Suspiria

Fri. Dec 21, 2018 at 9:30pm - Sat. Dec 22, 2018 at 12:15am EST
All Ages
$8.50 - $11.50
All Ages
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Event Stats
$8.50 - $11.50
All Ages
Event Description

(2018) Luca Guadagnino w/Dakota Johnson, Tilda Swinton, Lutz Ebersdorf, Angela Winkler, Mia Goth, Elena Fokina, Sylvie Testud, Ingrid Craven [152 min; DCP]


This stunning, bloody, horrific, and divisive reimagining of one of the most phantasmagoric horror films of all time had an unfairly brief run in Boston earlier this fall and the Brattle is excited to bring it back for this handful of special screenings. Neither entirely a remake nor reboot, Luca Guadagnino has treated Dario Argento and Daria Nicolodi’s 1977 source material as something akin to a modern fairy tale or Shakespearean text. His version of SUSPIRIA stands next to the original in the same way that Baz Luhrmann and Franco Zeffirelli both interpret Romeo and Juliet or the Walt Disney Company and Jean Cocteau can both create magical versions of Beauty and the Beast. Some of the same scenes remain and similar story structure and characters are present but the two films differ in surprising and important ways.


 


In Guadigno’s version of SUSPIRIA, Susie Bannion is still our entrée into a mysterious and famous Berlin dance academy but she appears to have much more agency than in Argento’s version where she is almost literally blown in by a windstorm. As played by Dakota Johnson, Susie is still an apparently naïve and curious young American but her acceptance into the company is more grudging – she has basically badgered her way into an audition. Though she is not quite welcomed with open arms, she soon proves herself to be a formidable dancer in the presence of the head of the company, Madame Blanc (Swinton) and melds into the group of women who live and work in the gothic confines of the school. Once ensconced, Susie wastes no time in becoming intrigued by the various mysteries around the place… not the least of which being just what the instructors are up to at night when they wander the halls. What is clear to the audience from the beginning is that, while this dance company is rightfully renowned for its striking performances (actual dance takes much more of a prominent role in this version), the main business of the building is witchcraft.


To go any further into the plot will ruin some of the delight of seeing how Guadagnino and company navigate the differences and similarities to the original but, suffice to say, we think it will be worth your time. Stunning cinematography, thrilling choreography, a few outrageously gothic sequences, and some astounding performances make this a worthy ‘remake’ of an acknowledged classic – and done in a way that allows both to stand on their own. Plus, a trick of casting that verges on practical joke, makes this an almost entirely female cast.


 

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Brattle Theatre 40 Brattle Street
Cambridge, MA 02138
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