Suspiria ** (2018, Dakota Johnson, Tilda Swinton, Chloë Grace Moretz, Angela Winkler, Mia Goth) – Movie Review

You’ve got to hand it to Luca Guadagnino. He’s gone from one of the best movies at the 2107 London Film Festival – Call Me by Your Name – to one of the worst in 2018 – his remake, or re-imagining of the Dario Argento classic Suspiria. At least he’s not repeating himself. It is hard to imagine two more different movies, quality aside. No one is going to typecast Guadagnino as a director.

Guadagnino says he wants Suspiria to be a relentless disturbing experience. He takes us back to the Seventies at the time of the Baader-Meinhof Group The Red Army Faction (RAF) atrocities in Berlin, where an ambitious American young dancer called Susie Bannion (Dakota Johnson) turns up for a trial with a renowned dance company’s artistic director, Madame Blanc (Tilda Swinton). Blanc takes Susie on, and weird, deadly dancing ensues.

Of course that is the least of it, and there are many and various dodgy, witchy goings-on at the dance studio, involving Susie, Blanc, crazy Miss Tanner (Angela Winkler), Helena Markos and Dr Josef Klemperer, an elderly psychotherapist grieving for his wife. The film starts with the extremely disturbed Patricia (Chloë Grace Moretz) paying a visit to Klemperer.

Though made with skill, intensity and the courage of its convictions, the nightmarish Suspiria is boring, bloody and disgusting. The bloody and disgusting is fine – it’s a horror movie. But the boring is not. Suspiria runs to two hours and 32 minutes, around an hour too long. The original runs runs 98 minutes, about right for this material.

The admirable Tilda Swinton has a good time, playing three characters in Suspiria (2018).

It is divided into chapters – always a mistake, and here more than usual, bringing an air of arty pretentiousness to the film that seeps in elsewhere. Guadagnino wants to tease and confuse as well as torment us. We want to turn away. However, relishing her chances, the admirable Tilda Swinton has a good time, playing three characters.

Klemperer helpfully tells us: ‘Three Mothers. Three gods. Three devils. Mother Tenebrarum, Mother Lachrymarum and Mother Suspiriorum. Darkness, tears, and sighs.’ Oh well, that’s all right then. That’s clear.

Dakota Johnson in Suspiria (2018).

Obviously there is disturbing content involving ritualistic violence, bloody images and graphic nudity, and some strong language including sexual references. Johnson says the intensity of the shoot ‘f***ed me up so much that I had to go to therapy.’ Let’s hope she found her Dr Klemperer.

At the end of the credits, Susie reappears and makes a gesture to the camera. THE END. Knowing this means you now don’t have stay through the final credits. That should save five of the 152 minutes.

Dr Josef Klemperer, an elderly psychotherapist grieving for his wife, in Suspiria (2018).

David Kajganich’s screenplay is based on the earlier one by Dario Argento and Daria Nicolodi.

Suspiria screened at the London Film Festival on 16 October 2018 and releases on 2 November 2018 (US).

Next up Guadagnino plans to turn Bob Dylan’s 1975 studio album Blood on the Tracks into a movie. He’s on a roll.

© Derek Winnert 2018 Movie Review

Check out more reviews on http://derekwinnert.com

Luca Guadagnino’s 2107 hit Call Me by Your Name.