Deep Red

The atmosphere of Argento’s Deep Red is solid, the mystery surrounding the killer could be cut with a knife and the cinematography is also great, though it doesn’t reach the level of the top-notch visual extravagance of Opera. However, I found a few scenes, including the poorly handled climax, to be oddly edited. Nor does the film benefit from the leisurely pace of its 126 minutes with only three murders. If it had a 100-minute runtime, I would give it four stars. (09/01/2003)

You have to acknowledge Argento’s excellent feeling for visuals, but in the other categories he is not that good. The main storyline has several very naive moments (and incredibly funny comedy reliefs that are supposed to move the investigation forward) and it’s overstretched to two hours – a shorter runtime wouldn’t hurt, really. On top of that, the few murders aren’t very satisfactory, there’s not much gore, the blood looks like light ketchup, etc. Good for the fans of Giallo, but with reservations. Horror movie of the year (11/03/2009)

The object of Argento’s psychoanalytical interest is deceptively not the murderer (whom the protagonists search for as if they didn’t even want to find him), but Hemmings’s sensitive pianist. He is effeminate and repeatedly humiliated by his partner, and he constantly struggles with his own dark desires and rages, which are manifested in the person of Carl (who is literally the opposite of the protagonist: in a group scene, one wears black trousers and a white shirt, the other wears white trousers and a black shirt). There are a few mandatory gore scenes, which of course are always followed by a sadistically long and brilliantly conceived overture by Goblin. With its aesthetic qualities, Deep Red will please even the more voracious horror fans. While I survived Blow-Up, I enjoyed its less self-absorbed alternative for the second time. 85% (16/02/2023)

The scenes with the masked killer are top-notch and the twist and the original concept also deserve thumbs up, but couldn’t it have been 15 minutes shorter? Argento often doesn’t give a toss about pace and some scenes are excessively long, which is a real shame for such a strong and impressive film. It’s enough for 4*, but I don’t think I’m willing to watch it again. 75% (31/10/2020)