Phenomena (1985)

User Rating:

6.8/10   

Director:

Dario Argento

Writers:

Dario Argento (screenplay)
Dario Argento (story)

Release Date:

2 August 1985 (USA)

Genre:

Horror | Mystery | Thriller

Tagline:

Jennifer Has A Few Million Close Friends. She's Going To Need Them _All_.

Plot:

A young girl, with an amazing ability to communicate with insects, is transferred to an exclusive Swiss boarding school, where her unusual capability might help solve a string of murders.

Plot Keywords:

Insect | Sleepwalking | Boarding School | Serial Killer | Chimpanzee

Awards:

1 nomination

Cast

Jennifer Connelly	...	Jennifer Corvino
Daria Nicolodi	...	Frau Brückner
Dalila Di Lazzaro	...	Headmistress
Patrick Bauchau	...	Inspector Rudolf Geiger
Donald Pleasence	...	Professor John McGregor
Fiore Argento	...	Vera Brandt
Federica Mastroianni	...	Sophie
Fiorenza Tessari	...	Gisela Sulzer
Mario Donatone	...	Morris Shapiro
Francesca Ottaviani	...	Nurse
Michele Soavi	...	Kurt, Geiger's Assistant
Franco Trevisi	...	Real Estate Agent
Fausta Avelli	...	Schoolgirl
Marta Biuso	...	Schoolgirl
Sophie Bourchier	...	Schoolgirl

Also Known As:

Creepers (USA)

Runtime:

110 min | 116 min (integral version) | USA:110 min (re-release) | USA:82 min (edited version)

Country:

Italy

Language:

Italian | English | German | Swiss German | Danish

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.66 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Certification:

Netherlands:16 | Argentina:16 (re-rating) | Argentina:18 (original rating) | New Zealand:R16 | Australia:R (as "Creepers") (DVD rating) (cut) | Australia:R (as "Phenomena) (DVD rating) (uncut) | Australia:R (original rating) | Denmark:15 (video premiere) | France:-12 | Italy:VM14 | Norway:18 (video premiere) | Spain:18 | UK:18 | USA:R | USA:Unrated (director's cut) | West Germany:18 | Finland:K-18

Filming Locations:

Elios Studios, Rome, Lazio, Italy

Company:

DACFILM Rome

Trivia:

Jennifer Connelly said in an interview that she was bitten by the chimp in this film. Apperently during one scene the chimp kept turning around and Dario Argento, not wanting to film her behind, asked Connelly to place her hand on the animal to stop her from turning. But when she attempted to do so, the chimp became enraged and bit her; and then became very hostile toward Connelly for the rest of the film.

Goofs:

Continuity: The professor's comments about the hyperactive behavior of his insects are accompanied by close-ups of different bugs moving around in their cages very quickly. However, in close-ups of Jennifer listening to him, many of the same bugs can be seen in their cages behind her, and they are completely still.

Movie Connections:

Featured in Stephen King's World of Horror (1986) (TV)

Soundtrack:

The Naked and the Dead

Outstanding Italian horror from Dario Argento. ***Spoilers***

My review is based on uncut Italian print,which runs 110 minutes.A young Jennifer Connelly can communicate telepathically with insects.The area she arrives in is being terrorized by a psychotic killer,who has been murdering coeds and making off with their decapitated bodies.Desperate for clues,a police inspector visits an entomologist Donald Pleasance("Halloween","Death Line")and eventually Pleasance and Connelly team up to find the killer.It all has something to do with Daria Nicolodi and the deformed creature she keeps chained in the basement.Wonderful atmosphere,gorgeous cinematography and plenty of gruesome gore make this one a must-see.Argento goes totally over the top in "Phenomena" with a swimming pool full of maggots and rotting corpses,a mad dwarf,a razor wielding monkey and grisly decapitations.Great heavy metal songs by Iron Maiden and Motorhead plus a nice musical score by Goblin.10 out of 10.