In 1977 a film was unleashed on the world that is now regarded as one of the greatest horror films ever made. None other than Alice Cooper ranks it in his top three horror films of all-time and John Carpenter has said that it inspired him, especially with sequences in “Halloween“. It was to not only inspire him, but also successive generations of film-makers.
That film is Dario Argento‘s seminal masterpiece “Suspiria“.
Over 40 years later a remake is due to be released later in 2018. The first, quite literally, bone crunching footage was screened at CinemaCon at the end of April and, to quote Variety‘s headline “Suspiria Dares CinemaCon Crowd Not to Vomit With Gruesome Footage.” It seems that the footage maybe equal to anything in Dario Argento’s “Suspiria“, topped off with blood, gore, and more to match not only the original but also the best of the classic golden age of Italian horror and exploitation cinema. The film is definitely not going to be PG13 rated!
The trailer is essentially all about atmosphere, putting across the fact that visually and tonally it will be completely different to the original. The film seems that it will have an authentic Italian 70s cinema feel to it, looking as if it may well be set in the 1970s. The dialogue free images that make up the trailer are beautifully complemented by Radiohead‘s Thom Yorke’s haunting score that is subtly evocative of Goblin‘s musical style rather than an uninspired re-working of their score for the original “Suspiria“.
Luca Guadagnino, the director of “Call Me By Your Name” and “A Bigger Splash“, says that his film is definitely not a remake of Dario Argento’s original but an “homage to the incredible, powerful emotion” he felt when he saw it for the first time. The trailer does bear this out by appearing to show the film not be a generic by the numbers remake. He really does seem that he has re-envisaged the original film.
What really does stand out is the very impressive cast of Dakota Johnson, Tilda Swinton, and Chloe Grace Moritz. What is not to love about that line-up of quality actresses. Who could not be excited at even just the thought of those three sharing scenes together, never mind starring in a remake of one of the greatest horror films ever made. Apparently Dakota Johnson has said that filming “Suspiria” affected her so much that she had to seek therapy after filming. The intensity of her performance can be glimpsed in the trailer. Intensity and commitment is what all three actresses give in all their films, which is what is needed to even come close to the original “Suspiria“.
Being a huge fan of Dario Argento’s original masterpiece I was, to be honest, not holding out much hope for this remake. How can perfection be bettered or even equalled. However, after watching this first trailer a few times now it has me more than hopeful that the film may well exceed my expectations. Honestly it does now have me getting a little excited for “Suspiria” (2018).
We can only hope that the film delivers on the promise of this trailer, and will be among one of the better remakes.
It is an almost impossible feat to remake “Suspiria“, but here’s hoping that the finished film delivers on the promise of this trailer:
Karl Franks