STUDIO: Anchor Bay
RELEASE DATE: May 27, 2008
STARRING: Anthony Franciosa, John Saxon, Jennifer Connelly, Donald Pleasance, Asia Argento, Piper Laurie, Frederic Forrest, Brad Dourif, Stefania Rocca, Liam Cunningham, Elio Germano, and Chiara Conti
WRITTEN BY: Various
DIRECTED BY: Dario Argento
FEATURES: Audio Commentaries
Retrospective Featurettes
Trailers

Like a lot of horror fans, Dario Argento warped my fragile young mind. As Hollywood was going through a relatively predictable slate of slasher movies inspired by Halloween and Friday the 13th, the great Italian horror director was doing something completely different. And, consequently, most of those '80s genre pics have disappeared to midnight movie marathons while Argento's best work is still studied and admired, even more so than it was when it was first released. But because most of my Argento experience came in the days before DVD (on VHS...look it up if you've never heard of it), my collection of Dario has been shockingly minimal. So it was with great joy when I read that Anchor Bay was collecting five films from the undeniable master of horror and including them in a well-priced, space-saving set. It's not a spectacular collection of films and seems nearly random in its selection, but it includes at least two great films and one good one. Reasonably priced under $40 for five flicks, it's a horror collector's dark dream come true.

The most popular film in the 5 Films by Dario Argento set is probably 1985's Phenomena (which was edited and changed to Creepers stateside), mostly because it stars Jennifer Connelly and Donald Pleasance. A very-young Connelly stars as a student at a school for girls that's being stalked by a serial killer and who might be the only one who can stop him because...wait for it...she can communicate with insects. You can say what you want about Dario, but you can't call him predictable. Phenomona took Argento into the world of supernatural horror, which has never been his strong suit, but it also represents the master at the peak of his stylish game as a director (if not as a writer). The best film in the set and the best example of Argento's strengths is 1982's Tenebre, another film that was massacred in editing, but has been fully restored and remastered. It's a great piece of work about an author and a killer who happens to be slashing people based on the writer's novel in Rome. The use of blood, music, and the sounds of women screaming is practically operatic. The film was underappreciated at the time it was released (largely due to the editing), but it's been reappraised since it's been restored. Tenebre stands next to Suspiria and Deep Red as Argento's best. Sadly, the latter two films are not in this set. You'll have to pick them up individually.

On that note, the ideal five-disc set for Argento would include Tenebre, Phenomena, Suspiria, Deep Red, and both of his Masters of Horror efforts - "Jennifer" and "Pelts" - on one disc. Instead of the last three, fans who pick up 5 Films by Dario Argento will add Trauma, The Card Player, and Do You Like Hitchcock? to their collection. As much as I adore even sub-par Argento, they're a mixed bag at best. 1993's Trauma has its moments but Argento's foray into Hollywood filmmaking doesn't feel like it ever clicks and 2004's The Card Player is arguably Argento's worst film. Hitchcock is actually a TV movie in response to an oft-cited inspiration of Argento himself. While Trauma, Card Player, and Hitchcock may pale in comparison to Argento's best, they're still must-sees for horror fans and significantly better than a lot of what passes in the genre today.

For hardcore Argento fans who have already seen these movies repeatedly, the real draw is going to be the extras. The five films are housed in a sleek, beautiful metallic case and each has been remastered to near perfection. Like I said, I grew up on Argento on VHS. Having never seen Tenebre on DVD, it practically felt like a new film. And each movie comes with enough special features to give even the most "giallo"-educated aficionado something new. All of the films except for Hitchcock come with a commentary. Tenebre also includes "Voice of the Unsane", "The Roving Camera", and "The Sounds of Terror". The special features on Phenomena include "A Dark Fairy Tale" and "The Art of Macrophotography". Trauma includes "Love, Death, and Trauma", "On the Set with Tom Savini", and Deleted Scenes. Do You Like Hitchcock? only includes one featurette called "Backstage with Hitchcock" but The Card Player features "Playing with Death", "Maestro of Fear", and "Behind-the-Scenes".