Hardly any director has combined simple horror stories with great art in such a stylish way as Dario Argento. Alongside greats like Mario Bava, he popularized the so-called subgenre of the giallo film. Argento also created one of the best horror films of all time, Suspiria.
In Germany, the director’s brutal films were hard to come by for years because they often indexed in the uncut version became. All the more gratifying that Netflix recently added Tenebrae to the streaming offer. Horror fans shouldn’t miss the heavy Argento cracker.
Tenebrae inspires with Argento’s stylistically brilliant handwriting
Tenebrae, available on Netflix under the title Tenebre: The Living Daylights, has a similarly simple plot to most of the Italian’s films. This time it’s about an American writer who travels to Rome and becomes involved in a series of murders related to his books.
Of course, typically for Argento, there is one again unknown killer with black gloves and razor blade as well as female victims in beguiling set pieces. Added to this is the once again outstanding score by the band Goblin, who contributed the distinctive music for many Argento films.
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As always, the director prioritizes form above all else, resulting in breathtaking scenes. In addition, Argento came up with a special concept that makes most sets in Tenebre appear bright white and brightly lit, often dominated by bright sunlight rather than typical darkness.
This film is also dominated by Argento’s typical (night) dream logic, which leads to incomparable scenes. Above all, there is a particularly stubborn, aggressive dog, bright red high-heeled shoes and the several-minute tracking shot in and around a house ingenious details in this cracker by the director, who in the finale again reaches bloody, blood-shattering top form.
In Germany, Tenebre was confiscated in the uncut version from 1987. According to cut reports, this version was removed from the index in June 2022, which is why you can luckily stream the uncut version of the horror highlight on Netflix.
Podcast Tip: Why Is Netflix Canceling My Favorite Shows?
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In the podcast, we look for explanations for the wave of cancellations at Netflix that has hit shows like Warrior Nun, 1899 and First Kill. Are they really not successful enough? And could Netflix do anything to lessen fan anger and sadness?
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