Terror at the Opera
(also known as Opera) is an, "aria of violence beyond imagination"
promised director Dario Argento before its premiere. He wasn't
kidding. From the brilliant opening dolly scene where the bitchy
opera diva falls victim to an accident off-screen (Vanessa Redgrave
was to play the role but she arrived at the shoot demanding more
money as if anybody would give a shit if she was in an Argento
film!, thus Argento took care of that role right quick), we know
we are in for a classic Argento ride filled with swirling camera
movements, odd characters and brilliantly bizarre images of sadism
and violence.
The film stars
the beautiful Cristina Marsillach as Betty, an opera understudy
for Verdi's play Macbeth. As a result of the opera diva's accident
Betty takes over the starring role and is an instant success,
however an obsessed madman awaits in the wings. The first abduction
of Betty by the madman is the reason why you hear people discuss
Argento with such intense passion. The killer ties Betty to a
pole taping rows of needles under her eyes before brutally slaughtering
her boyfriend. Betty has no choice but to watch the proceedings
or lose her eyes! Flecks of blood are trapped in Betty's eyelashes
as the murderer does his work in an instantly classic image of
Italian horror.
"For years I've been annoyed by people covering
there eyes during the gorier moments of my films....I film these
images because I want people to see them and not avoid the positive
confrontation of their fears by looking away. So I thought to
myself how would I make it possible to achieve this and force
someone to watch the most gruesome murder and make sure they can't
avert their eyes."
Dario Argento
on the infamous needled eye scenes
Terror at the Opera
contains scene after classic scene including the incredible raven
eye view of the interior of the opera house as they seek out their
abuser in the audience (that's right these bad ass ravens
get chopped up and bullied by the killer so they hunt him down
and eat his eye!!), the removal of a piece of evidence from a
victims throat by a pair of shears (crunchy horrifying noises
of cut tissue accompany a blurry image of the carnage, Argento
supposedly wasn't thrilled with Sergio Stivaletti's work on that
particular effect), the jaw dropping slow motion shot of a bullet
in close-up flying through a doors peephole and straight through
Daria Nicolodi's head, shattering a phone ten feet behind her!,
and the hilariously grotesque view of the killers brain contracting
while he hunts down his prey (making the rooms pulsate from his
point of view).
Incredible scenes of tension, a storyline that
keeps you guessing, and a brilliant score by Brian and Roger Eno
and ex-Goblin member Claudio Simonetti, makes Terror at the Opera
must viewing for any serious contemporary horror fan. Arguably Dario Argento's last truly great film, look out for Anchor Bay's terrific DVD transfer.
