Last Updated on August 2, 2021
Trick ‘r treat! And welcome back to a new take on an old Halloween-centric feature! Last year, our Arrow in the Head staff recommended some obscure fright flicks throughout the month of October to fill your Halloween season with some possible new, first-time viewings (See previous entries HERE)! However, the twist with this year’s UNSEEN HALLOWEEN is that the Arrow in the Head staffers will be reviewing well known horror movies that they have yet to see EVER! It’s true that even the most hardcore horror fans let a classic slip through the cracks here and there. Now’s your chance to get a brand new review of your scary faves from first-time, virgin eyes! Plus, you can have a ball shaming us for our neglectful movie-watching ways!
PLOT: Suzy is a young ballerina who just arrives at a fancy ballet academy in Germany. As some really weird and violent shit starts happening around her, she gradually begins to learn that the school is actually a front for something much more sinister and supernatural. Looks like the students are trading in their ballet shoes for broomsticks!
REVIEW: Please don’t cast a spell on me or send my body crashing through a stained-glass ceiling tied to a noose, but I had never seen Dario Argento’s SUSPIRIA until this past week! I had been meaning to see it for quite some time, but never got the chance. Thankfully, this feature provided me with the perfect opportunity! And what did I learn from my first-time viewing experience? I wasn’t missing out on much. Maybe Italian horror isn’t my thing, but I just couldn’t get in sync with the horror vibe this one was putting out. From the very beginning when Suzy is walking out of the airport and the famous music drowns out everything, I felt uncomfortable and NOT in a good, horror way. Part of the music I liked, but part of it was just annoying as all hell like someone kept dropping a microphone.
I can still see where the “art” of Dario Argento exists in the film. He definitely knows how to set up an unsettling death scene from the stained-glass hanging to the barbed wire room. I suppose there just wasn’t enough of it to keep me glued or enthralled. The scenes at the ballet academy felt drab and I wasn’t a big fan of the mean headmistress Madame Blanc as a villain. Also, the story itself was weak, where clues are force fed to the viewer about what is going on at the academy. Plot points occur not so much organically as for the sake of convenience.
The acting was alright. No one really stood out to me as outstanding and everyone’s delivery was dated. I get that the film was made in the 70s, but so was the original HALLOWEEN and the performances there were incredible and still stand the test of time! I know that Suspiria is now getting the remake treatment and for once, I believe this may not be such a bad idea. I had trouble really getting behind Suzy and her quest to discover what exactly was up with this wacky ballet academy. Plus, the finale felt rushed and the film sort of just ends abruptly. Maybe Suspiria had been built up too much in my head as being a horror classic, but I have no desire to ever see it again.
BEST GORE BIT: Yes, that famous stained-glass ceiling scene does not disappoint in the shocking gore department. It is definitely the best scene in the movie. The tension is super high and never lets up as Pat is brutally attacked by an unknown assailant that really knows how to use a knife. The image of Pat hanging by the neck while dripping blood is absolutely haunting.
HALLOWEEN DRINKING GAME: Take a shot or drink every time:
- The music sounds like someone is booming a microphone against the ground.
- Suzy passes out or falls asleep.
- People are dancing.
WHERE CAN YOU FIND IT?: You can now find the film on DVD! Just click below!
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