Suspiria (1977)

An American newcomer to a prestigious German ballet academy comes to realize that the school is a front for something sinister amid a series of grisly murders.

Director:

Dario Argento

Writers:

Dario Argento (screenplay), Daria Nicolodi (screenplay)

Stars:

Jessica Harper, Stefania Casini, Flavio Bucci

3 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Jessica Harper	...	Suzy Bannion
Stefania Casini	...	Sara
Flavio Bucci	...	Daniel
Miguel Bosé	...	Mark (as Miguel Bosè)
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

Storyline

Suzy Bannion travels to Germany to perfect her ballet skills. She arrives at the Tanz dance academy in the pouring rain and is refused admission after another woman is seen fleeing the school. She returns the next morning and this time is let in. She learns that the young woman she saw fleeing the previous evening, Pat Hingle, has been found dead. Strange things soon begin to occur. Suzy becomes ill and is put on a special diet; the school becomes infested with maggots; odd sounds abound; and Daniel, the pianist, is killed by his own dog. A bit of research indicates that the ballet school was once a witches' coven - and as Suzy learns, still is.

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Plot Keywords:

guide dog | stabbed in the heart | murder by knife | paranormal phenomena | fear | 

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Taglines:

Witchcraft's most Macabre Tale

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Genres:

Horror

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Certificate:

R

Details

Country:

Italy

Language:

Italian Russian English German Latin

Release Date:

12 August 1977 (USA)

Also Known As:

Dario Argento's Suspiria

Filming Locations:

Studio Mafera, Rome, Lazio, Italy

Company Credits

Production Co:

Seda Spettacoli

Technical Specs

Runtime:

98 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (35 mm optical prints) 4-Track Stereo (35 mm magnetic prints) Quadrophonic (Circum-Sound) (Japan theatrical release)

Color:

Color (Eastmancolor) (prints) Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

A glass feather is plucked from an ornament. Director Dario Argento's feature film debut was directing The Bird with the Crystal Plumage (1970).

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Goofs

(76:13) In the English dubbed version, the Latin sentence cited by Prof. Milius is full of mistakes and thus virtually unintelligible ("Quandum ubique, quandum semper, quandum ad omnibus creditur est."). The line as intended by the author can, however, be heard in the Italian version: "Quoddam semper, quoddam ubique, quoddam ab omnibus creditum est." Translated, it means, "There is always a everywhere, some believed by all."

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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 Freiburg. One day, at nine in the morning, she left Kennedy airport, New York, and arrived in Germany at 10:40 p.m. local time...

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Crazy Credits

You have been watching "SUSPIRIA"

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Alternate Versions

The original (and only) version released in Italy is approx. 95 minutes long (98 minutes including credits). Contrary to popular belief there is no longer 107 minutes director's cut: this rumor started because of an erroneous publicity slogan on some US trailers. The US posters for the movie featured the tagline "The only thing more terrifying than the last 12 minutes of this film are the first 80" (80+12 = 92 minutes, i.e. the approx. length of the original US theatrical release, minus credits). The voiceover on some US trailers misread the quote as "The only thing more terrifying than the last 12 minutes of this film are the first 92", thus suggesting that the complete film was 12 minutes longer than it really is. Some reviewers took this as an indicator that the film had originally been available in a longer version and circulated the 107 minutes version myth (107=95+12). The trailer with the wrong '12+92' slogan is included on the Japanese DVD version.

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Connections

Referenced in The Simpsons: Treehouse of Horror (1990)

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Soundtracks

Markos
Adapted from "Music in Similar Motion" by Philip Glass
Arranged by Claudio Simonetti, Fabio Pignatelli, Agostino Marangolo and Massimo Morante
Performed by Goblin

User Reviews

Argento at his best!

This movie is generally regarded as Dario Argento's best work and it's not hard to see why. Argento's direction adds a lot of atmosphere to the movie, particularly in the way he uses lights and color. There's a genuinely creepy mood through the whole film that doesn't let up. Special mention should be given to the excellent score by Goblin, which really adds a lot to the film and helps set the mood in all the right places. "Suspiria" definitely earns its place as one the finest horror movies ever.