To be completely honest, I wasn't very excited about re-watching this movie. On my first watch, I found this movie far too long, the voice dubbing was distracting, and the plot felt paper-thin. in fairness, it was the first Giallo I had ever seen, and I am a tiny bit more prepared for the Giallo style. after both that and the remake, I figured maybe I was too harsh on this movie.
one of the mistakes I made on my first time through was thinking that this movie takes place in our reality. the hyper-stylized color pallet is a great way to show that as soon as Suzy leaves the airport, she leaves reality. as soon as you shake the idea the same rules that apply to us don't apply to them, the movie becomes a lot easier to engage with.
the directing of this movie is by far the best part of the movie, and the sound design/soundtrack by GOBLIN is one of the greatest in horror history. that being said, this movie is far from perfect. characters disappear from the movie, the run time is a bit too long, and for a dance academy, no one is that great at dancing. this movie basically asks the question, is a sub-par plot fine if the directing and sound design are both perfect? do you care more about what's happening in the movie, or how they represent it?
some people have no problem ignoring this movie's flaws and see it as a masterpiece. although I got more out of it on my second viewing, I still find it hard to ignore this movie's flaws.
8/10
Comments