Theatrical, Theatrical (Limited), Theatrical (Wide)
Filming Location(s)
Grand Hotel Campo dei Fiori, Varese, Lombardia, Italy
MPAA / Certificate
Rated R for disturbing content involving ritualistic violence, bloody images and graphic nudity, and for some language including sexual references
Year of Release
2018
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Color:Color
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Sound mix:Dolby Atmos Dolby Digital Dolby Surround 7.1
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Aspect ratio:1.85 : 1
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Runtime:1h 32m
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Language(s):English, German, French
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Country of origin:United States
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Release date:Release Date (Theaters): Feb 1, 1977 Original
Release Date (Streaming): Sep 25, 2007
Genre(s)
Horror
Keyword(s)
starring Jessica Harper, Stefania Casini, Joan Bennett, Eva Axén, Flavio Bucci, Udo Kier, directed by Dario Argento, written by Thomas De Quincey, Dario Argento, Daria Nicolodi, horror, box office performance, budget, reviewed by Alyx Vesey, Adam Nayman, Christy Lemire, Anton Bitel, J Hoberman, Adam Smith, Dennis Harvey, Brian Eggert, Ernesto Diezmartinez, Shikhar Verma, MPAA rating R, ballet school, murder, secret history, giallo horror, grandiose, glossy, gory, lighting, music, gender hegemony, educational institutions, femininity, surreal, macabre imagery, candy-colored dreamscape, violence, extreme, astoundingly creepy, beautifully filmed, Goblins’ score, low production value, dubbed audio
Worldwide gross: $7,942,093
Worldwide gross (inflation-adjusted): $9,346,047
Worldwide gross ranking (inflation-adjusted): 1,981
Worldwide tickets sold (est.): 1,019,198
US/Canada gross: $2,483,472
US/Canada gross (inflation-adjusted): $2,922,485
US/Canada gross ranking (inflation-adjusted): 1,944
US/Canada opening weekend: $184,037
US/Canada opening weekend (inflation-adjusted): $216,570
US/Canada opening weekend ranking (inflation-adjusted): 1,641
Budget and Earnings Details
Production budget (est.): $20,000,000
Production budget (inflation-adjusted): $23,535,475
Production budget ranking: 1,279
Marketing and distribution budget (inflation-adjusted est.): $12,673,853
Box office net earnings to date (inflation-adjusted est.): -$26,863,282
ROI to date (est.): -74%
ROI ranking: 1,838
Stefania Casini – Sara
Joan Bennett – Madame Blanc
Eva Axén – Pat Hingle
Flavio Bucci – Daniel
Udo Kier – Dr. Frank Mandel
Director(s)
Dario Argento
Writer(s)
Thomas De Quincey, Dario Argento, Daria Nicolodi
Producer(s)
NA
Film Festivals
Berlin, Venice
Awards & Nominations
24 wins & 74 nominations
Academy Awards
All Critics (61) | Top Critics (11) | Fresh (57) | Rotten (4)
What makes [Suspiria] especially effective is how they use horror to make a point about educational institutions’ enforcement of gender hegemony to interrogate conventional femininity.
January 7, 2021
Alyx Vesey
Bitch Media
TOP CRITIC
What lingers is not a sense of evil but exhilaration in how far Argento and his fellow filmmakers were willing to go to shock and delight; the movie’s sheer exuberance is the cinematic equivalent of a blood transfusion.
October 5, 2018
Adam Nayman
The Ringer
TOP CRITIC
Argento accomplishes so much simply through lighting and music – which goes a long way to compensate for the stilted dialogue and awkward character interactions.
April 16, 2018 | Rating: 3/4
Christy Lemire
ChristyLemire.com
TOP CRITIC
Suspiria is a baroque piece of esoteric expressionism that you enter – and exit – without understanding so much as feeling.
December 4, 2017
Anton Bitel
Little White Lies
TOP CRITIC
A movie that makes sense only to the eye (and even then . . .).
September 1, 2009
J. Hoberman
Village Voice
TOP CRITIC
As an appetizer to the thoroughly bizarre world of Italian horror, Suspiria is the perfect antipasto.
September 26, 2007 | Rating: 5/5
Adam Smith
Empire Magazine
TOP CRITIC
…a genre classic, as well as its still-active director’s best film—the one in which his baroque style was most beautifully overripe, and in which the “whatever”-ness of the plot mattered least…
April 1, 2022
Dennis Harvey
48 Hills
Whatever its downfalls of narrative and dramatically achieved emotion may be, Suspiria’s technical and aesthetic composure overwhelms, astounds, and shocks its place into the annuls of all horror, giallo or otherwise.
March 8, 2022 | Rating: 3.5/4
Brian Eggert
Deep Focus Review
“His sixth feature film and perhaps his masterpiece, strategically moves away from the typical stories of the giallo without separating a millimeter from his visual and stylistic drives”. [Full review in Spanish]
December 31, 2020 | Rating: 3/4
Ernesto Diezmartinez
Letras Libres
Suspiria has had a huge impact on every death dream that pits bloody madness over surreal macabre imagery. While we can no more call it a singular vision, it’s essential to note that it wasn’t supposed to be one in the first place.
September 26, 2019 | Rating: 5/5
Shikhar Verma
High on Films
A beautiful bright fantasy that lives off its aesthetic.
January 19, 2019
Evan Dossey
Midwest Film Journal
Even if it feels a little outdated, Suspiria still stands as a horror classic whose aesthetic power shadows its light story [Full review in Spanish].
January 15, 2019 | Rating: 3/4
Federico Furzan
Cinelipsis…
Plot
Susie Bannion is a young American ballerina who travels to Berlin to study dancing at Madame Blanc’s Markos Tanz Company, one of the world’s most renowned schools. On her first day, one of the students who had been recently expelled from the school is murdered. As this appalling happening does not seem to be an isolated occurrence, the brilliant new student soon begins to suspect that the school might be involved in the homicide. Her mistrust heightens when Sarah, one of the girls at the school, tells her that before she was killed, Pat confided to her that she knew and guarded a terrifying secret.
Trivia
Goofs / Tidbits
Fresh Kernels doesn’t say anything goofy or funny about Suspiria, but it does mention that the film features Jessica Harper, Stefania Casini, Joan Bennett, Eva Axén, Flavio Bucci, and Udo Kier in its cast.
Dario-Argento.jpg
