StageFright: Aquarius (1987)
"Deliria" (original title)

A troupe of struggling stage actors is rehearsing for a small-town production of a play. Everything seems to be as it should until one of the cast members turns up dead. In a panic, the ... See full summary »

Director:

Michele Soavi

Writers:

George Eastman, Sheila Goldberg (dialogue)

Stars:

David Brandon, Barbara Cupisti, Domenico Fiore

2 wins.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
David Brandon	...	Peter
Barbara Cupisti	...	Alicia
Domenico Fiore	...	Police Chief (as Don Fiore)
Robert Gligorov	...	Danny
Mickey Knox	...	Old Cop
Giovanni Lombardo Radice	...	Brett (as John Morghen)
Clain Parker	...	Irving Wallace
Loredana Parrella	...	Corinne (as Lori Parrel)
Martin Philips	...	Mark
James Sampson	...	Willy (as James E.R. Sampson)
Ulrike Schwerk	...	Betty
Mary Sellers	...	Laurel
Jo Ann Smith	...	Sybil (as Jo Anne Smith)
Piero Vida	...	Ferrari
Richard Barkeley	...	Dr. Porter

Storyline

A troupe of struggling stage actors is rehearsing for a small-town production of a play. Everything seems to be as it should until one of the cast members turns up dead. In a panic, the others try to get out, only to find they are now locked in the theater with the killer! Which one of them committed the murder, and who will get out alive?

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Plot Keywords:

murder | play | panic | sadism | long hair | 

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Taglines:

The theatre of death

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Genres:

Horror

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Certificate:

Unrated

Details

Country:

Italy

Language:

English Italian

Release Date:

27 July 1987 (Italy)

Also Known As:

StageFright

Filming Locations:

Italy

Box Office

Budget:

$1,000,000 (estimated)

Company Credits

Production Co:

DMV Distribuzione, Filmirage

Technical Specs

Runtime:

90 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The first feature directed by Michele Soavi.

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Goofs

Peter's "severed" head blinks several times during the final sequences.

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Quotes

Brett: [grabs Corrine jokingly by the throat] Don't worry dear, it's only Mother, what's our bright-eyed Argenue reading now?
Corinne: Stanizslakski.
Brett: Oh, saints preservece.
Corinne: It's what an actor prepares, it's fantastic.
Brett: Hmm, let me know when you get up to the part about making enough money to keep body and soul together
[laurel screams in background]
Brett: that's the information i can use. Oh, look at laurel, she's a perfect example of the method, really feels her part. Keep it up sweetie.
[...]

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Connections

Referenced in Phantasmagoria (1995)

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Soundtracks

"Mystery Rouge"
Performed by Mia

User Reviews

A stylish, bloody slasher from Michele Soavi.

In Michele Soavi's classy 80s slasher Stagefright, a troupe of struggling actors are trapped overnight in a theatre; one by one they are bumped off by an escaped mental patient sporting an owl mask and wielding a nifty selection of sharp implements and power tools.

Soavi gives us a brilliantly tense movie that makes maximum use of its locale, using lighting, theatre sets and shadowy areas to great effect. There are plenty of creepy moments, some genuine scares and loads of nice bloody FX for the gore-hounds. Fans of Italian horror might notice some similarities in style between this movie and some of Dario Argento's giallo films; this should come as no surprise, since Soavi worked as an assistant to Argento, and obviously learnt a thing or two about shooting a great murder scene. He even uses synth maestro Simon Boswell, who worked on Argento's Phenomena, to create the atmospheric score.

There are one or two moments which stop this film from being perfect (in particular, an unnecessary prologue with a 'shock' ending), but Stagefight still manages to impress with its splattery death scenes and stylish direction.