John's Horror Banana-nanza Episode Twenty-Five: Suspiria

I think, personally, that we may have the best movie to come out of Italy ever.

This movie is so hard to explain. It has a little of everything. A great soundtrack by the band Goblin, brightly lit colorful sets, a crazy dog, a blind piano player, and yes, pointless maggots. The story revolves around a dance studio where a girl named Suzy is studying. The night she goes there, she has to drive through one of the most insane rainstorms ever filmed. A girl runs out of the studio mumbling something and takes off into the rain. Suzy sees her running, but at first, can't make out a word she has said.

A few minutes later, a vicious murder is committed involving glass, glowing eyes, a rope and some brutal knifework. It has to be one of the most elaborate and artsy murders ever filmed.

Suzy goes to her dance school, and this time they actually let her in, although they deny ever hearing her knock the night before. She meets a girl named Sarah, and the two of them eventually figure out things aren't quite what they seem. This isn't your run of the mill dance studio. Something very fishy is going on.

Eventually, Suzy ends up on her own, thanks in large part to some very oddly placed razor wire. It's up to her to unearth the crazyness taking place, and she plays the role of heroine wonderfully.

This movie has so much critical acclaim, it's hard to believe it's a horror movie. It's been named one of the top 100 movies filmed in the 20th century (Village Voice), and even Entertainment Weekly named it one of the best horror movies ever. The plot, by the way, involves witches. I had a tough time figuring out where Argento was trying to go with it the first time I saw it, but the second time, it blew me away. Maybe that's how it has to be viewed. It may be hard to swallow the first time, but the more you watch it, the better it gets. The final frantic scene with the Iris's is a terrific way to end the movie. I can't give too much away, but if you haven't seen it, it's not hard to find. I highly recommend it.