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My first Argento review 
it's of the 1975 giallo, Deep Red, enjoy!
The giallo sub-genre is quite a peculiar section of horror, that focuses and concentrates on mystery and suspense just as much as it focuses on the horror elements that composes its narrative. In fact, unlike traditional horror films that introduce a situation that allows the events they feature to be mildly plausible, the giallo sub-genre frequently places a gargantuan emphasis on their plots, that perhaps defies the more stereotypical views on the writing of horror films. But featuring the iconic black-gloved killer and gorgeous female victims, it was a sub-genre that horror icons Mario Bava and Dario Argento heavily contributed to, with Argento’s very own Deep Red frequently being cited as being amongst the best films that the sub-genre had to offer. (I refer to it in the past tense, because sadly, the sub-genre has more or less died out)
The plot follows an English Jazz pianist, Marcus Daly (David Hemmings) living in Rome. After visiting his alcoholic friend, Carlo, (Gabriele Lavia) Marcus then witnesses the brutal murder of prominent psychic, Helga Ullman (Macha Meril). After being questioned by the police and the enigmatic Gianni Brezzi (Daria Nicolodi) Marcus finds himself targeted by the killer, forcing him to discover their identity, before they gain the opportunity to kill him. Whilst doing so, he begins a liaison of sorts with Gianni, who wishes to assist him for occupational purposes, however he rebuffs her, claiming that men are superior to women, making her assistance futile and unnecessary. Marcus then uncovers various links, but every time he decides to meet someone in order to further his progress, they are killed by the person who is determined to get rid of Marcus. After a close encounter with the killer, Marcus notices that a song of a child singing plays each time the killer arrives, and making this connection, his investigation begins gaining momentum and after accepting the help of Gianni, they go to a school where, after finding a piece of incriminating evidence, assume Carlo is the killer. However, they do not realise that Carlo is present with them, and in a frenzied panic, he stabs Gianni before attempting to escape, however he is unsuccessful and is subsequently killed by a truck. Marcus then believes that his ordeal is over, but then he notices that Carlo was with him when the first murder occurred and after confronting the killer a final time, it turns out be Carlo’s mother, Martha (Clara Calamai) who is beheaded by an elevator after a brief confrontation with Marcus. The credits the begin to roll, with Marcus staring in a pool of blood.
This is only a very brief summary of the film, for the plot is far more extensive and covers a broad range of issues that I haven’t been able to cover in order to maintain some sort of brevity. Nevertheless, its reputation is most definitely deserved, and here’s why!
Positives
The plot. It has to be one of the best and most enticing and captivating plots horror has probably ever seen, and featuring an array of unique and interesting characters, you can’t help but be invested in Marcus’ struggle and your curiosity as to who is the sadistic, knife wielding killer, will be piquing. However, not only is the plot itself incredibly strong, but the dialogue and character development are all extremely strong as well (quite an astonishing accomplishment considering Argento’s English dubs are usually mediocre at best). Not once was there a cardboard cut-out or over used stereotype that we had all seen before either, these characters felt genuine and real and are accurate representations of the more quirky characters we find in our societies. Additionally, even though she is utterly insane, you can’t help but pity Martha somewhat, for the circumstances that drove her to commit her first murder were rather sad (her husband decided that she could no longer pursue acting, something she very obviously devoted her life too, leaving her trapped, isolated and totally despaired) and pitying a killer is an incredibly hard thing to do indeed, with very few films successfully managing to do so, so Argento did something quite rare I feel with Martha.
Developing on this somewhat, Deep Red covers a broad range of issues stretching across our societies. It tackles the issue misogyny and feminism, with the female characters often demonstrating themselves to be just as worthy, competitive and terrifying as their male counterparts, both physically (Martha) and verbally (Gianni). Also, being gay myself, it was quite satisfying to see an LGBT character who wasn’t defined by his sexuality, as is the case even in modern times sadly. Argento really was quite ahead of his time in consideration with these issues, and he was praised for it, and rightfully so too.
Argento is known for his leading ladies as well, and this film is no exception. The acting by Daria Nicolodi (his partner for a decade and mother of his second child, Asia) is astounding, and she truly steals every scene she is in, probably due to how she manages to embody Gianni’s hyperactivity, sexual allure, fascination, frustration and more or less any emotion in a diverging way, relying on her physical mannerisms just as much, if not more than, her voice. Clara Calamai (who came out of retirement to appear in this and is pictured below) is pretty good too, and she manages to define Martha as an eccentric matriarch without over-acting or over-emphasising her psychotic nature and it’s quite easy to see why she was one of Italy’s most treasured actresses (besides being the first Italian woman to go topless in mainstream cinema).
Argento is also known for his reliance on soundtracks in order to reflect the nature and ambiance of his films, and Deep Red features one of his finest scores that fits the majority of the scenes that the music (composed by Goblin, also the composers of Suspiria) is paired with. His moving camera angles are also a nice touch, for viewing a film through a static camera is something that any movie-goer has become de-sensitised to, so featuring a moving camera in the more slow scenes makes for a nice change, that also allows the viewer to search for anything that may link to the killer (Argento uses mise-en-scene in this to great effect in relation to the identity of Martha) that was also a great addition to the film. Nevertheless, there are still some:
Negatives
At times I felt the soundtrack was too funky or inappropriate. For example, when David rushes to Helga’s apartment, this cheery piano tune starts playing, that creates an unusual and perplexing juxtaposition that just feels wrong, considering a woman is being butchered whilst this is going on.
The acting by the leading men wasn’t too great either. David Hemmings didn’t show too much range to be honest, and had no real presence, being shadowed or upstaged by more or less any other member of the cast. Gabriele Lavia, who plays the alcoholic Carlo, is pretty cringe-worthy in his idea of what being drunk entails, he over acts a large proportion of his scenes to quite a large extent and is quite off-putting really.
Also, the main character, Marcus, has more or less no redeemable qualities. He finds rape jokes amusing, is hugely sexist, and is one of the most boring leading characters Argento has ever created. To be perfectly honest, I kind of wanted him to die and even at the end, we don’t get the impression that Marcus has changed his views on women at all.
Conclusion
Undoubtedly, this is one of Italy’s finest contributions to horror and there have been many, so Argento did himself proud with this film. With the interesting choice of camera angles and mise-en-scene to create a nightmarish atmosphere (if you look in the bars behind Marcus, there is minimal amount of movement, as if the patrons are mannequins) alongside an astounding female cast that tackles numerous of issues that wouldn’t be brought to the forefront of societies for decades, this is an amazing film, despite some weak acting here and there. Therefore, I’ll give this film
it's of the 1975 giallo, Deep Red, enjoy! The giallo sub-genre is quite a peculiar section of horror, that focuses and concentrates on mystery and suspense just as much as it focuses on the horror elements that composes its narrative. In fact, unlike traditional horror films that introduce a situation that allows the events they feature to be mildly plausible, the giallo sub-genre frequently places a gargantuan emphasis on their plots, that perhaps defies the more stereotypical views on the writing of horror films. But featuring the iconic black-gloved killer and gorgeous female victims, it was a sub-genre that horror icons Mario Bava and Dario Argento heavily contributed to, with Argento’s very own Deep Red frequently being cited as being amongst the best films that the sub-genre had to offer. (I refer to it in the past tense, because sadly, the sub-genre has more or less died out)
The plot follows an English Jazz pianist, Marcus Daly (David Hemmings) living in Rome. After visiting his alcoholic friend, Carlo, (Gabriele Lavia) Marcus then witnesses the brutal murder of prominent psychic, Helga Ullman (Macha Meril). After being questioned by the police and the enigmatic Gianni Brezzi (Daria Nicolodi) Marcus finds himself targeted by the killer, forcing him to discover their identity, before they gain the opportunity to kill him. Whilst doing so, he begins a liaison of sorts with Gianni, who wishes to assist him for occupational purposes, however he rebuffs her, claiming that men are superior to women, making her assistance futile and unnecessary. Marcus then uncovers various links, but every time he decides to meet someone in order to further his progress, they are killed by the person who is determined to get rid of Marcus. After a close encounter with the killer, Marcus notices that a song of a child singing plays each time the killer arrives, and making this connection, his investigation begins gaining momentum and after accepting the help of Gianni, they go to a school where, after finding a piece of incriminating evidence, assume Carlo is the killer. However, they do not realise that Carlo is present with them, and in a frenzied panic, he stabs Gianni before attempting to escape, however he is unsuccessful and is subsequently killed by a truck. Marcus then believes that his ordeal is over, but then he notices that Carlo was with him when the first murder occurred and after confronting the killer a final time, it turns out be Carlo’s mother, Martha (Clara Calamai) who is beheaded by an elevator after a brief confrontation with Marcus. The credits the begin to roll, with Marcus staring in a pool of blood.
This is only a very brief summary of the film, for the plot is far more extensive and covers a broad range of issues that I haven’t been able to cover in order to maintain some sort of brevity. Nevertheless, its reputation is most definitely deserved, and here’s why!
Positives
The plot. It has to be one of the best and most enticing and captivating plots horror has probably ever seen, and featuring an array of unique and interesting characters, you can’t help but be invested in Marcus’ struggle and your curiosity as to who is the sadistic, knife wielding killer, will be piquing. However, not only is the plot itself incredibly strong, but the dialogue and character development are all extremely strong as well (quite an astonishing accomplishment considering Argento’s English dubs are usually mediocre at best). Not once was there a cardboard cut-out or over used stereotype that we had all seen before either, these characters felt genuine and real and are accurate representations of the more quirky characters we find in our societies. Additionally, even though she is utterly insane, you can’t help but pity Martha somewhat, for the circumstances that drove her to commit her first murder were rather sad (her husband decided that she could no longer pursue acting, something she very obviously devoted her life too, leaving her trapped, isolated and totally despaired) and pitying a killer is an incredibly hard thing to do indeed, with very few films successfully managing to do so, so Argento did something quite rare I feel with Martha.
Developing on this somewhat, Deep Red covers a broad range of issues stretching across our societies. It tackles the issue misogyny and feminism, with the female characters often demonstrating themselves to be just as worthy, competitive and terrifying as their male counterparts, both physically (Martha) and verbally (Gianni). Also, being gay myself, it was quite satisfying to see an LGBT character who wasn’t defined by his sexuality, as is the case even in modern times sadly. Argento really was quite ahead of his time in consideration with these issues, and he was praised for it, and rightfully so too.
Argento is known for his leading ladies as well, and this film is no exception. The acting by Daria Nicolodi (his partner for a decade and mother of his second child, Asia) is astounding, and she truly steals every scene she is in, probably due to how she manages to embody Gianni’s hyperactivity, sexual allure, fascination, frustration and more or less any emotion in a diverging way, relying on her physical mannerisms just as much, if not more than, her voice. Clara Calamai (who came out of retirement to appear in this and is pictured below) is pretty good too, and she manages to define Martha as an eccentric matriarch without over-acting or over-emphasising her psychotic nature and it’s quite easy to see why she was one of Italy’s most treasured actresses (besides being the first Italian woman to go topless in mainstream cinema).
Argento is also known for his reliance on soundtracks in order to reflect the nature and ambiance of his films, and Deep Red features one of his finest scores that fits the majority of the scenes that the music (composed by Goblin, also the composers of Suspiria) is paired with. His moving camera angles are also a nice touch, for viewing a film through a static camera is something that any movie-goer has become de-sensitised to, so featuring a moving camera in the more slow scenes makes for a nice change, that also allows the viewer to search for anything that may link to the killer (Argento uses mise-en-scene in this to great effect in relation to the identity of Martha) that was also a great addition to the film. Nevertheless, there are still some:
Negatives
At times I felt the soundtrack was too funky or inappropriate. For example, when David rushes to Helga’s apartment, this cheery piano tune starts playing, that creates an unusual and perplexing juxtaposition that just feels wrong, considering a woman is being butchered whilst this is going on.
The acting by the leading men wasn’t too great either. David Hemmings didn’t show too much range to be honest, and had no real presence, being shadowed or upstaged by more or less any other member of the cast. Gabriele Lavia, who plays the alcoholic Carlo, is pretty cringe-worthy in his idea of what being drunk entails, he over acts a large proportion of his scenes to quite a large extent and is quite off-putting really.
Also, the main character, Marcus, has more or less no redeemable qualities. He finds rape jokes amusing, is hugely sexist, and is one of the most boring leading characters Argento has ever created. To be perfectly honest, I kind of wanted him to die and even at the end, we don’t get the impression that Marcus has changed his views on women at all.
Conclusion
Undoubtedly, this is one of Italy’s finest contributions to horror and there have been many, so Argento did himself proud with this film. With the interesting choice of camera angles and mise-en-scene to create a nightmarish atmosphere (if you look in the bars behind Marcus, there is minimal amount of movement, as if the patrons are mannequins) alongside an astounding female cast that tackles numerous of issues that wouldn’t be brought to the forefront of societies for decades, this is an amazing film, despite some weak acting here and there. Therefore, I’ll give this film