I’m not sure how I felt about this one. I hate to be the person who compares a remake incessantly to the original, but I can’t help but feel like if this were out of the shadow of the Argento film it would’ve been one of the more compelling art house horror movies of the year. But in the world where I know that Dario Argento’s one of a kind masterpiece exists, it’s hard for me to square considering this a great movie. There’s a lot of messiness in here. I found myself constantly unsure of what threads to grab on to. The movie gives away the original film’s twist up front and then comes up with its own, fresh twist, but I’m not sure that the new twist was earned or particularly compelling. It’s the result of a premise which was barely explored in Suspiria’s lofty two and a half hour run time. 

I try not to throw around “style over substance” too much but this movie felt like it hit that mark. It’s certainly lovely to look at even without the lush coloring of the original. But I’m not sure the beauty works toward anything. It’s highly sexual, bordering on exploitative, but the deep sensuality of the movie isn’t working toward an end which ultimately just makes it feel creepy and male-gazey. 

With all this, I’m not prepared to say that I disliked Suspiria. It’s well crafted and does carry some surprises, but I spent the whole movie searching for the thread that I was supposed to grab on to, and now four hours after leaving the theater I still haven’t found it.