In Deep Red (or Profondo Rosso), talented pianist Marcus Daly (David Hemmings) witnesses a horrific murder and soon becomes obsessed with solving the crime on his own. His investigation leads him to an abandoned "haunted" mansion with a mysterious past that seems connected to a murder involving a young child.
Deep Red is easily one of Dario Argento's best. The suspense is rich and constant. The score (by The Goblins and Giorgio Gaslini) is perfection: It's jazzy, reminiscent of rock-and-roll, creepy, synthy and weird at times as well. It's easily one of The Goblins' best work and is extremely memorable.
The cinematography by Luigi Kuveiller is superb as well (lots of sweeping, zooming tracking shots. The abandoned "haunted" mansion set is gorgeous too). The directing by Argento is masterful. There is not as much goofiness as there is in other Italian horror films, and Deep Red takes itself fairly seriously while still finding time to show its audience a good time. There are some gorgeous visuals, good blood/gore effects and nice kills, but the focus here is more-so on suspense and story.
This film does suffer from a bit of sexism (Though it is an important attribute of our protagonist, and the film doesn't seem to side with him on his views) and an abrupt ending, but overall it's still a fantastic, fun, engrossing watch. Deep Red likely influenced Halloween and Dressed To Kill (In turn, Deep Red was likely influenced by the works of Alfred Hitchcock. It has a Columbo-esque vibe a good deal of the time, and it also features one of the creepiest doll scenes in film). It's an important, entertaining, and super-memorable film that should be a part of every horror fans must-see list.
5 STARS
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