I can't comment on anything from the last two decades apart from stuff Argento's done. I enjoy Sleepless and The Mother of Tears quite a bit, but I wouldn't class either as truly great, though they both have their moments.
This is something of an obvious answer, but I'd probably say Dellamorte Dellamore... it seems that when Soavi stepped out of the Italian horror arena, that was pretty much game over. To be honest though, while I like the movie, its still not a favourite... I'd probably rather watch Stagefright or The Sect again over it any day, but it's definitely growing on me with repeat viewings.
Two other possible candidates that spring to mind are "The Black Cat" from Two Evil Eyes and House of Clocks. But compared to stuff from the glory days of the early-to-mid 80s, I don't know whether either could be classed as great. The latter is certainly underrated though...
The last one that I enjoyed a bit more than "usual" was Eyes of Crystal (occhi di cristallo) from 2004 (I think).. and Mother of tears ..absolutely /R. Geiger
I'll add one more voice to the chorus of general approval for Mother of Tears... I really should have said that one to begin with. As I've said before on the blog, I currently find it as re-watchable as its predecessors (in terms of entertainment as opposed to general eye candy that is, though there's some striking cinematography in parts), so in my personal opinion I'd say it's great, even though I'll be the first to admit it's not exactly the sort of movie I was expecting after Suspiria and Inferno, though I suppose Argento's movies of the preceding 15 years should have given me an idea what to expect.
And I've yet to hear a bad word said r.e. Eyes of Crystal so I'll be on the look out for that one asap!
The Arcane Sorcerer is absolutely spellbinding, and if I'd not experienced a bout of characteristic memory loss, it would have been my initial answer.
This is obviously somewhat reductive, but I thought Edgar Wright (no relation, as far as I'm aware) was pretty spot on when he described it (after being shown the movie by Guillermo del Toro) as "the Barry Lyndon of horror films".
And I'd never heard of Dark Waters until just now, though the Wikipedia page makes it (and its director) sound very interesting.
I'd have to see The Wax Mask again to make a proper determination. And as much as I enjoyed The Mother of Tears I can't personally say it was great. But I'm glad someone can!
I can't comment on anything from the last two decades apart from stuff Argento's done. I enjoy Sleepless and The Mother of Tears quite a bit, but I wouldn't class either as truly great, though they both have their moments.
ReplyDeleteThis is something of an obvious answer, but I'd probably say Dellamorte Dellamore... it seems that when Soavi stepped out of the Italian horror arena, that was pretty much game over. To be honest though, while I like the movie, its still not a favourite... I'd probably rather watch Stagefright or The Sect again over it any day, but it's definitely growing on me with repeat viewings.
Two other possible candidates that spring to mind are "The Black Cat" from Two Evil Eyes and House of Clocks. But compared to stuff from the glory days of the early-to-mid 80s, I don't know whether either could be classed as great. The latter is certainly underrated though...
The last one that I enjoyed a bit more than "usual" was Eyes of Crystal (occhi di cristallo) from 2004 (I think).. and Mother of tears ..absolutely
ReplyDelete/R. Geiger
Glad to see some love for Mother Of Tears. I loved it.
ReplyDelete-MLP
MLP - I too, am glad to see some Mother Of Tears love. I enjoyed it.
ReplyDeleteR. Geiger- I have yet to see Eyes Of Crystal but I hear good things about it.
Simon- I think the greater consensus is that Cemetery Man is the last great Italian horror film. But there's a lot of other options out there.
ReplyDeleteI'll add one more voice to the chorus of general approval for Mother of Tears... I really should have said that one to begin with. As I've said before on the blog, I currently find it as re-watchable as its predecessors (in terms of entertainment as opposed to general eye candy that is, though there's some striking cinematography in parts), so in my personal opinion I'd say it's great, even though I'll be the first to admit it's not exactly the sort of movie I was expecting after Suspiria and Inferno, though I suppose Argento's movies of the preceding 15 years should have given me an idea what to expect.
ReplyDeleteAnd I've yet to hear a bad word said r.e. Eyes of Crystal so I'll be on the look out for that one asap!
This is an amazingly hard question. I'll need to think on it. I still need to see The Arcane Sorcerer. I've heard good things about that.
ReplyDeleteThe Arcane Sorcerer is very good. I thought someone might drop Dark Water(s(?))
ReplyDeleteThe Arcane Sorcerer is absolutely spellbinding, and if I'd not experienced a bout of characteristic memory loss, it would have been my initial answer.
ReplyDeleteThis is obviously somewhat reductive, but I thought Edgar Wright (no relation, as far as I'm aware) was pretty spot on when he described it (after being shown the movie by Guillermo del Toro) as "the Barry Lyndon of horror films".
And I'd never heard of Dark Waters until just now, though the Wikipedia page makes it (and its director) sound very interesting.
What? No love for The Wax Mask.? Dark waters is great and I did enjoy Mother of Tears
ReplyDeleteI'd have to see The Wax Mask again to make a proper determination. And as much as I enjoyed The Mother of Tears I can't personally say it was great. But I'm glad someone can!
ReplyDelete