October 18, 2007

The Bird With The Crystal Plumage (Argento, 1970)


"If you think you are being followed home from this movie, keep telling yourself that it's all in your mind."

What surprises most about Dario Argento's first film, The Bird with the Crystal Plumage, is the sheer control Argento displays over the medium. In his first directorial outing, his visual style already seems mature and fully formed. The film is flush with beautiful compositions and stylish, inventive camera movement, and if it sometimes falls prey to meandering exposition and the occasional clumsy scene, it is still never less than enthralling. And Ennio Morricone's jazz inflected score is wonderful, the perfect aural compliment to the film's stylized aesthetic.

Film Rating: A-/B+
Scare Factor: C-

View Date: 10/17
Shocktober Horror Film Count: #11

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