Suspiria (1977)

Director:

Dario Argento

Writers:

Dario Argento (writer) and
Daria Nicolodi (writer)
(more)

Release Date:

12 August 1977 (USA)

Genre:

Horror | Mystery

Tagline:

The Only Thing More Terrifying Than The Last 12 Minutes Of This Film Are The First 92.

Plot:

A newcomer to a fancy ballet academy gradually comes to realize that the staff of the school are actually a coven of witches bent on chaos and destruction.

Plot Keywords:

Ballet | Ballet School | Apartment | Sinister | Europe

Awards:

2 nominations

Cast

Jessica Harper	...	Suzy Bannion
Stefania Casini	...	Sara
Flavio Bucci	...	Daniel
Miguel Bosé	...	Mark
Barbara Magnolfi	...	Olga
Susanna Javicoli	...	Sonia
Eva Axén	...	Pat Hingle
Rudolf Schündler	...	Prof. Milius
Udo Kier	...	Dr. Frank Mandel
Alida Valli	...	Miss Tanner
Joan Bennett	...	Madame Blanc
Margherita Horowitz	...	Teacher
Jacopo Mariani	...	Albert
Fulvio Mingozzi	...	Taxi Driver
Franca Scagnetti	...	Cook
Renato Scarpa	...	Prof. Verdegast
Serafina Scorceletti	...	2nd Cook
Giuseppe Transocchi	...	Pavlo
Renata Zamengo	...	Caroline
Alessandra Capozzi	...	Dancer
Salvatore Capozzi	...	Dancer
Diana Ferrara	...	Dancer
Cristina Latini	...	Dancer
Alfredo Raino	...	Dancer
Claudia Zaccari	...	Dancer
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Dario Argento	...	Narrator (voice) (uncredited)
Giovanni Di Bernardo	...	Police Inspector (uncredited)
Daria Nicolodi	...	Woman at airport (uncredited)

Directed by
Dario Argento

Writing credits
Thomas De Quincey		(book "Suspiria de Profundis") uncredited
Dario Argento		(writer) and
Daria Nicolodi		(writer)

Produced by
Claudio Argento	....	producer
Salvatore Argento	....	executive producer

Original Music by
Dario Argento
Agostino Marangolo		(as The Goblins)
Massimo Morante		(as The Goblins)
Fabio Pignatelli		(as The Goblins)
Claudio Simonetti		(as The Goblins)

Cinematography by
Luciano Tovoli

Film Editing by
Franco Fraticelli

Production Design by
Giuseppe Bassan

Costume Design by
Pierangelo Cicoletti

Makeup Department
Maria Teresa Corridoni	....	hair stylist
Pierantonio Mecacci	....	makeup supervisor
Piero Mecacci	....	assistant makeup artist (as Pierino Mecacci)
Aldo Signoretti	....	assistant hair stylist

Production Management
Federico Tocci	....	unit manager
Lucio Trentini	....	production manager

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Antonio Gabrielli	....	assistant director

Art Department
Davide Bassan	....	assistant art director
Enrico Fiorentini	....	set dresser
Massimo Garrone	....	assistant set dresser
Maurizio Garrone	....	assistant art director
Aldo Taloni	....	set constructor

Sound Department
Nick Alexander	....	dubbing editor: English
Luciano Anzellotti	....	sound effects
Mario Dallimonti	....	sound recordist
Federico Savina	....	sound re-recording engineer
Corrado Volpicelli	....	boom operator

Special Effects by
Germano Natali	....	special effects

Camera and Electrical Department
Alberto Altibrandi	....	gaffer
Francesco Bellomo	....	still photographer: action stills
Riccardo Dolci	....	assistant camera
Enrico Fontana	....	assistant camera
Mario Moreschini	....	key grip
Idelmo Simonelli	....	camera operator
Giuseppe Tinelli	....	assistant camera

Costume and Wardrobe Department
Tiziana Mancini	....	wardrobe mistress
Bertilla Silvestrin	....	seamstress

Editorial Department
Piero Bozza	....	first assistant editor
Roberto Olivieri	....	second assistant editor
Rick Greenhead	....	telecine colorist (uncredited)

Music Department
Maurizio Guarini	....	musician

Other crew
Massimo Brandimarte	....	production coordinator
Ferdinando Caputo	....	production accountant
Carlo Du Bois	....	production accountant
Francesca Roberti	....	continuity
Federico Starace	....	production coordinator
Nino Vendetti	....	unit publicist
Rosetta Calavetta	....	voice dubbing: Joan Bennett (uncredited)
Manlio De Angelis	....	voice dubbing: Udo Kier (uncredited)
Bruno Di Bartolomei	....	assistant cashier (uncredited)
Vittoria Febbi	....	voice dubbing: Barbara Magnolfi (uncredited)
Simona Izzo	....	voice dubbing: Susanna Javicoli (uncredited)
Flaminia Jandolo	....	voice dubbing: Eva Axén (uncredited)
Giorgio Piazza	....	voice dubbing: Rudolf Schündler (uncredited)
Emanuela Rossi	....	voice dubbing: Jessica Harper (uncredited)

Production Companies

• Seda Spettacoli

Distributors

• EMI (1977) (UK) (theatrical)
• Gloria Filmverleih AG (1977) (West Germany) (theatrical) (dubbed)
• International Classics (1977) (USA) (theatrical) (dubbed)
• Joseph Brenner Associates (1979) (USA) (theatrical) (dubbed) (re-release)
• Wm. Lange & Associates (1979) (USA: Midwest) (theatrical) (dubbed) (re-release)
• Magnum Entertainment (1988) (USA) (VHS)
• Anchor Bay Entertainment (2001) (USA) (DVD)
• Works Editora (2004) (Brazil) (DVD)
• Atlantic Film (2005) (Sweden) (DVD)
• Future Film (2005) (Finland) (DVD)
• Umbrella Entertainment (2005) (Australia) (DVD)
• Emerald (2006) (Argentina) (DVD)
• Emerald (2006) (Argentina) (VHS) (re-release)
• Visual Factory (2006) (worldwide) (all media)
• Blue Underground (2007) (USA) (DVD)
• Genius Products (2007) (USA) (DVD)
• A-Film Home Entertainment (2009) (Netherlands) (DVD)
• Fox Lorber (video)
• Nouveaux Pictures (2010) (UK) (DVD)
• Nouveaux Pictures (2010) (UK) (DVD) (Blu-ray)
• Panorama Distributions (2009) (Hong Kong) (DVD)

Special Effects

• Germano Natali

Other Companies

• Anna Mode  costume house (as Sartoria Anna Mode)
• Ditta Rancati  set furnishings (as G.R.P. - Rancati - Cimino)
• E.C.E., Rome  camera and lighting equipment (as E.C.E. Rome)
• Fendi  leather goods
• Lembo Caracciolo  accessories
• Raphael Salato  footwear
• Rocchetti  wigs (as Rocchetti)
• Romana Trasporti Cinematografici S.r.l.  transportation (as Romana Transporti Cinematografica)
• U.T.I. Rome  international transportation

Also Known As:

Dario Argento's Suspiria (USA) (promotional title)

Runtime:

98 min | Germany:88 min | USA:92 min | Argentina:95 min

Country:

Italy

Language:

Italian | Russian | English | German | Latin

Color:

Color (Eastmancolor) (prints) | Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (35 mm optical prints) | 4-Track Stereo (35 mm magnetic prints)

Certification:

UK:18 (video rating) (1990) (uncut) | UK:X (original rating) (cut) | New Zealand:R16 | Canada:13+ (Quebec) | Argentina:X (original rating) | Argentina:18 (re-rating) | Italy:VM18 | Germany:18 (theatrical rating) (1977) (cut) | Germany:18 (TV premiere) (2006) (heavily cut) | Singapore:M18 | Canada:13+ (Quebec) (Original rating) | Canada:18+ (Quebec) (1977, re-rating) | USA:R | Australia:R | Canada:R | France:-16 | Italy:VM14 | Spain:18 | Sweden:15 | West Germany:18 | Ireland:18 | Norway:(Banned) (video rating) | Norway:(Banned) (1977-2003) (cinema release) | Finland:K-18 (DVD rating) | Norway:18 (DVD rating) (uncut) (2005)

Filming Locations:

BMW Building, Munich, Bavaria, Germany

Company:

Seda Spettacoli

Trivia:

Fulvio Mingozzi plays a cab driver in this film and also plays a cab driver in Suspiria's sequel, Inferno (1980).

Goofs:

Revealing mistakes: Cord visible on bat as it flies from the closet

Quotes:

[first lines]
Narrator: Suzy Banyon decided to perfect her ballet studies in the most famous school of dance in Europe. She chose the celebrated academy of Freeborge. One day, at nine in the morning, she left Kennedy airport, New York, and arrived in Germany at 10:40 p.m. local time.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in La terza madre (2007)

Soundtrack:

Markos

Artistic Nightmare

A German ballet school for girls is the setting for mysterious deaths, in this 1977 horror story, written and directed by Dario Argento. "Suspiria" is a visually stunning film.

The images contain objects we recognize, like people, buildings, and interior decor. But the objects seem vaguely menacing, and less real than surreal, as though they symbolize ideas, repressed desires, or subconscious fears. The vivid, rich colors, strange camera angles, deep shadows, and bright light piercing through darkness, all contribute to the impression that the viewer is trapped in someone else's nightmare.

One haunting segment of the film takes place in a huge, and strangely empty, public square, at night. A blind man and his German shepherd dog stand in the middle of the square, surrounded by imposing buildings of neo-classical architectural style. Some professional reviewers of this film have suggested that the public square is a veiled reference to Hitler and Nazism. Indeed, one could argue that the film's subtext is an indictment of fascism.

"Suspiria" is not for everyone. It is unsettling, and at times grisly. The plot is weak, and plot elements are not really explained. The acting is largely irrelevant. And while the background music is suitably gothic, it is also frantic and monotonous.

The best approach to this "art-house" film is to ignore the superficial plot, and focus instead on the fabulous cinematography, and the gothic images as conceptual metaphors.