Now available on DVD
Cast:
Jennifer Connolly as Jennifer Corvino
Donald Pleasance as Professor John McGregor
Daria Nicolodi as Frau Bruckner
Federica Mastroianni as Sophie
Patrick Bauchau as Insp. Rudolf Geiger
Fiore Argento as Vera Brandt
Directed by Dario Argento
Movie:
These days, whenever I’m talking horror and the subject of Dario Argento arises, there’s an invisible pall that seems to drop over the conversation. Shoulders slouch, eyes glance around nervously, and everyone collectively sighs with disappointment. “Man, what happened to him?” is our usual eulogy. We shake our heads and glance wistfully at our Suspiria DVDs, then pour a 40 for our Italian homey.
While Argento’s reputation remains largely intact among the faithfully devoted, it would be a lie to say that he currently enjoys the kind of widespread acclaim once lauded on him by the horror community. Starting sometime in the mid-â90s viewers began looking toward each of his new releases not with breathless anticipation of another knockout shocker but instead with dwindling hope for a “return to form” — something many are still waiting for.
But the first thing that comes to mind as I revisit 1984’s Phenomena (reissued on DVD after a lengthy moratorium) is the realization that as much as we tend to lambast the director’s recent output and lionize his earlier work, there have always been a few flies in Argento’s attic.
The last time I saw Phenomena – close to 20 years ago – it was called Creepers, and it was a grimy VHS tape collecting dust on the shelf of a neighborhood mom & pop video store. It was my first introduction to Argento, and it was a murky, plodding (even at 82 scant minutes), incomprehensible mess. Anchor Bay’s uncut DVD presents the complete 110-minute film, restoring all of the glass-shattering, face-slashing goodness for which the film (and, to a certain degree, Argento himself) is largely famous, along with a more (but not much more) decipherable narrative about a serial killer, a young girl who talks to insects, and an old man with a monkey.
If the striking opening scene (in which a stranded teenage waif is mercilessly stabbed and thrust through a window) does not immediately denote Argento’s touch, the subsequent introduction of insect-empathizing vegetarian Jennifer Corvino (jailbait Jennifer Connolly in one of her earliest screen roles) to a prestigious Swedish academy might do the trick. Not long after arriving Jennifer is ostracized from the other students and instead makes the acquaintance of friendly neighborhood entomologist John McGregor (Donald Pleasance). Together the two begin uncovering secrets related to a recent rash of violent murders, eventually leading Jennifer to a rotted country cabin and what was likely the most disgusting scene current A-lister Connolly has ever had to film in all of her career.
Pulsing visual sequences and theme music by Goblin’s Claudio Simonetti are among many typical Argento flourishes that occur throughout, but while Phenomena is an adequate entry the director’s cannon, it’s not an especially powerful movie overall. A slow story punctuated by a few wonderfully grisly moments, the film is almost exclusively (and rightfully) remembered for its death sequences, which are still stunning today and employ juicy practical effects so prevalent in the â80s and frequently missed in the current horror climate. The filler between them hasn’t aged quite as well, though there’s a certain kitsch value to the metal-heavy soundtrack and the costume design by famed fashion titan Giorgio Armani (who was apparently quite the Bee Gees fan at the time of filming).
Phenomena dips its feet in the same bloody thematic water that flows through Suspiria and some of Argento’s other work, but lacks the consistent mood and vigor of those other films. Questionable logic and occasionally stilted dialog dog even the director’s strongest work, but here those hindrances present a greater problem, seemingly more evident without a cohesive framework to carry them. Though decent performances from Connolly and Pleasance help, they don’t provide quite enough balance to the film. Among the many brutal impressions Argento has burned into our minds over the years, Phenomena seems a little aimless and lost; not exactly a misfire on ol’ Dario’s part, but a significant distance from the target.
Apart from a new anamorphic transfer, Anchor Bay’s Special Edition DVD seems to be a direct pick-up of their own 2001 (long out-of-print) release. Oddly, despite the creation of the new transfer, the picture quality doesn’t appear to have been improved or remastered; the film looks soft, especially in daylight sequences. Still, for the Argento completist, there’s no better way to get a Phenomena fix.
Extras:
Audio Commentary with Dario Argento, make-up artist Sergio Stivaletti, composer Claudio Simonetti, and journalist Loris Curci: Pieced together from interviews conducted by Curci, this so-so track devotes much attention to the mechanics of the Phenomena production; film locations, Stivaletti’s effects (his first professional work), and the dangers of working with live insects in the pre-CGI â80s. More interesting are Argento’s admissions about the film’s autobiographical content, including his impressions of school as a claustrophobic environment and hints at how Jennifer’s relationship with her distant father reflect the director’s own similar upbringing.
A Dark Fairy Tale: A brief but engaging featurettte details Argento’s inspiration for the story, the casting process, the filming of a few key sequences, and more on Stivaletti’s effects. Like the film, it’s not very cohesive, but there’s a refreshingly casual approach to the interviews that makes them feel less like polished press junkets and more like you’re hanging out in Dario Nicolodi’s living room.
Luigi Cozzi and the Art of Macrophotography: Vintage behind-the-scenes clips make up a personal memoir of regular Argento collaborator Cozzi’s experience creating the optical effects for Phenomena. While it’s a unique idea for a featurette, both it and the techniques discussed (such as a the “swarm effect” featured prominently in the film) feel every bit as dated as they are.
Dario Argento on the Joe Franklin Show: Probably the most entertaining of all the special features on the disc (but for all the wrong reasons), Argento’s August 1985 television appearance promoting the stateside release of Phenomena is archival gold. The director enlightens smarmy talk show host Franklin on the state of the Italian film industry and cites a trio of Hitchcock movies as his favorite films (surprise, surprise), with the clear cultural disparity between the two resulting in some amusing exchanges.
Music videos for Claudio Simonetti’s “Jennifer” and Bill Wyman’s “Valley”: Argento and protÃgà Michele Saovi (director of Stagefright, The Church, and Dellamorte, Dellamore) each take a stab at the then-burgeoning music video market with this pair of gothy clips mixing footage from Phenomena with some original sequences. Jennifer Connolly’s appearance in the “Jennifer” video adds a surreal professional touch to what otherwise resembles a reel of film school outtakes. Saovi’s take on “Valley” is the best way to induce a nap (next to his feature The Church).
A text biography on Argento and the Phenomenatrailer fill out the rest of the package.
