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 | glass shard | 

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Taglines:

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

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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

The Dario Argento biography "Broken Mirrors, Broken Minds" takes its title from the line that Udo Kier says in this film.

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Goofs

One of the dance students describes Daniel's guide dog as a wolfhound. The dog is a German Shepherd.

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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

One of the scenes in the beginning of the film had its soundtrack remixed in the U.S. Anchor Bay Special Edition of the film. There are now loud bursts of thunder overlapping Pat shouting about the secret room and the iris flower to Sara, making the former's lines almost completely inaudible.

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Connections

Referenced in T00nVision: A Halloween Discussion (2017)

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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

The most horrifying use of color to date.

What sets Dario Argento apart from many of his contemporaries is his success with visual imagery. In a style where sudden visual shocks are used to thrill the audience, Argento creates elaborate deaths which cannot be quickly forgotten. The highly involved double-murder towards the beginning of the film still remains one of the most memorable scenes in horror history, standing next to the Psycho "shower scene" in pure sensory input. And in a technique so powefully employed here and here alone, Argento sets scene after scene aglow with color, using it to express the mood in ways only the subconscious can fully appreciate. All around, this is an excellent addition to the genre of horror cinema, one of the most expressive films to ever plunge a knife into the psyche of its viewers.