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Suspiria Review Thread - Divisive Critical Response (RT: 62%)
- Thread starter RastaMentality
- Start date
Not necessarily. I wouldn't watch this specific divisive remake of a previously universally acclaimed film that didn't really grab me the first time around. My statement was by no means a universal statement for all movies, and I don't think it came across that way. Maybe I was too vague.
Movies in this vein (slower horror that relies on dread and unease and less on traditional spooks and scares) typically aren't really for me, anyway. I can acknowledge the artistic merit of films like the VVitch, It Comes at Night, Hereditary, and the original Suspiria while also not personally enjoying them as horror films. I feel somewhat compelled to check out these films when they get rave reviews despite the foreknowledge that they aren't exactly my cup of tea, and I enjoy them for their fine cinematic qualities even if they don't grip me the same way that they do for others. However, hearing that this film in particular isn't setting reviews aflame makes me less inclined to seek it out, knowing my personal taste in horror films.
I like a broad variety of movies and normally don't let critics dictate my viewing habits beyond seeking out universally acclaimed films that may not intersect with my personal tastes, because sometimes those movies surprise me.
I just saw the North American premiere...
SUSPIRIA 2018: A sentence I never expected to write - "Remake of Argento's classic dance-school shocker is spectacular." Holy shit is this the real deal. Epic-length, but flies by. The new Helena Markos is the grossest character I've seen in years. So effing recommended.
SUSPIRIA 2018: A sentence I never expected to write - "Remake of Argento's classic dance-school shocker is spectacular." Holy shit is this the real deal. Epic-length, but flies by. The new Helena Markos is the grossest character I've seen in years. So effing recommended.
Yeah, the director had mentioned this a while ago. Glad to hear another positive impression.
What's the policy on posting movie scripts? Because I just read it the whole thing and...
...it's amazing.
The last ten pages are indescribable, and would seem practically unfilmable if I didn't already know they had indeed been filmed :-p
...it's amazing.
The last ten pages are indescribable, and would seem practically unfilmable if I didn't already know they had indeed been filmed :-p
There is a reference in the film to a Tanz Academy performance in NYC, which strongly suggests a sequel would be at least somewhat based on Inferno.
So I saw this tonight....and pretty much loved it. I also loved the original and they're really nothing alike, but both worth watching. I can definitely see this film as being hated by MOST who watch it. It's incredibly long and has comparatively few "horror" scenes when compared to mainstream films. If you're the type who've hated the arthouse horror of the last few years(you know the films I mean), stay far far away.
Scene that will go down as an all time classic IMO:
Scene that will go down as an all time classic IMO:
The first real "horror" moment where Olga is being puppeted around. As crazy as the end of the film was, this is the scene that I found most intensely disturbing.
Disaster of a film, the editing in the critical scene of the film is amateur hour considering the director's other work and reminds me of a student film. Yorke crooning over it just cements the entire thing as laughable.
The score to this film was shockingly misguided and Yorke's constant singing ruins every scene it's in. Most baffling soundtrack in a film I've seen, especially when you consider how crucial Goblin's work was to the original.
Dancing choreography was impressive but as a whole the film is just a mess and an hour of the nearly 3 hour runtime is dedicated to a subplot that goes no where and whose thematic reverence is lackluster at best. And it can't be understated how bad the soundtrack is and how it ruins nearly every scene where present.
The score to this film was shockingly misguided and Yorke's constant singing ruins every scene it's in. Most baffling soundtrack in a film I've seen, especially when you consider how crucial Goblin's work was to the original.
Dancing choreography was impressive but as a whole the film is just a mess and an hour of the nearly 3 hour runtime is dedicated to a subplot that goes no where and whose thematic reverence is lackluster at best. And it can't be understated how bad the soundtrack is and how it ruins nearly every scene where present.
loved this. went it thinking it was horribly miscast, but i've really grown to like dakota johnson. i was surprised to hear thom yorke singing during the actual film and agree it felt out of place; there is definitely an intentional importance placed on the male voice in the movie, so it was weird that his was so prominent. but, the music is beautiful and enhanced the movie for me otherwise.
i feel like there's this trend of films that feel like netflix, i don't really know what i mean when i say this, just a general vibe i get when i watch movies like Annihilation, or Venom, or even Hereditary. I'm sure someone smarter could break down why I feel that way. Suspiria is movie where you can feel someone had a vision and executed it how they wanted. like, it might be a little indulgent and messy, but it doesn't feel hacked to shit in editing and lose a creative voice.
i feel like there's this trend of films that feel like netflix, i don't really know what i mean when i say this, just a general vibe i get when i watch movies like Annihilation, or Venom, or even Hereditary. I'm sure someone smarter could break down why I feel that way. Suspiria is movie where you can feel someone had a vision and executed it how they wanted. like, it might be a little indulgent and messy, but it doesn't feel hacked to shit in editing and lose a creative voice.
I really enjoyed it, overall, but it is a mess. Very high highs and some low lows. Definitely worth seeing, IMO. Some of the most striking horror I've seen in a while.
I think it falls apart a little at the end, with a conclusion that is half fantastic and half head-scratching.
I think it falls apart a little at the end, with a conclusion that is half fantastic and half head-scratching.
I 100% understand how this movie can be divisive. Especially for fans of the original who want what was effectively a prog-rock opera slasher fairy tale. That being said, I walked away from it absolutely goddamn adoring it. I mentioned in the recently watched thread that some reviews claimed that the movie left too many strands or that its thematics didn't tie together in the end, but I felt like everything really perfectly came together in a really neat bow. I walked out of the theater feeling really satisfied and happy.
As a fan of the original, it is certainly different. It doesn't have the incredible prog-rock Goblin score or the flamboyant visual flair. But I did think the score was fantastic and suited the film and its goals.
I'm probably going to see it again this weekend. It was a great theater experience. I'll definitely catch it a few more times once it hits Prime Video given the Amazon backing.
As a fan of the original, it is certainly different. It doesn't have the incredible prog-rock Goblin score or the flamboyant visual flair. But I did think the score was fantastic and suited the film and its goals.
Volk was especially fantastic, as the percussion rises up and begins to increase the sense of urgency.
I'm probably going to see it again this weekend. It was a great theater experience. I'll definitely catch it a few more times once it hits Prime Video given the Amazon backing.
I enjoyed the film while it was playing, it was 80% intellectual european art film, 20% horror. I think it was largely successful. But it was a bad remake of Suspiria, in that it isn't scary and it only has three big dance/horror set pieces.
The first is the infamous scene where people supposedly walked out of preview screenings, and it's by far the hightlight of the movie. It happens approximately 45 minutes in, and the film never delivers anything like it again.
The second is a tense and visually impressive dance, but it lacks horror and a climax.
The third comes near the end and as a poster above stated, the film collapses when it should have soared. There is a baffling overreliance on bad prosthetics, Tilda Swinton doing a nasally comedy voice, and ridiculous CG violence coupled with a student-film level sequence to Thom Yorke's unwelcome vocals. It. Is. Terrible. And it torpedoes the entire film.
Aside from that scene, visually it's fantastic, the costumes, performances and dialogue are great. The narrative is stronger than expected and the twist on expectations is satisfying. It has a unique rhythm and mood: surreal and foreboding. But it's too long, baggy where it doesn't need to be due to a subplot which is memorable but nothing at all to do with Suspiria. It felt crowbarred in from a different film.
So in summation, there is a lot to like, but not enough of what you'd want from a remake of Suspiria. And a significant portion of it doesn't work.
The first is the infamous scene where people supposedly walked out of preview screenings, and it's by far the hightlight of the movie. It happens approximately 45 minutes in, and the film never delivers anything like it again.
The second is a tense and visually impressive dance, but it lacks horror and a climax.
The third comes near the end and as a poster above stated, the film collapses when it should have soared. There is a baffling overreliance on bad prosthetics, Tilda Swinton doing a nasally comedy voice, and ridiculous CG violence coupled with a student-film level sequence to Thom Yorke's unwelcome vocals. It. Is. Terrible. And it torpedoes the entire film.
Aside from that scene, visually it's fantastic, the costumes, performances and dialogue are great. The narrative is stronger than expected and the twist on expectations is satisfying. It has a unique rhythm and mood: surreal and foreboding. But it's too long, baggy where it doesn't need to be due to a subplot which is memorable but nothing at all to do with Suspiria. It felt crowbarred in from a different film.
So in summation, there is a lot to like, but not enough of what you'd want from a remake of Suspiria. And a significant portion of it doesn't work.
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This was such a notable drop in quality compared to the previous 2 hours, and it had all been building to that moment. It was the sort of sequence I'd expect from latter-day Romero. And I think Argento's oft-maligned Mother of Tears had a better climax (though it's been a while since I watched that).
Ok...
I was against the idea of remaking Suspiria, and upon seeing the first trailer it looked like a movie I'd want to see, but didn't look like Suspiria.
Having seen the film now, I think it's worthy of the name and I enjoyed it. I honestly think the film may work best as a companion piece, considering it plays on a lot of the stuff the film never really gets into and messes with expectations that way. They nailed the look (despite subdued colors)
I think it takes way too long to get to the good stuff (and the good stuff is good) but in that first 30+ minutes I was ready to write off the film entirely.
I did not care for Chloe Grace Moretz' performance. That opening was bad, but I imagine she only had so much to work with
I understand having the subplot of a certain character, it serves its purpose to move the plot at times and is a decent source of pathos but is honestly a waste of time (and having its conclusion after everything else is real dumb)
Ending sequence was full on trash and I LOVED it. It's like all of the Argento trash shlock was held until it had no choice but to burst at the end. Ridiculous sequence. (horrid vocals though in the soundtrack, come on)
there were times when I didn't hate the vocals, they served to be a little disorienting at times but jesus they did not need to be there. I actually quite liked most of the score outside of that
Did not care for the epilogue whatsoever. Should've ended in chaos
I was against the idea of remaking Suspiria, and upon seeing the first trailer it looked like a movie I'd want to see, but didn't look like Suspiria.
Having seen the film now, I think it's worthy of the name and I enjoyed it. I honestly think the film may work best as a companion piece, considering it plays on a lot of the stuff the film never really gets into and messes with expectations that way. They nailed the look (despite subdued colors)
I think it takes way too long to get to the good stuff (and the good stuff is good) but in that first 30+ minutes I was ready to write off the film entirely.
I did not care for Chloe Grace Moretz' performance. That opening was bad, but I imagine she only had so much to work with
I understand having the subplot of a certain character, it serves its purpose to move the plot at times and is a decent source of pathos but is honestly a waste of time (and having its conclusion after everything else is real dumb)
Ending sequence was full on trash and I LOVED it. It's like all of the Argento trash shlock was held until it had no choice but to burst at the end. Ridiculous sequence. (horrid vocals though in the soundtrack, come on)
there were times when I didn't hate the vocals, they served to be a little disorienting at times but jesus they did not need to be there. I actually quite liked most of the score outside of that
Did not care for the epilogue whatsoever. Should've ended in chaos
Funny you mention that because I thought that entire sequence felt like Mother Of Tears (especially with how she was dressed). MOT's ending is kind of shit with horrific CG, it's definitely worse than that lol. I do like MOT a lot though, not a great movie but it's a fun throwback to Argento's classic period.
Thinking about it more....
I think having Patricia's murder at the start of the movie would've gone a long way
I understand wanting a very slow rollout of violence, but that first stretch really needed something I think.
I do love Olga's murder essentially being the movie showing its hand, but at that point it was almost a breath of relief that the movie wasn't going to be a bust. Which at like 45 minutes in........come on now
I get that they weren't going to match the opening murder from the original and probably didn't even want to give people the chance to compare, but I think just writing it off like "oh what happened to her was ghastly" sucks
I think you still could've shown her being killed without an explanation and then you get the big reveal that everything is tied to the dance.
I understand wanting a very slow rollout of violence, but that first stretch really needed something I think.
I do love Olga's murder essentially being the movie showing its hand, but at that point it was almost a breath of relief that the movie wasn't going to be a bust. Which at like 45 minutes in........come on now
I get that they weren't going to match the opening murder from the original and probably didn't even want to give people the chance to compare, but I think just writing it off like "oh what happened to her was ghastly" sucks
I think you still could've shown her being killed without an explanation and then you get the big reveal that everything is tied to the dance.
think it's weird to suggest that Luca thinks he's too good for horror since he's talked at length about how big a deal the original Suspiria has been to him since he was a kid.
It's an Amazon Studios movie so it'll streaming be on Prime in a few months.
Heads up, the NPR FRESH AIR review spoiled the film.
And not even by accident. Dude just spoiled it.
And not even by accident. Dude just spoiled it.
Give me something divisive.
God knows a lot of movies that get very well reviewed across the board bore me to tears.
God knows a lot of movies that get very well reviewed across the board bore me to tears.
That's why I'm particularly interested in this. I didn't hate the original but I only thought it was okay. I liked it mainly for its style, visuals, and music but the story and horror didn't grab me at all. This new one looks much more up my alley. Unfortunately, it's not showing in any theaters around me
My thoughts, but first some info:
* Opinion on the original: Suspiria has always been an odd duck to me. It looks great. It sounds great. It has multiple classic bits. It has a great concept. At the same time, I never felt like it came together like Argento's earlier films. It's the rare case of where I thought a remake would be a good idea. I'm not really a fan. Deep Red should be Dario's most well known movie.
* Opinion on Luca: Only saw Call Me By Your Name, which I didn't think was very good. I thought it looked really nice, though.
* Opinion on horror: Big fan. I've liked all the divisive critical darlings of the past few years. Also have no problem with long movies that build to something.
Suspiria 2018 (no spoilers)
I pretty much didn't like this at all. The movie's biggest problem is the complete (and I mean absolutely complete) lack of tension, suspense, or intrigue. What's going on is pretty clearly laid out early on, and I think this is the source for much of that issue. It doesn't feel like a narrative, it's just scenes after scenes. There are a few bits where it felt like the film was gaining some motivation, but it always dissipated in a scene or two.
It's also not very good looking. It's Berlin in the 70s, so I'm not expecting beautiful vistas or anything, but it's just a very plain looking movie. You've seen some striking shots and imagery in the trailers and... that's about all there is. There are some phantasmagorical sequences, but none of the imagery is original, some of it is silly, and the editing in them is not so hot. The big balls-out ending also looks pretty bad by several measures, but I'm not going to go into details because I'd probably have to spill too many deets.
Editing in general is a problem in this movie. I'm not sure I've seen a recent big movie with this many cuts that seem unintentionally bad. And I mean, there's the other sense of editing, too—you might be able to make a salvageable movie out of this if you trimmed off an hour. And I mean a full hour. The big dance sequence in those ropey red outfits from the promo pics is such an enormous disappointment due to the editing. For the most part in this sequence, there's a cut after a dancer does only one or two moves, moving on to a different dancer or group shot. There's not much of a sense of continuity or actual dancing in this sequence, which sucks because it's clearly intended to be one of th bigger moments of the movie.
Thom's score didn't strike me as bad; it just struck me as a non-presence. Aside from his two (iirc) vocal songs, it's not a notable soundtrack. It's really only a failure in that it's going to be compared to the original's soundtrack, and, well, it does suck in comparison to that. Really, there's not much of a soundtrack to this movie at all. It's very frequently silent on that front.
Performances and such we're fine. Tilda's not losing any credibility over this.
I'm going to read up on some of the themes and things I think I may have missed, but I really don't see my opinion changing on the overall quality. Even if I read something illuminating that makes me respect what Luca was going for, this movie wasn't a particularly engaging or entertaining experience to actually sit through. This felt like a rough first cut that needed severe editing and some reshoots.
* Opinion on the original: Suspiria has always been an odd duck to me. It looks great. It sounds great. It has multiple classic bits. It has a great concept. At the same time, I never felt like it came together like Argento's earlier films. It's the rare case of where I thought a remake would be a good idea. I'm not really a fan. Deep Red should be Dario's most well known movie.
* Opinion on Luca: Only saw Call Me By Your Name, which I didn't think was very good. I thought it looked really nice, though.
* Opinion on horror: Big fan. I've liked all the divisive critical darlings of the past few years. Also have no problem with long movies that build to something.
Suspiria 2018 (no spoilers)
I pretty much didn't like this at all. The movie's biggest problem is the complete (and I mean absolutely complete) lack of tension, suspense, or intrigue. What's going on is pretty clearly laid out early on, and I think this is the source for much of that issue. It doesn't feel like a narrative, it's just scenes after scenes. There are a few bits where it felt like the film was gaining some motivation, but it always dissipated in a scene or two.
It's also not very good looking. It's Berlin in the 70s, so I'm not expecting beautiful vistas or anything, but it's just a very plain looking movie. You've seen some striking shots and imagery in the trailers and... that's about all there is. There are some phantasmagorical sequences, but none of the imagery is original, some of it is silly, and the editing in them is not so hot. The big balls-out ending also looks pretty bad by several measures, but I'm not going to go into details because I'd probably have to spill too many deets.
Editing in general is a problem in this movie. I'm not sure I've seen a recent big movie with this many cuts that seem unintentionally bad. And I mean, there's the other sense of editing, too—you might be able to make a salvageable movie out of this if you trimmed off an hour. And I mean a full hour. The big dance sequence in those ropey red outfits from the promo pics is such an enormous disappointment due to the editing. For the most part in this sequence, there's a cut after a dancer does only one or two moves, moving on to a different dancer or group shot. There's not much of a sense of continuity or actual dancing in this sequence, which sucks because it's clearly intended to be one of th bigger moments of the movie.
Thom's score didn't strike me as bad; it just struck me as a non-presence. Aside from his two (iirc) vocal songs, it's not a notable soundtrack. It's really only a failure in that it's going to be compared to the original's soundtrack, and, well, it does suck in comparison to that. Really, there's not much of a soundtrack to this movie at all. It's very frequently silent on that front.
Performances and such we're fine. Tilda's not losing any credibility over this.
I'm going to read up on some of the themes and things I think I may have missed, but I really don't see my opinion changing on the overall quality. Even if I read something illuminating that makes me respect what Luca was going for, this movie wasn't a particularly engaging or entertaining experience to actually sit through. This felt like a rough first cut that needed severe editing and some reshoots.
So my second screening of Suspiria in the same day went like this.
ACT ONE:
After my first screening I immediately started texting all the horror fans I know telling them they need to see this ASAP. In doing so one of my friends inquires how gory it is and I tell him it's pretty bad so he disinvites his squeamish husband and I secure that extra ticket.
ACT TWO:
I get to the theater still processing the earlier screening, but holding back all my thoughts until the end of this one. We go to our seats, I go to use the restroom and on the way back I'm walking behind this couple, the woman is in front of me and as they walk through the doorway I start going through and the woman reaches back to catch the door. She doesn't realize I'm there and she's shorter than me so she goes to catch the door fairly low. Low enough that she palms my crotch. Very awkward moment was shared with a stranger as she apologizes profusely, I am trying to reassure her it was a simple mistake as she pushes her boyfriend towards their seat. Dumb weird thing thta happened.
ACT THREE:
Movie starts, im like 3 drinks deep at this point and we get to a very certain scene I will put in spoilers now:
this very intense scene ends and from our left side in the back we hear small and softened cries of "help, help, someone call 9/11". I know this isn't apart of the movie because i saw it earlier today, so i start scanning the room and so are other people, then it becomes a whole thing and someone goes a bit louder "help help, they're having a seizure call 9/11"
someone had a seziure during the second screening of this movie today. the screen goes black, lights come on and the manager announces that there is an emergency and the movie will continue after it's all handled. it was a very crazy theater experience coming from this very intense scene to a very intense real life thing was jarring in a way I can't quite figure out.
ACT FOUR:
I have another drink in our 15 minute intermission
ACT FIVE:
The movie starts again and they start it at exactly the beginning of that very intense scene and we all sit through it again. me and my friend I went with believe the projectionist knew what they were doing and I sat through that very intense scene three times today.
Still effective
ACT SIX:
I'm home now processing my day. it started off poorly, then I decided to cheer myself up with a movie so I saw Suspiria and put myself in a very strange mood and then sent out a batch of text messages.
fin.
ACT ONE:
After my first screening I immediately started texting all the horror fans I know telling them they need to see this ASAP. In doing so one of my friends inquires how gory it is and I tell him it's pretty bad so he disinvites his squeamish husband and I secure that extra ticket.
ACT TWO:
I get to the theater still processing the earlier screening, but holding back all my thoughts until the end of this one. We go to our seats, I go to use the restroom and on the way back I'm walking behind this couple, the woman is in front of me and as they walk through the doorway I start going through and the woman reaches back to catch the door. She doesn't realize I'm there and she's shorter than me so she goes to catch the door fairly low. Low enough that she palms my crotch. Very awkward moment was shared with a stranger as she apologizes profusely, I am trying to reassure her it was a simple mistake as she pushes her boyfriend towards their seat. Dumb weird thing thta happened.
ACT THREE:
Movie starts, im like 3 drinks deep at this point and we get to a very certain scene I will put in spoilers now:
Olga is walking down the stairs crying and goes into the mirror room and its the whole body breaking scene happening, people are dead silent through the horrific sight
someone had a seziure during the second screening of this movie today. the screen goes black, lights come on and the manager announces that there is an emergency and the movie will continue after it's all handled. it was a very crazy theater experience coming from this very intense scene to a very intense real life thing was jarring in a way I can't quite figure out.
ACT FOUR:
I have another drink in our 15 minute intermission
ACT FIVE:
The movie starts again and they start it at exactly the beginning of that very intense scene and we all sit through it again. me and my friend I went with believe the projectionist knew what they were doing and I sat through that very intense scene three times today.
Still effective
ACT SIX:
I'm home now processing my day. it started off poorly, then I decided to cheer myself up with a movie so I saw Suspiria and put myself in a very strange mood and then sent out a batch of text messages.
fin.
I just got back from the theater and I gotta say, this movie is a pretty uneven clunking mess that strips most of the joy out of the original and replaces it with a meandering and pointless vaguely political intrigue that's gesturing towards God knows what.
Didn't really get what I wanted out of it. The original is at least a visual delight, this not so much. Solid cinematography throughout but as mentioned above the dramatic finale was piss poor. Not only was that a let down but then the movie goes on for another 15 minutes resolving a plot thread you probably don't give a fuck about.
The whole promise was that they would ditch the style but their renewed focus on cinematography and fixing of the plot would compensate it. What a fucking mess it turned out to be. Disappointing on every manner.
It was a masterpiece
The sense of sadness, elation, and wrath. This movie absolutely drained me.
Edit: I don't think a film has ever affected me to this degree. Maybe Tarkovskys 'Solaris'. I also felt odd when I left the theater.
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Terribly uneven and aimless was pretty much what I walked away with. We ended up getting 3 genuine set pieces that peak with the first one. It still had brilliant moments and some inspired subtext but it's all fleeting. I don't know if excising an entire character would've saved it, but whatever grip it had on me was broken every time cut his silly ass.
Oh and that soundtrack/score was a bad idea.
Maybe I just want talented Italian idiots making genre films more than talented Italian intellectuals.
Oh and that soundtrack/score was a bad idea.
Maybe I just want talented Italian idiots making genre films more than talented Italian intellectuals.
I absolutely loved it, but I had read a bunch of reviews beforehand so I kind of knew what to expect going in. It's definitely uneven and all the political subtext is mostly goofy and pretentious, but the high points outweigh all of that for me. I want to see it again, but I'll probably wait till it's available on bluray, so I can skip to all the scenes I loved.
Lol how timely, just watched the original one for the first time today. One of the wildest movies I've ever seen, I'm not even sure what to think
the original Suspiria isn't scary at all, like not even a little.
It's a product of its time. Gore and violence have been ramped up exponentially since then.
I went to a Halloween marathon the other week it was pretty much a good time with people laughing their asses off and cheering when Dr Loomis does crazy shit.
Pretty sure the audience wasn't doing that back in the day.
Yeah they were quite disturbed, I felt pretty guilty during the movie for bringing them. Lol
Coming to my city in about a week, the polarised response makes me more intrigued tbh. That runtime though...
This made me laugh, I'm sorry. They're probably writing you out of the will now.