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Inferno (1980)

 -  Horror  -  2 April 1980 (USA)
6.6
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Ratings: 6.6/10 from 8,077 users  
Reviews: 107 user | 131 critic

An American college student in Rome and his sister in New York investigate a series of killings in both locations where their resident addresses are the domain of two covens of witches.

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Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Leigh McCloskey ...
...
Eleonora Giorgi ...
Sara
Daria Nicolodi ...
Elise Stallone Van Adler
Sacha Pitoëff ...
Kazanian (as Sacha Pitoeff)
...
Carol, the caretaker
Veronica Lazar ...
Gabriele Lavia ...
Feodor Chaliapin Jr. ...
Professor Arnold / Dr. Varelli (as Feodor Chaliapin)
Leopoldo Mastelloni ...
John, the Butler
Ania Pieroni ...
James Fleetwood ...
Cook
Rosario Rigutini ...
Man
Ryan Hilliard ...
Shadow
Paolo Paoloni ...
Music Teacher
Edit

Storyline

Young poetess Rose Elliot buys a book from a local antique dealer, a diary in Latin of an architect, E. Varelli. She learns of the Three Mothers, and believes her apartment building is one of their houses. She pleads her brother Mark, who is studying musicology in Rome, to come, because she is afraid. Mark's friend Sara reads her letter, which he left behind in class, and discovers the school is run by the Mater Lacrimarum, and is killed for this knowledge. The house of Mater Suspiriorum has already been destroyed, and by the time Mark arrives in New York City, he is investigating his sister's murder. Written by Scott Hutchins <scottandrewh@home.com>

Plot Summary | Plot Synopsis

Plot Keywords:

evil | murder | house | new york city | book | See more »

Taglines:

Come face to face with hell See more »

Genres:

Horror

Certificate:

R | See all certifications »

Parents Guide:

 »
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Details

Country:

Language:

|

Release Date:

2 April 1980 (USA)  »

Also Known As:

Dario Argento's Inferno  »

Box Office

Budget:

$3,000,000 (estimated)
 »

Company Credits

Production Co:

 »
Show detailed on  »

Technical Specs

Runtime:

| (heavily cut)

Sound Mix:

Color:

(Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1
See  »
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Did You Know?

Trivia

The second part (with Suspiria and Mother of Tears) of the "Three Mothers" trilogy. See more »

Goofs

The scene at Central Park takes place during a lunar eclipse. However, the eclipse mimics the aesthetic characteristics of a solar eclipse with the Moon being completely blacked out, surrounded by a corona, just as if something had moved between Earth and Moon. However a real lunar eclipse doesn't appear to be pitch black but as a dark reddish layer and there certainly isn't a corona which is a feature of the sun. See more »

Quotes

Sara: Have you ever heard of the Three Sisters?
Carlo: You mean those black singers?
Sara: No, I'm talking about mythology.
Carlo: Hold on, if you're talking about spooks and stuff, I don't believe in any of that.
Sara: How can you be so sure?
Carlo: I don't believe in such things, that's all, and without any philosophical discussion.
Sara: Then what do you believe in?
Carlo: In whatever I can see and touch.
See more »

Connections

References Johnny Guitar (1954) See more »

Soundtracks

"Mater Tenebrarum"
Composed by Keith Emerson'
Keyboards by Keith Emerson'
See more »

Frequently Asked Questions

See more (Spoiler Alert!) »

User Reviews

 
The most beautiful of horror movies
12 February 2001 | by (Wellington, New Zealand) – See all my reviews

Inferno is Dario Argento's masterpiece. For once, he abandoned the idea of a coherent storyline altogether and made a movie that is simply a series of beautifully made setpieces. Many people have criticized Inferno's plot; such people are completely missing the point. Inferno is no more concerned with plot than Luis Bunuel was with movies such as The Phantom of Liberty; where Bunuel was concentrating on images and ideas, Argento is concentrating on images and emotion, specifically fear.

Each scene features a character or characters running afoul of the Three Mothers, entities introduced obliquely in Argento's previous movie, Suspiria, and developed considerably here. The third movie in the Three Mothers trilogy remains unmade. Each scene is carefully coded by judicious use of colour and sound. All the best setpieces in the movie feature no dialogue whatsoever (most notably the scenes in the underwater chamber and the lecture theatre). Much of the most significant dialogue is whispered offscreen by unseen persons.

Inferno is that rarest of breeds: pure cinema. Not only could it not have succeeded in any other medium, it cannot be adequately described in words. Anyone who is seriously concerned with artistic cinema must see this movie, as should most horror fans. Anyone who has trouble getting their head around movies that push beyond the conventional three-act storyline will almost certainly hate it.


52 of 63 people found this review helpful.  Was this review helpful to you?

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