Deep Red
Encyclopedia
Profondo Rosso is a 1975 giallo
film directed and written by Dario Argento
and co-written by Bernardino Zapponi
. It was released on March 7, 1975 in Italy
and June 11, 1976 in the United States. The film's score was composed and performed by Goblin
. It stars David Hemmings
as a music teacher who investigates a series of murders performed by a mysterious figure wielding a hatchet. Although the film was not a financial success internationally, the film has met with critical acclaim.
), which he witnesses in an apartment building. Other major characters are introduced early, including Daly’s gay
friend Carlo (Gabriele Lavia
), Ulmann’s associate Dr. Giordani (Glauco Mauri) and reporter Gianna Brezzi (Daria Nicolodi
), with whom Daly begins an affair.
After his attempt to rescue the medium fails, Daly realises he could have seen the killer’s face among a group of portraits on the wall of the victim’s apartment but is unable to find or recognize it when the police arrive. Later in the film, he also initially overlooks another clue that causes him to discover a mouldering corpse walled up in a derelict house. One murder leads to a series of others as Daly’s obsession with this vital clue that he fails to understand endangers his life and that of everyone with whom he comes into contact. Among those killed are Giordani, Amanda Righetti (Giuliana Calandra), and Carlo.
The killing of Helga Ulmann is prefaced by a child’s doggerel
tune, the same music that accompanies the film’s opening sequence in which two shadowy figures struggle until one of them is stabbed to death. The music serves as the murderer’s calling card. When Daly hears it in his own apartment soon after becoming involved in the case he is able to foil his attacker. Later, he plays the tune to Giordani, a psychiatrist, who theorizes that the music is important because it probably played an integral part in a traumatic event in the killer's past. The doctor’s theory is of course correct, as the identity of the killer is finally revealed as Carlo’s insane mother Martha (Clara Calamai
). When Carlo was still a child, he watched as she murdered her husband when he tried to have her committed to a mental hospital
, then entomb his body in a room of their house. Daly’s discovery of the corpse is one of the film’s most dramatic moments.
In the climax, Martha confronts Marcus and tries to kill him. Wielding a butchering knife, Martha chases him around the complex and into a room with an elevator. Marcus is stabbed in the shoulder by the knife, and kicks Martha toward the elevator shaft. A long necklace she wears catches in the bars of the shaft, and she is decapitated when Daly summons the lift. The film ends with Daly staring into the resultant pool of blood.
music band Goblin
composed most of the film's musical score. Goblin also composed music for several other films by Dario Argento.
PART 2 (サスペリアPART2) in Japan. This film was released two years before Suspiria in Italy, and the two movies are unrelated. This was done due to the tremendous success of Suspiria in Japan. Distributors thought this film would be a success if the public thought this film was a sequel to Suspiria, hence the name change.
Multiple versions of the film exist on DVD and VHS, in large part due to the fact that Argento removed 26 minutes (largely scenes between Nicolodi and Hemmings) from the film, footage that was never dubbed in English. For years, it was assumed that the film's American distributors were responsible for removing said scenes, but the recent Blu-Ray release confirmed that Argento oversaw and approved the edits to the film.
The original English version is available on VHS and DVD, under the title "Deep Red: The Hatchet Murders". This version of the film is a public domain film.
In 1999, Anchor Bay acquired the rights to release the film uncut, on both DVD and VHS. Their version restored the missing footage, but kept the American end credit scene (a freeze frame shot of Hemmings looking down upon a pool of blood). As there was no dubbed versions of the missing scenes, the scenes (and additional dialogue omitted in the dubbed version) was featured in its original Italian language. The DVD offered both English and Italian audio tracks as well. Anchor Bay later released a two-pack DVD containing Tenebre and Deep Red.
Blue Underground obtained the rights to the film in 2008 and released it as a standard DVD. Their Blu-Ray release, release in 2011, contains the US version of the film (which is referred to as "The Director's Cut") and the original edit (referred as "Uncut" and contains option to watch it in Italian or English/Italian.
critiqued, "As to the film itself, it holds up as one of Argento's finest moments, a taut and suspenseful thriller shot with style and class and featuring some stand out set pieces, amazing camera work, and a few strong performances. Highly recommended."
Bill Gibron of DVD Verdict
said, "Frankly, there is no better Italian thriller, giallo
, detective, horror, or slasher style film than Deep Red. It resonates with all the visual excesses and subliminal undercurrents that Argento would later explore to their maximum capacity. It is a tour de force
of camera, composition, and film craft skills. It is such a benchmark of smart, passionate film construction that it surpasses expectations and thwarts potential imitations. It's interesting to note that even when Argento presently returns to the giallo style thriller to keep his name in the genre, the films (Tenebrae
, Non Ho Sonno
, Opera
) all resemble pale imitations of Deep Red."
Casey Burchby of DVD Talk
called it "the most beautifully shot horror film ever made."
J.C. Maçek III of WorldsGreatestCritic.com wrote, "There are reasons that Deep Red is considered one of the best films of its kind, but be warned, this is neither a primer
, nor an introduction to films of this kind. While this is light on the profanity and almost nonexistent on the nudity, there is enough violence and horrific brutality to fill up two or three films made by the other guys. Further, Argento knew just how to make these hit home, using imagery that anybody in the audience could easily relate to, due to its realism and every-day nature. Ouch."
Argento’s films are known for such elaborate scenes of violence and suspense, with meticulous build-up and a visceral study of the mechanics of killing. The murder scenes are generally quite extended: in this film, a female author is knocked on the head, then dragged into a bathroom and drowned in a bath filled with scaldingly hot water. Not long afterward, the psychiatrist has his face bashed against a wall, a mantelpiece and a desk before he is finally killed with a large knife. The doctor, alone in his office, is viewed through a window as if being watched, the jarring soundtrack reaches a crescendo and then, when the killer would be expected to burst upon him he is instead accosted by a large doll that approaches him menacingly from the shadows, apparently of its own free will. While Giordani quickly destroys it, the doll is in fact the murderess' calling card and she appears moments later from behind a curtain.
Profondo Rosso has many minor details that presage later events. The bathtub murder is foreshadowed by an earlier scene when Daly is slightly scalded by an espresso machine; similarly, Daly explains to Gianni that his psychiatrist once explained that his piano playing is symbolic of him bashing his father’s teeth in, and later in the film Giordani suffers exactly that fate. A child’s doll hanging from a noose and a brief cut to a dog fight (with one dog biting the other by the neck, the other carrying a strange, ghastly gaze) foretell Martha’s aforementioned demise at the end of the film, when the heavy neckchain she is wearing becomes entangled in the bars of an elevator that then ascends, lifting her into the air until she is decapitated. The film also marks the introduction of many of Argento's techniques: discordant soundtracks, odd angles, rolling cameras and various lighting techniques.
was contacted by Claudio Argento
to direct a 3D remake of Deep Red which Claudio said would also involve Dario. Romero showed some interest in the film however after contacting Dario, who said he knew nothing about the remake, declined Claudio's offer. It is unknown if Claudio will look elsewhere for a director or still has plans to remake his brother's film.
Giallo
Giallo is an Italian 20th century genre of literature and film, which in Italian indicates crime fiction and mystery. In the English language it refers to a genre similar to the French fantastique genre and includes elements of horror fiction and eroticism...
film directed and written by Dario Argento
Dario Argento
Dario Argento is an Italian film director, producer and screenwriter. He is best known for his work in the horror film genre, particularly in the subgenre known as giallo, and for his influence on modern horror and slasher movies....
and co-written by Bernardino Zapponi
Bernardino Zapponi
Bernardino Zapponi was an Italian novelist and screenwriter best known for his films written in collaboration with Federico Fellini.- Biography :Zapponi was born in Rome in 1927...
. It was released on March 7, 1975 in Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
and June 11, 1976 in the United States. The film's score was composed and performed by Goblin
Goblin (band)
Goblin are an Italian progressive rock band known for their soundtracks for Dario Argento films ....
. It stars David Hemmings
David Hemmings
David Edward Leslie Hemmings was an English film, theatre and television actor as well as a film and television director and producer....
as a music teacher who investigates a series of murders performed by a mysterious figure wielding a hatchet. Although the film was not a financial success internationally, the film has met with critical acclaim.
Plot
Profondo Rosso follows music teacher Marcus Daly (Hemmings) as he investigates the violent murder of psychic medium Helga Ulmann (Macha MerilMacha Méril
Macha Méril, born Princess Maria-Magdalena Vladimirovna Gagarina on 3 September 1940, Rabat, Morocco, is a French actress and writer, descended by her father from the Russian princely house Gagarin and by her mother from a Ukrainian noble family...
), which he witnesses in an apartment building. Other major characters are introduced early, including Daly’s gay
Gay
Gay is a word that refers to a homosexual person, especially a homosexual male. For homosexual women the specific term is "lesbian"....
friend Carlo (Gabriele Lavia
Gabriele Lavia
Gabriele Lavia is an Italian actor, film director and theatre director.Lavia was born in Milan, Lombardy. Since 1970 he has had roles in nearly thirty films and television programs...
), Ulmann’s associate Dr. Giordani (Glauco Mauri) and reporter Gianna Brezzi (Daria Nicolodi
Daria Nicolodi
Daria Nicolodi is an Italian actress and screenwriter.- Early life and career :Daria Nicolodi was born in Florence on June 19, 1950. Her father was a Florentine lawyer and her mother, Fulvia, was a scholar of ancient languages. Her maternal grandfather was composer Alfredo Casella...
), with whom Daly begins an affair.
After his attempt to rescue the medium fails, Daly realises he could have seen the killer’s face among a group of portraits on the wall of the victim’s apartment but is unable to find or recognize it when the police arrive. Later in the film, he also initially overlooks another clue that causes him to discover a mouldering corpse walled up in a derelict house. One murder leads to a series of others as Daly’s obsession with this vital clue that he fails to understand endangers his life and that of everyone with whom he comes into contact. Among those killed are Giordani, Amanda Righetti (Giuliana Calandra), and Carlo.
The killing of Helga Ulmann is prefaced by a child’s doggerel
Doggerel
Doggerel is a derogatory term for verse considered of little literary value. The word probably derived from dog, suggesting either ugliness, puppyish clumsiness, or unpalatability in the 1630s.-Variants:...
tune, the same music that accompanies the film’s opening sequence in which two shadowy figures struggle until one of them is stabbed to death. The music serves as the murderer’s calling card. When Daly hears it in his own apartment soon after becoming involved in the case he is able to foil his attacker. Later, he plays the tune to Giordani, a psychiatrist, who theorizes that the music is important because it probably played an integral part in a traumatic event in the killer's past. The doctor’s theory is of course correct, as the identity of the killer is finally revealed as Carlo’s insane mother Martha (Clara Calamai
Clara Calamai
Clara Calamai was an Italian actress.Her debut was in 1938 with Pietro Micca, directed by Aldo Vergano....
). When Carlo was still a child, he watched as she murdered her husband when he tried to have her committed to a mental hospital
Mental Hospital
Mental hospital may refer to:*Psychiatric hospital*hospital in Nepal named Mental Hospital...
, then entomb his body in a room of their house. Daly’s discovery of the corpse is one of the film’s most dramatic moments.
In the climax, Martha confronts Marcus and tries to kill him. Wielding a butchering knife, Martha chases him around the complex and into a room with an elevator. Marcus is stabbed in the shoulder by the knife, and kicks Martha toward the elevator shaft. A long necklace she wears catches in the bars of the shaft, and she is decapitated when Daly summons the lift. The film ends with Daly staring into the resultant pool of blood.
Cast
- David HemmingsDavid HemmingsDavid Edward Leslie Hemmings was an English film, theatre and television actor as well as a film and television director and producer....
as Marcus Daly - Daria NicolodiDaria NicolodiDaria Nicolodi is an Italian actress and screenwriter.- Early life and career :Daria Nicolodi was born in Florence on June 19, 1950. Her father was a Florentine lawyer and her mother, Fulvia, was a scholar of ancient languages. Her maternal grandfather was composer Alfredo Casella...
as Gianna Brezzi - Gabriele LaviaGabriele LaviaGabriele Lavia is an Italian actor, film director and theatre director.Lavia was born in Milan, Lombardy. Since 1970 he has had roles in nearly thirty films and television programs...
as Carlo - Macha MérilMacha MérilMacha Méril, born Princess Maria-Magdalena Vladimirovna Gagarina on 3 September 1940, Rabat, Morocco, is a French actress and writer, descended by her father from the Russian princely house Gagarin and by her mother from a Ukrainian noble family...
as Helga Ulmann - Eros PagniEros PagniEros Pagni is an Italian film actor. He has appeared in 34 films since 1964. He was born in La Spezia, Liguria.-Selected filmography:* Pleasant Nights * Love and Anarchy * Deep Red...
as Supt. Calcabrini - Giuliana Calandra as Amanda Righetti
- Piero Mazzinghi as Bardi
- Glauco Mauri as Prof. Giordani
- Clara CalamaiClara CalamaiClara Calamai was an Italian actress.Her debut was in 1938 with Pietro Micca, directed by Aldo Vergano....
as Martha - Aldo Bonamano as Carlo's father
- Liana Del BalzoLiana Del BalzoLiana Del Balzo was an Italian film actress. She appeared in 90 films between 1935 and 1979.She was born in Buenos Aires, Argentina and died in Rome, Italy.-Selected filmography:...
as Elvira - Vittorio Fanfoni as Cop taking notes
- Dante Fioretti as Police photographer
- Geraldine Hooper as Massimo Ricci
- Jacopo Mariani as Young Carlo (as Iacopo Mariani)
- Nicoletta Elmi as Olga
Soundtrack
The Italian progressive rockProgressive rock
Progressive rock is a subgenre of rock music that developed in the late 1960s and early 1970s as part of a "mostly British attempt to elevate rock music to new levels of artistic credibility." John Covach, in Contemporary Music Review, says that many thought it would not just "succeed the pop of...
music band Goblin
Goblin (band)
Goblin are an Italian progressive rock band known for their soundtracks for Dario Argento films ....
composed most of the film's musical score. Goblin also composed music for several other films by Dario Argento.
Release
This film is known as SuspiriaSuspiria
Suspiria is a 1977 Italian horror film directed by Dario Argento and co-written by Argento and Daria Nicolodi. The film follows an American ballet student who transfers to a prestigious dance academy in Germany, only to discover that it is controlled by a coven of witches. The film's score was...
PART 2 (サスペリアPART2) in Japan. This film was released two years before Suspiria in Italy, and the two movies are unrelated. This was done due to the tremendous success of Suspiria in Japan. Distributors thought this film would be a success if the public thought this film was a sequel to Suspiria, hence the name change.
Multiple versions of the film exist on DVD and VHS, in large part due to the fact that Argento removed 26 minutes (largely scenes between Nicolodi and Hemmings) from the film, footage that was never dubbed in English. For years, it was assumed that the film's American distributors were responsible for removing said scenes, but the recent Blu-Ray release confirmed that Argento oversaw and approved the edits to the film.
The original English version is available on VHS and DVD, under the title "Deep Red: The Hatchet Murders". This version of the film is a public domain film.
In 1999, Anchor Bay acquired the rights to release the film uncut, on both DVD and VHS. Their version restored the missing footage, but kept the American end credit scene (a freeze frame shot of Hemmings looking down upon a pool of blood). As there was no dubbed versions of the missing scenes, the scenes (and additional dialogue omitted in the dubbed version) was featured in its original Italian language. The DVD offered both English and Italian audio tracks as well. Anchor Bay later released a two-pack DVD containing Tenebre and Deep Red.
Blue Underground obtained the rights to the film in 2008 and released it as a standard DVD. Their Blu-Ray release, release in 2011, contains the US version of the film (which is referred to as "The Director's Cut") and the original edit (referred as "Uncut" and contains option to watch it in Italian or English/Italian.
Critical reception
Ian Jane of DVD TalkDVD Talk
DVD Talk is a website for DVD enthusiasts founded in January 1999 by Geoffrey Kleinman when DVDs and DVD players were first beginning to hit the market.The site started as an online forum, an email newsletter, and a page of DVD news and reviews...
critiqued, "As to the film itself, it holds up as one of Argento's finest moments, a taut and suspenseful thriller shot with style and class and featuring some stand out set pieces, amazing camera work, and a few strong performances. Highly recommended."
Bill Gibron of DVD Verdict
DVD Verdict
DVD Verdict is a judicial themed website for DVD reviews. The site was founded in 1999. Current editor in chief is Michael Stailey, who also reviews for Rotten Tomatoes...
said, "Frankly, there is no better Italian thriller, giallo
Giallo
Giallo is an Italian 20th century genre of literature and film, which in Italian indicates crime fiction and mystery. In the English language it refers to a genre similar to the French fantastique genre and includes elements of horror fiction and eroticism...
, detective, horror, or slasher style film than Deep Red. It resonates with all the visual excesses and subliminal undercurrents that Argento would later explore to their maximum capacity. It is a tour de force
Tour de Force
Tour de Force may refer to:* Tour De Force , 1986 Elton John Concert Tour* Tour de Force , a 1956 album by Sonny Rollins* Tour de Force , a 1984 album by .38 Special...
of camera, composition, and film craft skills. It is such a benchmark of smart, passionate film construction that it surpasses expectations and thwarts potential imitations. It's interesting to note that even when Argento presently returns to the giallo style thriller to keep his name in the genre, the films (Tenebrae
Tenebrae
Tenebrae may refer to:* Tenebrae, a Christian worship service held during Holy Week * Tenebrae , a horror film by Dario Argento* Tenebrae , soundtrack album for the Dario Argento film...
, Non Ho Sonno
Sleepless (2001 film)
Sleepless is a 2001 horror film by Dario Argento. The film stars Max von Sydow and Stefano Dionisi and marks Argento's return to the giallo subgenre...
, Opera
Opera (film)
Opera is a 1987 Italian giallo film written and directed by Dario Argento. The film stars Cristina Marsillach, Urbano Barberini, and Ian Charleson. Cinematography is done by Ronnie Taylor while Brian Eno and Claudio Simonetti composed the film's score. The film was released in the United States...
) all resemble pale imitations of Deep Red."
Casey Burchby of DVD Talk
DVD Talk
DVD Talk is a website for DVD enthusiasts founded in January 1999 by Geoffrey Kleinman when DVDs and DVD players were first beginning to hit the market.The site started as an online forum, an email newsletter, and a page of DVD news and reviews...
called it "the most beautifully shot horror film ever made."
J.C. Maçek III of WorldsGreatestCritic.com wrote, "There are reasons that Deep Red is considered one of the best films of its kind, but be warned, this is neither a primer
Primer
Primer may refer to:*Primer , a 1995 music album by the musical group Rockapella*Primer *Primer , a 2004 feature film written and directed by Shane Carruth...
, nor an introduction to films of this kind. While this is light on the profanity and almost nonexistent on the nudity, there is enough violence and horrific brutality to fill up two or three films made by the other guys. Further, Argento knew just how to make these hit home, using imagery that anybody in the audience could easily relate to, due to its realism and every-day nature. Ouch."
Background
- In an attempt to make the movie's cityscape at once familiar and alien to the domestic public each of the external scenes were filmed in a different Italian city.
- 11 seconds of cuts made to the film by the BBFC in 1993 were waived when the film was re-submitted in 2005.
- The closeup shots of the killer's hands, clad in black leather gloves, were performed by director Dario ArgentoDario ArgentoDario Argento is an Italian film director, producer and screenwriter. He is best known for his work in the horror film genre, particularly in the subgenre known as giallo, and for his influence on modern horror and slasher movies....
himself.
- In one scene David HemmingsDavid HemmingsDavid Edward Leslie Hemmings was an English film, theatre and television actor as well as a film and television director and producer....
walks past a tavern at night. The tavern is styled after the famous painting "Nighthawks", by Edward HopperEdward HopperEdward Hopper was a prominent American realist painter and printmaker. While most popularly known for his oil paintings, he was equally proficient as a watercolorist and printmaker in etching...
.
- Director Dario ArgentoDario ArgentoDario Argento is an Italian film director, producer and screenwriter. He is best known for his work in the horror film genre, particularly in the subgenre known as giallo, and for his influence on modern horror and slasher movies....
's shop in Rome is named 'Profondo Rosso' after this film.
- Co-writer Bernardino ZapponiBernardino ZapponiBernardino Zapponi was an Italian novelist and screenwriter best known for his films written in collaboration with Federico Fellini.- Biography :Zapponi was born in Rome in 1927...
said the inspiration for the murder scenes came from Argento and himself thinking of painful injuries to which the audience could relate. Basically, not everyone knows the pain of being shot by a gun, but almost everyone has at some point accidentally struck furniture or been scalded by hot water.
Argento’s films are known for such elaborate scenes of violence and suspense, with meticulous build-up and a visceral study of the mechanics of killing. The murder scenes are generally quite extended: in this film, a female author is knocked on the head, then dragged into a bathroom and drowned in a bath filled with scaldingly hot water. Not long afterward, the psychiatrist has his face bashed against a wall, a mantelpiece and a desk before he is finally killed with a large knife. The doctor, alone in his office, is viewed through a window as if being watched, the jarring soundtrack reaches a crescendo and then, when the killer would be expected to burst upon him he is instead accosted by a large doll that approaches him menacingly from the shadows, apparently of its own free will. While Giordani quickly destroys it, the doll is in fact the murderess' calling card and she appears moments later from behind a curtain.
Profondo Rosso has many minor details that presage later events. The bathtub murder is foreshadowed by an earlier scene when Daly is slightly scalded by an espresso machine; similarly, Daly explains to Gianni that his psychiatrist once explained that his piano playing is symbolic of him bashing his father’s teeth in, and later in the film Giordani suffers exactly that fate. A child’s doll hanging from a noose and a brief cut to a dog fight (with one dog biting the other by the neck, the other carrying a strange, ghastly gaze) foretell Martha’s aforementioned demise at the end of the film, when the heavy neckchain she is wearing becomes entangled in the bars of an elevator that then ascends, lifting her into the air until she is decapitated. The film also marks the introduction of many of Argento's techniques: discordant soundtracks, odd angles, rolling cameras and various lighting techniques.
Alternate versions
- Original Italian version is 126 minutes long. Most US versions remove 22 minutes worth of footage, including most graphic violence, all humorous scenes, almost all of the romantic scenes between David Hemmings and Daria Nicolodi and part of the subplot regarding the house of the screaming child.
- The U.S. video release by Anchor Bay Entertainment is a mostly restored version, reinstating gore shots and scenes with dialogue that were cut from the initial U.S. release. It was likely that these scenes were cut before the English dub was prepared, and so they now only exist with an Italian dub (English subtitles are provided for these scenes). However, in the original theatrical version, the end credits are displayed over a shot of Marcus's reflection in a pool of blood. The image is moving (blood drips into the pool, Hemming's face changes expression etc.) while the credits are displayed. The Anchor Bay's release features the credits over a freeze-frame of the original shot. Other than this change, the Anchor Bay VHS/DVD is the full uncut version of the film.
- The later DVD release from Blue Underground is the exact version mentioned above. Also, Blue Underground released an "Uncensored English Version" on DVD May 17th, 2011. This cut of the film runs no more than 105 minutes.
- The original UK Redemption video release was cut by 11 seconds to remove scenes of 2 dogs fighting and a live lizard impaled with a pin. The 2005 Platinum DVD issue is slightly re-framed (to exclude the lizard scene) and restores the dog sequence, as it seems likely that they are playing rather than fighting.
- The full-length Italian version (with English subtitles and one small cut by UK censors) is available on video in the UK in pan & scan format from Redemption Films. The only known widescreen print of this version can be found in Australia completely uncut on both SBS-TV and its pay-TV channel World Movies. Note that the widescreen laserdisc release is in English language and was cut by director Argento himself by about 12 minutes.
Remake
In 2010 George A. RomeroGeorge A. Romero
George Andrew Romero is a Canadian-American film director, screenwriter and editor, best known for his gruesome and satirical horror films about a hypothetical zombie apocalypse. He is nicknamed "Godfather of all Zombies." -Life and career:...
was contacted by Claudio Argento
Claudio Argento
Claudio Argento is an Italian film producer and screenwriter. Most of the titles he has produced have been the horror films directed by his older brother, Dario Argento. One major exception was Alejandro Jodorowsky's cult film Santa Sangre ; in addition to producing, Claudio Argento co-wrote the...
to direct a 3D remake of Deep Red which Claudio said would also involve Dario. Romero showed some interest in the film however after contacting Dario, who said he knew nothing about the remake, declined Claudio's offer. It is unknown if Claudio will look elsewhere for a director or still has plans to remake his brother's film.