Horror scribe Peter Neal (American television mainstay Anthony Franciosa) has just released his newest novel, the eponymous Tenebrae, and is all set to promote the living shit out of it down Italy way.
No sooner does he set foot on solid ground (okay, slightly after) when he’s grilled by mystery novel super-duper fan Detective Germani (Giuliano Gemma) and his partner, Inspector Altieri (Carola Stagnaro), about a recent murder of a young woman… a murder inspired by (and physically utilizing) the pages of Neal’s novel… along with a big ol’ straight razor; a real case of shave and a haircut, two tits…
Much like potato chips, our mysterious madman can’t stop at just one, and before long the list of extinct lovely ladies murdered in various and sundry ways (all inspired by Neal’s wicked words, natch) gets rather lengthy indeed.
This all makes Neal absolutely bonkers to solve the mystery himself… which leads to red herrings and head trauma… but doesn’t stop his quest. Will our hero be able to survive the ordeal until it’s bitter end, or will he become just another victim of the murderous desires of the killer at large?
Coming off from the supernatural shocker Inferno (1980), writer/director Dario Argento returned to his giallo roots with Tenebrae; an effective, twisty-turny murder thriller that eschews the psychotronic dream imagery (sort of) of previous works like Suspiria for a more straightforward (but never completely so) narrative.
While the narrative may prove to be more on the coherent side, Argento still brings his artistic “A” game to Tenebrae with a series of elaborately orchestrated kill sequences, the most impressive of which involves a continuous crane shot that takes through various rooms in a house via the windows looking in as the killer stalks his prey… it’s technically and visually dazzling, and is a remarkable feat in it’s execution.
Adding to the overall solidness of this fright flick are appearances by plenty of famous faces for fans of the genre including turns from Enter the Dragon and A Nightmare on Elm Street‘s John Saxon, Caligula and Yor: The Hunter From the Future‘s John Steiner, and Daria Nicolodi… who just so happens to be Argento’s wife (and Asia Argento’s mother), and a familiar face from plenty of his features as well as flicks like Mario and Lamberto Bava’s Shock (also starring Steiner), as well as Luigi Cozzi’s Paganini Horror.
Speaking of familiar faces, this film’s incredibly rockin’ synth and electric guitar laden score is provided by three members of the group Goblin (which at the time had disbanded), Claudio Simonetti, Fabio Pignatelli, and Massimo Morante to be precise, who’s work is no stranger to Argento’s oeuvre.
I would also be remiss if I didn’t mention just how great the film looks here, with a 4K transfer that features great clarity and stunning color that truly makes the work of cinematography by Luciano Tovoli come to vivid, shocking life!
Adding to the overall experience, Synapse Films have included a deluge of special features which kick off with three audio commentaries courtesy of authors and critics Alan Jones and Kim Newman (the most conversational and anecdote filled of the bunch, and also my favorite), Argento expert Thomas Rostock (who provides a more scholarly analysis of the film), and author of Broken Mirrors/Broken Minds: The Dark Dreams of Dario Argento, Maitland McDonagh (whose track is both informative and engaging). There is repeated information across the three tracks, but all are pleasurable listens with plenty of new perspectives between them.
Following that comes Yellow Fever: The Rise and Fall of the Giallo, a feature-length documentary exploring the genre and it’s legacy via first hand accounts of those directly involved in it’s creation, Argento included of course. This is a pretty solid resource for those of you just getting acquainted with the giallo genre, and is a nice inclusion here.
Next up we get a fascinating interview with Steiner that covers his entire career, an alternate cut of the film’s opening, the U.S. alternate ending credits of the film (featuring Kim Wilde crooning Take Me Tonight), a host of archival featurettes (including an interview-packed retrospective of the film, an interview with the aforementioned McDonagh, an introduction to the film by Nicolodi and an interview with the same, as well as interviews with Argento and co-composer Simonetti.
Bringing up the rear we have a duo of trailers, press materials from five different countries, and a miscellaneous image gallery.
Additionally, Tenebrae is presented in both Italian and English, and this release contains a bonus Blu-ray version of the film.
Absolutely no one needs me to tell them that Tenebrae is an unbelievable horror classic that deserves a vaunted place on the shelf of every giallo fan… but I just did it any damn way… and believe me, there is no better way to experience this film, due to both image quality and beastly bonus material!
