User reviews

Italian cult director Dario Argento, master of arty gore, brings this eerie and stylish story plagued by depraved gore murders, it concerns about a composer(David Hemmings) who observes a chilling assassination of his neighbor, an Occultist-medium (Macha Meril). When he gets clues , the musician visits a woman and discovers that she has been cruelly killed , as well. The composer along with a reporter(Daria Nicolidi, wife to Argento and mother of Asia) start following the tracks on a strange mansion.Other key roles are his friend Carlo(Gabriele Lavia) and the psychic's assistant Doctor Giordini.

One of the best ¨Giallo¨with oneiric,effective esthetics packs lots of gore, guts and twists plots. This is a trademark terror work for the Horrormeister Argento with high tension quotient and equally high suspense by means of an ever-fluid camera that achieves colorful shots similarly to Giorgio De Chirico paintings. Noteworthy for intelligent edition work that tightens the mystery, glimmer use of color and distinctive utilization of shock images. Sometimes weak screenplay is added by nice but gory special effects by Carlo Rambaldi(ET).Screeching musical score by Goblin with stereophonic whispers combining to fortissimo soundtrack which help achieve incredible creepy moments.The terror pieces are well staged with eye-opening flair-play and contain obscure tracks to the denouement of the script.As trivia, Argento appears as murderer's hand. The motion picture is originally directed by Dario Argento, one of those film-makers(other examples are Mario Bava and Riccardo Freda ) who set off simple for frightening us to death. His period of biggest hits were the 70s when he directed the animals trilogy: ¨Four flies over gray velvet,The cat of nine tails, Bird with the crystal plumage¨, after he directed ¨Suspiria, Inferno, Tenebre¨ and of course ¨Deep red¨. This bloody fun plenty of graphic gore and weirdness may not be for all tastes but to be liked for Argento connoisseurs especially.

A slaughtered psychic sets the scene, a vicious killer that can't be seen, but Marcus Daly's on the case, to unmask the villains face, it takes some time to follow clues, more red spills in shades and hues, an author takes an unplanned facial, it leaves her feeling far from glacial, a haunted house near derelict, it's still not easy to predict, help from Gianna and her small car, the end reminds of abattoirs.

Disgraceful lizard torture scene aside (appalling if we're honest), this takes you on a fine old ride, with doubts aplenty about whodunit, the slices, cleaves, slashes and head splits. As engaging today as it ever was (apart from the lizard, which was always wrong).

DEEP RED (Profondo Rosso)

Aspect ratio: 2.39:1 (Techniscope)

Sound format: Mono

After witnessing the brutal murder of his psychic neighbor (Macha Meril) by person or persons unknown, a British musician in Rome (David Hemmings) obsesses over details of the crime and uncovers a series of clues which lead to further bloodshed and horror.

Released in Italy at 126 minutes, Dario Argento's seminal psycho-thriller was edited down to 105 minutes for European exhibition and further curtailed to 100 minutes for the American market, where it was dismissed by critics as an incoherent mess. In fact, this was Argento's return to the giallo format following a brief - and unlikely - detour into comedy (FIVE DAYS OF MILAN), and the first time he was allowed to 'cut loose' and indulge his unique sensibilities. All the elements of a classic Argento thriller are here: Eccentric characterizations, outlandish plot twists, and a series of Grand Guignol set-pieces that would revolutionize the genre. Using the wide, w-i-d-e screen to create a bold visual tapestry, Argento's film thrives on offbeat sounds and images: The child's song which pre-empts the shocking murders; the heart-stopping moment when Hemmings glimpses Meril at her apartment window as the killer lunges at her from behind (a shot which is both horrific and profoundly humane, all at the same time); the crazy-surreal mannikin which appears from nowhere and 'confronts' a potential victim; and the climactic revelation of the killer's identity as Hemmings finds damning evidence literally staring him in the face. Hemmings is the heart and soul of the entire picture, an innocent abroad whose inquisitive nature fails to mask his essential cowardice, and there are fine supporting performances by Daria Nicolodi, Gabriele Lavia and Clara Calamai in pivotal roles.

The European print which played outside Italy is a tightly-controlled whirlwind of horror and suspense, incorporating character development and violence cut from the American variant. However, the complete Italian version is another matter altogether: Except for the extra material added to Hemmings' search of 'The House of the Screaming Child' (where an important clue is literally concealed in the brickwork), the additional footage simply pads proceedings to breaking point. Whereas the characters were once defined by their experiences, the longer print includes lengthy dialogue exchanges which ramble well beyond their relevance to the plot. Still a masterpiece, the movie works best at 105 minutes, though the flawed Italian edition is no less sumptuous and invigorating.

Sadly, DEEP RED contains one of the most dubious images in Argento's entire filmography: A shot of a lizard impaled on a needle, done for real. This monstrous act of cruelty is inexcusable, given that Argento had hired ace effects technician Carlo Rambaldi, previously responsible for *simulated* animal carnage in Lucio Fulci's A LIZARD IN A WOMAN'S SKIN (1971) which was so realistic, it landed the director in court!

(English version)

It is a very difficult job for me to pick between this and Suspiria as Argento's best work. Both are masterpieces in their own right. Deep Red is about a man that sees a murder committed and then tries to unravel the mystery of finding the killer. David Hemmings does a fine job in the lead as he walks the streets of an Italian city in search of this homicidal killer. As with most of Argento's work, the viewer should not try to make too much sense out of the plot, but rather enjoy the rich subtext and visual tapestry with which Argento paints the screen. The killings, most notably done with a hatchet, are inventive and decidedly gruesome. More than one time I found myself jump and wince(I suppose those are good things!) The acting, even though most dubbed, is very good. The set locations are very atmospheric as well. Argento's camera, however, is the principal character as it shows us all kinds of images related to plot and otherwise and reached into our subconscience for real meaning. This is first and foremost a visual film, and it certainly shows Argento's homage to his mentor's work, the films of Mario Bava.

As with other Argento giallos, the accent in "Deep Red" is on the visuals: the artsy sets, the garish lighting, the tendency for the camera to dwell on brutal details. Images are stark, with high contrast in lighting. And there's lots of visual symmetry. Emotionally, "Deep Red" is cold, entirely appropriate, given that the theme relates to the psychological coldness of a killer.

But unlike "Suspiria", wherein the story is almost irrelevant, "Deep Red" has an intriguing premise, with a plot that, although slow to get going, is nevertheless coherent, and builds to a riveting finale. I was quite surprised at who the killer was. Clues are very subtle, but they're there, if you know where to look. There's a nifty plot twist toward the film's end. I like the visuals in all of the Argento films I have seen. But "Deep Red", more than others, has a better developed story line. As such, the film is my second favorite Argento giallo. My personal favorite is "The Bird With The Crystal Plumage".

Weak dialogue and weak characterization permeate Argento's films. But his fans don't seem to mind. I certainly don't. What I did find annoying in "Deep Red" was the background music. Most viewers like the sound of Goblin. But to me, the music was too frantic, and not really suitable for a thriller.

There are few contemporary horror films that compare to those of Dario Argento. His giallos are: Gothic, brutal, impressionistic, artistic, and sometimes surreal. "Deep Red" is one of the best.

I watched this movie on one of Mill Creek Entertainment 50 Movie Packs (Chilling edition). Even though the packaging advertises 126 minutes, this version is only 98 minutes. Supposedly, the longer, unedited version is better. I found myself growing impatient with this 98 minute version.

The core of the story is a musicians witnesses a murder of his neighbor from afar, and becomes involved with a reporter in the investigation. He comes clued into to an old piece of folklore, and tries to track down its roots, and death follows in his trail.

The story is not bad, fairly typical seventies fare, with a police tolerance for civilian interference in an investigation at an all time high. Cinematography and music are both OK, the primary flaw is the synchronization between the two. The Goblins are a lot of fun to listen to, as always. Dario Argento controls the camera in ways that would make modern directors envious (and he has surely been emulated since). It is however, not as cohesive as it could be. Plus, the liberties taken with suspension of disbelief are quite liberal.

The conclusion is not the most logical, but Dario A was always more about a bloody thrill weaved into a competent story line and not much else.

Overall, not a bad movie,though not terribly remarkable either. Certainly worth a watch on video, when you can take short breaks. While it may not entertain to mesmerize you for its entire length, it will have you coming back.

With this film, Argento raised the bar for Giallo's. With it's spanning plot, complete with highly inventive ideas and intriguing theme; Profondo Rosso is an absolute highlight in the sub-genre. The film follows a female medium who, while giving a lecture, senses the presence of a murderer in the room that is transmitting murderous thoughts to her. Pretty soon after, she is brutally murdered by an unknown assassin, under the watchful eye of Mark (David Hemmings); a professional piano player. As you would expect from Giallo, Mark then takes it upon himself to get to the bottom of the murder and, along with a nosey female journalist (Daria Nicolodi), he conducts his own investigation. However, things are never that simple and aside from trying to solve the murder, he also finds himself being pursued by the maniac...will he be able to discover the truth before it's too late?

Profondo Rosso is, in the collective eyes of the horror fanatics, Argento's number two (Suspiria being number one). I don't actually agree with that; as I think that Tenebre, Opera and Bird With the Crystal Plumage belong in front of this one, but Profondo Rosso is definitely up there, so who am I to complain? This film features a lot more bloodshed than anything Argento had made previously, and that is definitely a good thing. However, the plot does slow down at times, and it's not paced as well as Bird with the Crystal Plumage is. It's also somewhat wayward, with it spending lots of time on certain things, such as the investigation in the haunted house, and not a lot of time on other things that are just as important to the mystery. Despite there being quite a few death scenes, I do feel that Argento would have been better served either adding another one to increase the excitement, or maybe cutting the film down a little to make it run more smoothly. The murders that Dario does give us, however, are brutal to say the least! We've got a woman burned to death in a bath of scolding water, another woman smashed through a glass window, a man having his teeth smashed against a table (not too dissimilar to the 'curb' scene in American History X) and, of course, the final death, which has to be seen to be believed - an amazingly over the top scenario to say the least!

David Hemmings take the lead role in Profondo Rosso, and does a very good job of it. Hemmings is, of course, most famous for his role in Blow-Up, and his role here isn't too different from that one. Starring alongside Hemmings is Daria Nicolodi, the actress that has starred in a number of Argento's films (Opera, Inferno and Tenebre to name three) and also collaborated with Argento on another fine creation. I'm sure you know who I'm talking about. Also getting in on the fun is Gabriele Lavia, whom Argento fans will remember from Inferno (also, curiously, called Carlo). Dario Argento's direction here is nothing short of sublime. His use of the camera is more than assured and some of the camera angles and images that are presented on screen are amazing. Dario Argento deserves every piece of praise that he gets and anyone that sees this film will not find it hard to see why.

Overall, Profondo Rosso ranks as an absolute must see. It's one of the finest Giallo's ever made and is a career highlight for everyone involved. Highly recommended viewing for all.

Great visuals - beautiful camera work, as well as very grotesque murder scenes. The music was also great. However, the plot meandered on through plenty of useless dialog and filler that distracted from the main plot. I felt that the film finished leaving many loose ends unresolved. The beginning and the ending are interesting to watch, but the middle of the film is somewhat boring and tedious. Worth seeing I would say, but Suspiria is far better in all departments.

In the early 70s, Italian director Dario Argento took the world by surprise with the release of his first three movies, three excellent entries in the "Giallo" genre that had been growing in popularity across the 60s. In only two years, the success of "L' Uccello Dalle Piume Di Cristallo" ("The Bird with the Crystal Plumage"), "Il Gatto a Nove Code" ("The Cat o' Nine Tails") and "4 Mosche Di Velluto Grigio" ("Four Flies on Grey Velvet) turned Argento into the new rising star of horror, and his "animal trilogy" into classics of the Italian thriller. However, after this huge success he decided to move away from the Giallo for a while, and in order to explore something different, he made two TV dramas and a comedy named "Le Cinque Giornate" ("Five Days in Milan"). While this offered him the chance to try something new, it also allowed him to prepare his return to horror with what would be known as one of the best Giallo thrillers ever made: "Profondo Rosso", known in English as "Deep Red".

The film is the story of Marcus Daly (David Hemmings), a British piano player who is spending some time in Italy as a music teacher. One night after work, as he walks towards his apartment, he watches through the building's window and notices his neighbor Helga (Macha Méril) struggling with an unknown man. Helga, a psychic, gets brutally killed in front of Daly's eyes, who runs towards the apartment in a futile attempt to save her. After being interrogated by the police, Daly notices that he could have seen the killer's face among a group of portraits on the wall, but he can't truly figure out what's missing. This thought becomes an obsession and Daly decides to investigate the murder of the psychic with the help of reporter Gianna Brezzi (Daria Nicolodi), however, his obsession becomes dangerous as he becomes the killer's next target.

Written by Bernardino Zapponi and Dario Argento himself, the film's plot revolves around the solving of the mystery while putting special attention to Marcus' obsession with the missing clue he may have caught the night of the murder. While Argento is famous for preferring surrealism to logic when writing his screenplays, the story in "Profondo Rosso" is carefully constructed and takes advantage of every element of the Giallo genre to tell it's mystery. And mystery is the key of the film, as the secret of the killer's identity is exploited to the max in order to create wonderful set pieces of suspense and horror. The care taken to develop the characters is another of the things that make "Profondo Rosso" to stand out among similar films, a not only Daly's obsessions are explored, but his relation with Gianna becomes an interesting source of romance, some comedy, and lots of suspense.

By the time he directed "Profondo Rosso", Dario Argento was already a master of his craft with a defined style, and the whole look of the film demonstrates it. With his excellent visual composition and inventive use of the camera (with cinematographer Luigi Kuveiller), Argento shows that he knows how to build up suspense and tension in the audience; and together with the excellent make-up by Giuliano Laurenti and Giovanni Morosi, Argento creates some of the most amazing murder scenes ever put to film. Giallo films are famous for making an art of their murder scenes, and in "Profondo Rosso" Argento takes that idea to the next level. The effective score by Giorgio Gaslini and the band "Goblin" is the icing on the cake, as it completes the unnatural haunting atmosphere that the whole film has.

Leading the cast is David Hemmings as Marcus Daly, in what seems to be almost a reprisal of his role in Antonioni's 1966 film, "Blowup" (which was another of Argento's inspirations). Hemmings is excellent in his role, and effectively portrays Daly's own descent into darkness as he gets more involved with the killings. Argento's regular collaborator Daria Nicolodi stars as Gianna Brezzi (in her first work with Argento), an interesting role because the character demands her to downplay her beauty in favor of the awkwardness of the role. Nicolodi is charming, and very natural, making hard to not fall in love with her character, the typical wisecracking reporter of mystery films. The rest of the cast includes many interesting characters (everyone is a suspect here), and the supporting actors do a very good job. Gabriele Lavie is specially great as Carlo, making probably the most likable character of the film.

While definitely one of the best Giallo films ever made, "Profondo Rosso" is not exempt of flaws, at least in my humble opinion. The most noticeable I found was the fact that at times the plot kind of drags, wasting too much time in details that do not advance the plot. This makes the long runtime feel even longer than it should, and due to this some audiences may feel the film is boring. Fortunately, this doesn't happen too often and it's more a minor quibble than an actual flaw. Another detail that bothered me was the bad dubbing the film has, and I don't mean the English dubbing, the original Italian work of audio is really bad, and diminishes the value of many of the performances due to bad synchronization between audio and voice work.

As one of the modern masters of horror, Dario Argento's career is one of enormous value for horror fans, and among his many works, "Profondo Rosso" is an essential one. A remarkable work of style and technique, "Deep Red" is a movie that simply grabs you and doesn't let you go until it ends, making an excellent experience and a good companion piece to Argento's follow-up, the masterpiece "Suspiria". Without a doubt "Profondo Rosso" is one of the best murder-mystery films ever made. A true jewel. 9/10

Having only watched Dario Argento's Suspiria, I was happy to see Goblin's unique music in his earlier work, Deep Red. The music is mesmerising, not surprising coming from Goblin; while the impressive camera-work accompanied it like a pianist and violinist.

The plot tends to lull at times but is carried by the curiousity of who the killer is and philosophical/social commentary by the main characters; It does escalate towards the end, trying to wrap up the "motive" of the murderer in a heartbeat, which I find a bit unfitting. However the murders are memorable where one seems to me to have inspired Halloween 2 from 1981, 6 years later.

An interesting thriller sprinkled with Argento where the soundtrack and camera do the majority of the heavy lifting.

Thrilling giallo masterpiece is considered by many to be one of the finest, if not the finest, films made by horror master Dario Argento.

When musician witnesses brutal murder, he joins a quirky journalist in the hunt for a mysterious killer.

It's not hard to see why many believe this film to be Argento's greatest and a landmark in the giallo horror genre. The film is an engrossing murder mystery, possessing many of the elements of Argento's great debut film The Bird with the Crystal Plumage (1970). Argento throws in lots of his unique trademark style with plenty of inventive set pieces, clever cinematography, and terrific atmosphere and imagery. Deep Red also has some of the most horrific murder sequences of the genre and there's plenty of gruesomeness to be had! Adding all the more to the proceedings is the energetic music score of Goblin.

The cast is also good. David Hemmings makes for a great leading man. Daria Nicolodi, who would later be long-time girlfriend to director Argento, shines as the journalist. Hemmings and Nicolodi have some nicely comical scenes together that add even more color to the film. Also worthy of mention is Gabriele Lavia in his role as Hemmings alcoholic friend and Macha Meril as an ill-fated psychic.

While this Argento fan still favors Suspiria (1977) as Argento's finest film, it's easy to see why Deep Red is considered his greatest by some. It's a terrific landmark thriller that firmly ranks as one of Argento's best!

**** out of ****

DEEP RED is often considered Dario Argento's best movie. Well, I beg to differ. Thought the film as an amazing look and feel to it which makes it feel more classy than most Argento's films (certainly his recent ones), the film is completely destroyed by two things: first, the film's length. At 126 minutes, the film is way too long and way too casual and relaxed. It's too long by a good 20 minutes. This is supposed to be a thriller but the pacing feels more like a romantic comedy than a thriller. And the second and probably most important aspect of DEEP RED that destroys everything the film tried to do, is the killer's identity. Though I had a sneaking suspicion who the killer might be, I simply did not want to believe that THAT character would turn out to be the killer. Then, at the very end, once the killer was revealed, I literally screamed out "No Way!" and then I laughed out loud. I just didn't buy it. There's simply no way that THAT killer was capable of sneaking up in that tiny crawlspace when Hemmings was playing the piano. For me, the murderer's identity literally killed the movie for me.

There are other problems with DEEP RED other than the lackadaisical pacing and the implausible killer, such as the special effects, which were really bad. The burning house was embarrassingly fake looking, or the scene when the man is dragged by the truck. You can clearly see the little cart underneath the actor which helps him slide across the street. Or the use of a dummy when the psychic woman is killed. Then there are the HUGE plot-holes in the story, like when Hemmings decides to see that woman in the country, only to have the killer arrive there before him and kill the woman in an albeit interesting scene (which has implausibilities of its own). The thing is, how did the killer know Hemmings was going to see her? It's simply impossible for the killer to have known that Hemmings was going to see her. These obvious plot-holes are unforgivable and they stretch the script's credibility to the max.

Though there are a lot of good things to say about DEEP RED (the whole beginning is pretty good, that is, until we see the dummy; the music is excellent; the set designs are excellent; the cinematography is lush and impressive) the film is hampered with too many weak elements for me to consider this as Dario Argento's best. I much prefer BIRD WITH THE CRYSTAL PLUMAGE, CAT O NINE TAILS, SUSPIRIA or even INFERNO than this uneven film.

Young generations might find it hard to believe ,but most of Argento's works were greeted by poor receptions when they were first released.Critics dismissed them as gaudy ,flashy,showy,you name it.

And now we are in 2005 ,and thirty years after,with hindsight ,that most fruitful part of Agento's works which begins with "Ucello della piume di cristalli"(1967) and ends -roughly- with "opera" (1987)shows how the frequently demeaned director was ahead of his time.Argento's work is art-house film!If Mario Bava or John Carpenter are,he is too.

Influenced by the former (color,lighting effects,depth of field,baroque settings),he had a strong influence on the latter,particularly for his use of music,which may seem trite at first listening but literally grows on you and leaves you completely panting for breath.

There's really an Argentesque geometry,a non -Euclidean one,and few other directors ( Alfred Hitchcock , Roman Polanski ) know how to depict a place and make it threatening for his characters.Argento,who certainly read Gaston Leroux ("le fantôme de l'opera" ) when he was young,loves the opera houses(or theater)."profondo rosso" begins on a stage where some kind of medium (Macha Meril) sees horrible things.People who have read Hergé's adventures of Tintin will notice the similarities between this scene and those pages in "the seven crystal balls" where Tintin and Haddock are watching Mrs Yamilah in a music hall."Opera" 's first scene also would take place in a theater as if the director told us "it's only a movie,do not worry" before treating us to the delight of the best scene with birds since Hitchcock's eponymous movie.

The sense of space which Argento displays is mind-boggling: depth of field,high and low angle shots,impressive lighting effects.His characters become Tom Thumb lost in the huge forest:think of the ballerina ,running away through the corridors ("Suspiria" ),James Franciscus in the graveyard ("il gatto...) ,Tony Musante in the lighthouse (Ucello ...),or Irene Miracle in the basement (Inferno).Here it's a true anthology:almost every place is memorable,from the corridor where the drama is resolved to the house where bad things happened long ago ,from the isolated house in the country -where Argento uses condensation as only a Conan Doyle,a Gaston Leroux or an Ellery Queen could have done it- to the school where weird drawings might be the final clue.To top it all,there's a sensational scene in a corridor ,which recalls Orson Welles' "lady from Shanghai.A "they do it with mirrors" trick which is still very impressive today.

Not only Argento creates fear with his disturbing settings ,but he makes us also ill-at-ease with his supporting cast:the gay with the androgynous face,the little girl who seems to be out of Fellini's "Toby Dammit" (1968),and of course Clara Calamai who was famous in the fascist years (Visconti's "ossessione" from "the postman always rings twice").

What about the screenplay?Well,like all Argento's movies I mention ,it's far-fetched and derivative ("psycho" ,"Marnie" for the final flashback).But it's delightfully far-fetched and smartly derivative .When today's horror flicks screenplays consist of one page (maybe two)of clichés ,Argento's ones have always been painstaking and labyrinthine .

It is one of the best works in Argento's much debated but absorbing filmography.No horror movie buff can ignore him.

Title: Deep Red

Director: Dario Argento

Cast: Daria Nicolodi, David Hemmings, Gabriele Lavia, Macha Meril

Review:

Finally got around to seeing Deep Red, and I was once again pleasantly surprised.

A very powerful female medium gets murdered after she detects a murderer in the audience of one of her lectures on the supernatural. After that, the murderer decides to kill the medium at their apartment. Meanwhile Mark, a local piano player witnesses the murder while walking down the street. He then decides to get to the bottom of things himself.

Everything you can come to expect from Argento is here. The beautiful colors, the insane camera angles and sadly we also get the gaps in logic, but I'm happy to say that those gaps in logic are kept to a minimum. Argento stylistic camera moves develop into really extreme close-ups of things on Deep Red. He will really go in there with the camera and go all around an object with it, he does this many many times in the flick.

Surprisingly, this is one of Argentos most coherent stories, though mid way through the movie you wont feel like its getting anywhere, once you reach the third act it will all make sense (thank god!) and trust me its well worth the wait. Its a twist ending that really got me....just when you think the flick is over whamo! Argento smacks you in the face with whats really going on. Loved that about Deep Red. The thing is that if you are not patient you will feel that this will be another one of those endings where you are left feeling unsatisfied and dumbfounded, but no, this ending is actually very satisfying. Its one of those films where in the last few minutes everything clicks right into place.

I loved the scenery in this movie. Everything was lit in a very spooky manner. My favorite being the mediums home. Its got this hallway filled with he spookiest freaking paintings you will ever see. Add to that the cool lighting and you've got yourself one heck of an eerie setting. And the flick has got many of those including a house thats gigantic and haunting...very Gothic. The shots in that house and the lighting were awesome.

The kills are great, Argento skillfully orchestrates some nice ones on Deep Red. Some complaint that they are not enough deaths in this movie and I say that we could have done with at least one more. As it is we get four kills are masterful and great, but since the movie gets a bit slow towards the middle part, Id say that another death could have been squeezed in there. But I ain't really complaining, cause when those deaths come they really get you. Trust me! I also liked the imagery on this one...lots of weird imagery to keep you unsettled. For example there's this scene involving a mechanical doll that just looks so weird and spooky...its stuck with me. I had to instantly rewind it. There's some more stuff involving children's toys and drawings. Great stuff! Image after spooky images which don't let you get too comfortable. There's always something there you to keep you on edge, even if it is just a visual and not an actual murder.

One other thing that sort of hindered my full enjoyment of the flick is that since this film had been heavily edited for American audiences and some scenes have been reintroduced into this cut of the film (the one Anchorbay released) there are some scenes that have no English soundtrack. Therefore the movie skips from being spoken in English to being spoken in Italian. Back and forth constantly. I got used to it and took it as a special challenge. Thankfully the scenes spoken in Italian have English subtitles. Small price to pay to get the full blown directors cut of this film if you ask me. My advice? Watch the whole thing in Italian with English subtitles.

All in all a good and satisfying Argento flick that some herald as Argentos true masterpiece. I thought it was quite good but for me Opera and Suspiria are still superior.

Rating: 5 out of 5

Deep Red is not, I am sorry to say, a perfect film, no matter what some people may try to say. This rests entirely on about half an hour or so of footage, mostly cut in the initial American release, that simply should never have been in the movie; most falls entirely in the category of failed comic relief (although some of it, the arm wrestling scene for example, is very important, and the "director's cut" is certainly the version to watch).

The rest of the movie, on the other hand, is a masterpiece. Vaguely similar to (but far superior than) some of the more Hitchcock-esque work of Brian De Palma, "Deep Red" makes the intelligent choice to forget careful narrative believability (it makes much more sense than most "thrillers", though) and immerse the viewer completely in a bizarre, disjointed nightmare, edged on by the audacious Goblin soundtrack and some of the most brutally dazzling murder scenes ever filmed (although not the goriest, exactly; I'd still advise those with weak stomachs to stay far away), which explode from the plot-line (which itself is really made up of an unfolding series of jagged vignettes that finally coalesce in a jaw-dropping finale, a precursor in many ways to David Lynch's "Mulholland Drive") every so often to amaze us with acts of cinematic virtuosity, sort of like the songs of an old MGM musical.

Even better than the brilliant "Suspiria","Deep Red" is the giallo film to watch, and the ideal place to start for absolutely anyone interested in this weirdly fascinating sub-genre. It certainly makes the last 25 years of American "thrillers" look tamely pathetic, to say the least.

The score seemed out of context and didn't align with the vibe of the intense scenes and the ridiculous dubbing was just too distracting.

Similar to a lot of Argento's crime murder mysteries, Deep Red pushes the boundaries one step further with gory murder scenes and iconic deaths. Deep Red is very similar to most of Argento's films, only adding a new story, but it is a good story at that. Very engaging and also quite terrifying, the next time you see someone wear a black raincoat, you better hope they are not wielding a meat cleaver underneath it.

A good Italian horror, that many will find similar to Dario Argento's other works. But if you are a fan of Argento's, horror or mystery, then this film will be for you. Don't expect the story to deviate out of the Argento template, but nonetheless you should be thoroughly engrossed for this extremely long gore fest.

In Rome, the British pianist jazz musician Mark (Davis Hemmings) is the witness of the murder of his neighbor, the famous German psychic Helga (Macha Méril). He becomes obsessed with the crime and decides to investigate by himself, with the support of the Italian journalist Gianna (Daria Nicolodi), the unknown killer.

The comment of "Profondo Rossi" must be divided in two parts, at least for Brazilian readers: the film itself is a very good Dario Argento's thriller, following his style, brilliant in most moments, but with some terrible parts. I am a big fan of this Italian director and I disregard his bad moments. Unfortunately, the VHS released in Brazil by Videocast is a completely shame. It is one of the worst videos I have ever seen. The quality of the image is so awful that it is impossible to be described. The movie is spoken (and dubbed ) in Italian, with the exception of the phone conversation in German (and without translation) of Helga for a few moments before she is killed. However, the subtitles are written in white and in many times I need to repeat the scene to try to read them. It is very weird to see David Hemmings dubbed in Italian. His obsession recalls his role in "Blowup". This film in a better quality of media (VHS, DVD, VCD) might deserve a better vote. My vote is seven.

Title (Brazil): "Prelúdio Para Matar" ("Prelude for Killing")

An English pianist (who is not an engineer) witnesses the murder of a German psychic in Italy. While it's really none of his business (they have police in Italy) he begins to do his own detective work to track down the killer. The journey takes him all over the place, to haunted houses, to young witches and into a friendly relationship with a reporter.

This film is written by Bernardino Zapponi ("Anal Paprika") and directed by Italian horror giant Dario Argento ("Tenebre", "Phenomena", "Inferno"). And I have to say this right away: as much as I love this film and think it's one of Argento's better pieces, why is it more highly rated than "Suspiria"? Internet Movie Database ranks this in their top 50 horror films, while "Suspiria" is mysteriously absent. "Suspiria" is the better film in almost every way. But anyway...

This film really excels in the writing of both characters and plot. The lead is very interesting (Marcus Daly) even though he really only acts as a catalyst for events and as a surrogate for the viewer, taking us where we couldn't go without a guide. Much of the plot is convoluted in the version I watched (the heavily edited English version, as I don't speak much Italian like my sister does), but still comes off as very well layered.

The gore is not as bad as some may have made it out to be. Even by 1970s standards, it's nothing really shocking. But it works. One scene, involving a woman killed with hot water, was well done. Another, with a man getting his teeth bashed out on the corner of a table, was not as gruesome as it could have been but was still painful to watch. The creepiest part (I actually felt uneasy) was when there was... a killer doll! It was just really creepy in the style of the presentation.

You can't talk about Argento's films without talking about the music. The band Goblin supplies the soundtrack (just like on "Suspiria") and does a fine job. One review found the music "annoying", and I can appreciate that sentiment. They do repeat the same songs over a lot, and the music isn't as blended in as it should be. But the songs themselves are moving and very good at burrowing into your subconscious. The theme to "Suspiria" is great (I have the soundtrack and it's awesome), and these songs are also really good. There's just something about them -- horror doesn't embrace music as often as it should. Think about the great horror themes, and try to imagine the films without them. Music is essential.

I look forward to someday seeing the Anchor Bay release of this film, as I'd love to see the edited parts. But I definitely recommend you see this if you have the chance. Sure, it's older and the quality isn't that stellar. Stop whining! Films should be judged on plot, acting and vision. Don't blame a director in the 1970s for not owning 1990s equipment. This one is a winner, although I have to disagree with the IMDb voters about it being the best Argento... maybe second best (which is still better than almost any other director out there).

"Profondo Rosso" is probably Dario Argento's finest because it features his best qualities: a very interesting, intriguing, and macabre plot; spectacular death scenes and gore; an eerie atmosphere; great and haunting score; and best of all, his innovative camera techniques that will leave you "I think I saw something haunting...".

This movie established some important aspects for the genre such as the importance of colors, plot twists, and flashback sequences.

"Profondo Rosso" has everything a Giallo needs plus it has Argento's style on it. Some of the scenes will stay in your mind for a long time like in most of his movies; specially those involved with mirrors.

Also, the gore factor is extremely good; almost as good as in "Tenebrae" which I believe defines the word perfection talking about Giallos.

But I think that the most important thing about this movie is the pace that will grab your attention since the beginning and then when the movie is about to reach the climax, things will make sense and affect your sub-conscious to the point that you will feel very impressed in every aspect.

You can't get better than this. Word.

No pun intended - though it's still one of the better Argento movies (to me), it's still not really great. Which all comes down to the acting! The story is OK for this one (even kind of good I might add), but the acting is just above bearable!

It all begins with murder ... and although there is neat twist to it (to the witness), it's nothing new. And most of you won't have to guess long before you can see where this is going! And the acting does not improve on anything either ... Why is that? It might have to do with the fact that they're cast from different countries! But that was not it ... it was more the fact, that the ridiculous (italian) dialog/script was even more unbearable when translated poorly into other languages! But that's me, others seem to enjoyed it much more!

Edit: so upon rewatching this (twice, also with audio commentary), I changed my mind a bit. I am still quite content with my view on the acting - on the other hand, the movie might work better in the dubbed version. There is not really an original version one can speak of anyway. So many actors from so many different countries and all that.

And there are still things in this that I would say do not work. But there are things that are really good. The editing, the effects and above all the music by Goblin. This may very well be the best score Argento got for one of his movies. Definitely one of the best though. I also watched the longer cut, so maybe I had seen the US cut before. Which I really can't recommend to anyone - less than the longer cut.

And this movie (along with some of the other finer works of Argento, buildings, setups, framing all really well thought of) make his newer efforts look like Ed Wood movies ... I may be wrong on that too. And good on you if you evaluate certain things higher than I did - story ain't too bad here either. And the twist does work - although I think it is fairly obvious from a certain point on.

The quote sums up the whole film: ludicrous. A stupid, ridiculous film, redeemed only slightly by some original suspense sequences- alas about the only "Original" thing about the entire film. I went into this wanting to love it, and I'm very hard to disappoint when it comes to horror, if it's a good horror then great, if it's a bad horror then (usually) even better! However, this particular film was not even so bad that it was good.... it was just plain bad. I could not wait for it to end. The film was naive, unclear, completely disjointed and unthought-through. It's almost as if a group of 12 yr olds wrote the plot: playing on every nonsensical horror cliché in the book, and not bothering to link any of it together. In saying this, the directing and camera-work was pretty amazing, sadly not amazing enough to completely redeem the film. There are some really original shots and sequences, but overall a thoroughly rudimentary thriller.