Review of Suspiria (2018) by Lightsandbulbs — 18 Sep 2022

Immediate praise must be given to "Suspiria" for being the first horror film in ages to legitimately terrify, and disgust me. Sure, I've had plenty of moments watching scary movies where I've been creeped out, but few moments have hit the same way Olga's death scene did.

To sum it up in two words: Jesus Christ. "Suspiria" boasts several other terrifying qualities, such as its bone-chilling score, which comes courtesy of Thom Yorke, and its beautiful, yet ominous, cinematography.

Plenty of praise can also be given to its actors, most notably Tilda Swinton, whose character was easily the most interesting to watch throughout the film. Don't let all of those positives fool you into thinking this thing is flawless however.

While it may be cliché to say at this point, this film's length is a legitimate issue. I have no qualms with long movies, as I love plenty of lengthy films, such as "I'm Thinking of Ending Things" and "There Will Be Blood", however, there are moments within "Suspiria" that could most definitely stand to be trimmed.

The film also has a few editing flaws, most glaringly so its overuse of choppy slow motion, which is frankly one of my least favorite movie effects. Its constant presence severely diminished the enjoyability of the film's final sequence.

The frankly awful CGI blood in that final sequence also greatly took away from it. Finally, while I adore the film's themes and twists, there isn't enough connective tissue present throughout the movie to seamlessly weave one theme into another.

I most definitely would've appreciated a bit more foreshadowing regarding the film's final twist, as it would have made it feel far more natural, and rewarding. All that said, "Suspiria's" positive qualities most definitely outweigh its negatives, and unlike other horror movies, when it fails, at least it does so while being interesting.