As I watched Dario Argento's "Trauma" (1993), his first American production, a thought occurred to me. Recently I have reviewed a film by Claude Chabrol, "The Color of Lies" (1999). I began to notice a similarity in the world view between these two filmmakers. I think it would make an interesting essay comparing their styles. Naturally I'm not qualified to write such an article, you'll need a more intellectual critic, say Andrew Sarris or David Denby. But there is something about these two filmmakers which suggest a comparison. I suppose it is by no mere coincidence they are two filmmakers whose work I enjoy.
Argento is the more violent of the two. Chabrol's films deal with murder too, but, without the amount of on-screen gore Argento seems to have a fetish for. But both see the world as a dark place. Each filmmaker likes to examine what is beneath society's surface.
This is not the first time I have written about Argento's work. This is my sixth review, making him one of the most discussed directors on this blog (Chabrol and D.W. Griffith tie with him). But in case you haven't read my other reviews for his films, I'll explain a little about who he is.
In his native Italy he is considered one of the great horror directors. His films are noted for their excessive gore. Though I must say, before some readers may get turned off, the violence in his films are not of a realistic nature. Argento's films are not made on a large budget, so some viewers may find the gore a bit campy. For instance, the blood never looks real.
Argento is best know for his "Three Mother" trilogy. I have reviewed each of the films in the series; "Suspiria" (1977), "Inferno" (1980) and "Mother of Tears" (2008). "Suspiria" along with "Deep Red" (1975) are his best films. That is not merely my own opinion, but is the general consensus among fans and critics. His films fall into two different genres. Films like "Suspiria" and "Inferno" deal with the supernatural. But his best known films fall into the "giallo" sub-genre.
Giallo means "yellow" in English, because that was the color of the covers of the books. They were detective stories which translated on-screen with moments of sexuality and nudity as well as dealing with the occult. "Trauma" is a typical example of the genre and as far as I'm concern is one of Argento's best films coming after "Suspiria", "Deep Red", "Inferno" and "Tenebre" (1982), which I have also reviewed and is another good example of the "giallo" genre.
"Trauma" stars Argento's daughter Asia as Aura Petrescu, a 16 year old Romanian runaway. Her parents; Adriana (Piper Laurie) and Stefan (Dominique Serrand), have sent her to an institution which she has escaped. She has befriended David Parsons (Christopher Rydell), a graphic designer at a local news station. He stopped her from jumping off a bridge.
A serial killer, nicknamed "the Headhunter" because he decapitates his victims, is on the prowl. He has even killed Aura's parents. Adriana was a psychic and the spirit of a recent victim was going to reveal the identity of the killer to her.
The film throws some connection between all the victims. They all worked at a hospital. All the victims were nurses. The killings seem to be some sort of revenge. Will the killer now come after Aura and David?
I've written about Asia Argento on here several times. I have mixed feelings about her. With the right script and the right director behind her she can turn in interesting performances. One of my favorite films with her is Tony Gatlif's "Transylvania" (2006), which I have reviewed on here. Gatlif turned her bad-ass image into more vulnerability. I would hope they would continue their collaboration. She was also in the excellent Catherine Breillat film "The Last Mistress" (2008), which I called one of the best films of the year. But here in "Trauma" she seems out of place. I think she was too young. At the time Miss Argento was 18 years old. I think Argento should have either made the character older or get a different actress.
The film dabbles into a weird romance between David and Aura. He is much too old for her and it seems sort of creepy for him to love her. Dario Argento doesn't handle the romance between these two very well. This part of the plot doesn't seem very well developed. And could have used some re-writes. We don't sense these two love each other. Something about it seems unnatural.
But who is going to watch a Dario Agrento film for a competent love story? We watched Mr. Argento's films for their twisted world view. The elaborate murder scenes. Here Argento seems to be aiming high, drawing inspiration from the French Revolution, with several references to the guillotine.
I do and do not like the casting choice of Piper Laurie as the mother. She is a fine actress. So talent is not the issue. And her presence makes us think of her mother character in "Carrie" (1976). But, Argento engages in a lot of camp, so in a way it seems beneath her. Argento doesn't usually direct grade "A" actors. His films are not known for their Oscar caliber performances. Supposedly, Ms. Laurie was quite embarrassed by this film and has never seen the finished product due to negative reviews the film received.
But I like the movie. I think this is a solid piece of work from Argento. It is mostly engaging and kept me interested throughout much of the film. It works up some moments of suspense and as I said is a good example of the "giallo" genre.
If there is one thing about the film I dislike, it is similar to my criticism of Chabrol's "The Color of Lies". Both films throw out major plot and character revelations at the end of the film. That is fine, within itself. But Argento never establishes enough clues which would hint to the viewer what is going on. Therefore we can't play along and try to solve the mystery with the characters.
For those readers that have never seen a Dario Argento film, this isn't the best place to start. Watch "Suspiria", "Deep Red" and "Tenebre" before you see this. While most people tend not to like Argento's later films, this one is actually pretty good and isn't as campy as some of his later films like "Mother of Tears". Unlike some of his later films this one actually works up suspense and if you watch it alone in a dark room, might have you look over your shoulder.
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