Deep Red

Year: 1975
Director: Dario Argento
Writer: Dario Argento, Bernadino Zapponi
Genre: Horror: Thriller

First off, Dario Argento is one of my favorite horror directors out there. It was through his films that I sort of discovered my taste for more "modern" horror as opposed to classic Hitchcock drama. I always felt like I had already watched this movie but apparently not because it seemed a wholly new experience.

The story starts off with a psychic who is at an event and suddenly becomes overcome with the dreadful thoughts and feelings of a murderer in the crowd. Shortly after her premonition, she is murdered. From there a man who caught a glimpse of the killer is determined to find him. With an intrepid journalist beside him the two attempt to uncover what's going on.

The story isn't the most creative out there but the characters are likable enough and it's easy to get invested. The murder scenes are done quite well and excellently tense. There is not a huge focus on gore but most injuries are shown straight on with the camera, which might not be the best idea with 70s era special effects. Regardless, it works very well and I liked it. I especially have always enjoyed what looks like bright red paint they use for blood. It's obviously fake but something about it makes everything seem a bit more artistic somehow.

It's a nice little film. What I find odd is just how much content was cut for the US release (which I watched). The film is nearly 130 minutes in original form but clocks in a little under 100 for the US theatrical release. What exactly was lost? I'm not sure. However, near the end the film feels slightly schizophrenic so I'm assuming that's where content was lost. Aside from that though this is actually one of the more linear stories that has come from Argento.