Tenebre

Best-selling author Peter Neal travels to Rome to promote his latest thriller, Tenebre, only to find his arrival coincides with a series of murders seemingly inspired by his work. First a shoplifter is razored to death, then a lesbian literary critic and her lover. Soon, Neal – the "corruptor himself" – comes under threat…

On its initial release in 1982 Tenebre confused many Dario Argento fans who had been led by its title to expect the final installment in the (still unfinished) Three Mothers trilogy rather than a return to the giallo with which he had earlier made his name.

This said, the film is good enough – arguably the director's best of the 1980s and 90s – for one to soon forget this.

Through the character of Neal – brilliantly portrayed by Anthony Franciosa in a performance that reveals added nuance on repeat viewing – Argento emphasises the different author 'functions':

"Tenebre is a sexist novel. Why do you despise women so much?"

"I'm talking about your work"

In other words, just because he is the auteur of films that frequently come under attack as sexist, not to say misogynistic, does not mean one can validly infer anything about the attitudes of the 'real' Argento, as distinct from the structure 'Argento' we construct from his films. (And here it's worth mentioning that the genesis of the story apparently came from Argento's experiences with an obsessed fan/stalker.)

Besides authorship, another of Tenebre's keywords would have to be style. Gialli are always stylish (or should be) but Tenebre really goes overboard, with its fusion of direction, lighting and cinematography, production design and costuming. Seen in retrospect it really seems, for better or worse, to encapsulate the whole 80s obsession with design, surface and slickness, the package being rounded off by Goblin's driving, percussive, synth-based score.

Interviewer: The killer's motivation is to eliminate what he calls corruption…

Neal: The killer is insane!

In sum, Tenebre is a fascinating, complex, multi-layered film of considerable intelligence and impact that requires repeat viewings to really do it justice.

Audio visual quality on Anchor Bay's Region 1 DVD of Tenebre, released solo and in a double pack with Deep Red, is good enough.

The film is presented uncut, though one wonders if it is a composite of different prints when the opening sequence, sometimes shows the pages of Neal's book in English and sometimes in Italian, and in its OAR, though not anamorphically enhanced.

Some scenes have a audible hiss – perhaps indicative of a problem with the film itself rather than anything in Anchor Bay's mastering – but otherwise the sound is fine.

The most substantial extra is the commentary track with Argento, Claudio Simonetti of Goblin, moderated by journalist Loris Curci.

Argento, whose English is somewhat hesitant, tends to emphasise trivia and technical details, giving little in the way of insight into his thoughts. For instance, he tells us that the woman in the film's flashback sequences, Eva Robbins, was actually a male transsexual, but does not then go on to talk about the role gender misidentification frequently has within his films.

Simonetti says less, but is more forthcoming and comfortable with English, explaining – for instance – how he, Morante and Pignatelli worked by writing singly and orchestrating together, and that they could not use the Goblin name for legal reasons.

The other extras are two brief behind-the-scenes segments demonstrating how some of the film's sound effects and camera movements were achieved, of technical interest, and an alternate version of the closing credits, over which a different – somewhat less appropriate – piece of music plays.

Apparently Anchor Bay offshoot Blue Underground may re-release Tenebre at some point in the future, likely giving the film an anamorphic presentation.