I haven't reviewed all that many Argento films in this blog, nor have I really delved too much into Giallo at all, which is odd cause I do really love it. Case in point with this masterpiece, so called the "last great Argento Giallo film."
Tenebrae has all the hallmarks of a giallo, and coming out relatively late in that film movement, they've all been sharpened like the very murder weapon in this film. The almost fetishization of the weapon is on high effect in this film, the glint and the following of the straight razor is absolutely awesome. Other great parts of the giallo are here too, the sexual nature including plentiful nudity, the serial killer and they're twisted self and motivation, the awesome music.
This movie starts with American author Peter Neal coming to Italy after publishing his newest book Tenebrae. It appears he may now have an obsessed fan, because a woman is killed with her mouth stuffed full of pages ripped out of the Tenebrae novel. John Saxon is brought in to help while the killer begins to stalk women around. Simple, effective plot.
Part of the video nasty list because of a arm cutting-off scene and largely just because in general it had stepped up the violence and the sexual content, this is one where its really just splitting hairs. Why this over certain other giallos, over the proliferation of slashers in the 80s in general... This is not wildly outside of any other bloody 80s horror movie, and it does not seem to be entirely justified. It could be this version I watched was at least partially censored still, I have no idea about that, but yeah. Dunno.
Therefore I give this a 3/10 on the Nasty Meter.
It is in the argument slightly Against Video Nathy.
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