Wednesday, January 13, 2010

Phenomena

Phenomena (1985), perhaps more appropriately known as Creepers in the US, is undeniably a Dario Argento film. While lacking the subtly complex script of Argento's debut The Bird with the Crystal Plumage (1970), or the technical mastery of Suspiria (1977), Phenomena brings together many of the Argento hallmarks. The blistering soundtrack includes sonic experimentation from Argento's pet band Goblin, bombastic gloom metal from the likes of Motorhead, Iron Maiden, and Andi Sex Gang, and strange folksy interludes from Bill Wyman (of The Rolling Stones). Capitalizing on her burgeoning popularity in Italy after her film debut in Sergio Leone's gangland epic Once Upon a Time in America (1984), Argento secured then 15-year-old Jennifer Connelly as his star and snagged veteran character actor Donald Pleasance to play her paraplegic mentor. Argento, as always, builds upon a core of giallo horror, adding his personal cinematographic touches to slowly transform Phenomena from a ho-hum Italian slasher into something quite unexpected.

American Jennifer Corvino (Connelly) is the new girl at a private boarding school buried in a little corner of the Swiss Alps. Jennifer is soon marked for death after she witnesses a murder at the school. With the aid of a reclusive entymologist (Pleasance), his trained chimp, and her own peculiar power over insects, Jennifer aims to track down the killer before it's too late.

Look, this film is nowhere near perfect. The dialogue is stilted, the English dub is poor, the editing is atrocious, and there are plot holes that you can drive a truck through. But the movie sure is fun, bursting with Argento's typical campy humor and ludicrous situations, not to mention his considerable eye for color, sets, lighting, and distinctive camera style.

What Phenomena loses with its somewhat meandering and slow beginnning, it more than makes up for with the last 25 minutes. Whatever you do, DO NOT miss the end of this film. It doesn't make sense. Don't even try to understand it on a logical level. Instead, give in to its visceral insanity, its cavalcade of bizarre, including poison pills, maggots, killer bees, underground tunnels, a pool of blood and body parts, one fucked up little kid with a monster face, a maritime explosion, a surprise decapitation, and a straight razor-wielding primate. Yeah, it just may be the greatest ending to any movie ever.


Storyline & plot: 5/10
Cinematography & effects: 7/10
Music & mood: 6/10
Performances: 6/10

The Reverend says: 6/10