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

1 win & 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.

---

Plot Keywords:

guide dog | italian horror | ballet school | stabbed in the heart | cult film | 

---

Taglines:

Dario Argento's horror masterpiece.

---

Genres:

Horror

---

Certificate:

R

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).

---

Goofs

20 minutes in, Suzy accidentally knocks Sara's bag onto the floor in the changing room, when she sits on the bench holding her dance shoes. Then, in a close-up, both women's hands can be seen picking up the bag's scattered contents. Then, in a two-shot, Suzy is still holding her dance shoes.

---

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...

---

Crazy Credits

You have been watching "SUSPIRIA"

---

Alternate Versions

There are two versions of the opening titles. In one, the movie's title card is presented in a stylish printed font. In the other version possibly the American print, the letters of the word "Suspiria" are made of weird pink flesh-like organs that pulsate and seem to breathe, sort of a cross between hearts and lungs. These pink formations actually appear on the American one-sheet movie poster.

---

Connections

Referenced in Adjust Your Tracking (2013)

---

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 beautiful horror film ever

Dario Argento's crowning achievement in stylish film-making.

Suspiria is the most beautiful horror film ever made. Every single frame of this film is expertly lit and colorful. With this technique Argento manages to create an almost unbearable amount of tension and the extremely brutal and bloody murder sequences look so good one can only admire their beauty. The music score by Goblin is one of the most effective score ever to grace a horror movie.

The story concerns an American ballet student who discovers that a coven of witches run the school as bodies begin piling up.

Not much of a story here, but that's really not the main thing. Style and atmosphere is the main course here, and it's execution is completely flawless. Acting and dubbing are okay and the dialogue is a bit stiff. But these are minor flaws in an operatic horror ride one is not likely to forget that easily.

So sit yourself down, turn out the light, and watch this movie in surround sound, 'cause the music alone will totally give you the creeps.

Details

Official Sites:

Tubi

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

Box Office

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$21,760

Company Credits

Production Co:

Seda Spettacoli

Technical Specs

Runtime:

99 min

Sound Mix:

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

Color:

Color (Eastmancolor) (prints) Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1