Nerds That Geek Movie Review: ‘Suspiria’ (1977)

Written by Scott Edwards

There are so many people that are happy with being in their dead-end jobs as they get older since they have no other aspirations to become something greater. While the bills get paid and life seems to be good for them, what stops them from wanting to be something greater? Striving to be the best is something that seems to have been disappearing over the past couple of years since people have given up on it and are content to live their lives the only way they know how. While people may be happy with their situations, they will never know what benefits can come from becoming something more and while some people will be alright with that, they will never know what they are missing.

Leaving her life in New York, Suzy Bannion is making her way to the prestigious Tanz Dance Academy in Germany. Arriving by cab at the academy on a dark and stormy night, Suzy sees a fellow dancer fleeing from the building, and she hasn't a clue what the girl was running from. Not being allowed entrance for the night, Suzy comes back in the morning and gets a face to face with her instructor Miss Tanner and the woman that runs the academy, Madame Blanc. With no idea why she was not allowed in, Madame Blanc has some bad news for the young American; that her room is not ready and she will need to pay to stay with another student off campus.

Not seeing this as a problem, Suzy meets her new roommate, Olga, who seems to be alright, but she is very straightforward and has a little playful streak towards another student that she has taken a liking to. Being thrown into the mix of classes Suzy becomes a little lightheaded and needs a moment to gather herself, but Miss Tanner will not have a quitter on her first day and makes the young dancer show off her moves. Falling in the middle of the dance hall, Suzy is put in one of the empty rooms at the academy and is forced to eat a special diet that will increase her blood flow to avoid the accident from happening again. Even though she is not happy about being staying in the dorms, all is not lost since a girl named Sara happens to be her next-door neighbor. As the two girls are able to hit it off, things start to change in the dorms and Sara knows that it is not just bad food bringing the changes.

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Finding maggots running rampant around the building, Madame Blanc is forced to have her students all sleep in the gymnasium and waking up to an awful snoring, Sara knows that the academy’s director has returned for the night. Telling Suzy about what happens when the director is around, Sara is convinced that there is some strangeness about the old woman but is not able to pinpoint what it really is. Thinking that there is witchcraft in the academy, Sara tries to tell Suzy everything she has uncovered during her time there, but Suzy is too tired to understand what her friend is telling her. Being chased by something through the halls of the school, Sara meets her untimely demise. But Suzy is starting to remember things and presses the Madame for more information, making her the next target for whatever is roaming the halls when the lights go off.

Sometimes you have to go back and enjoy a classic movie from time to time and although many people may not like Argento's movies, I have become a fan other the years. The one thing that I enjoyed right off the bat is the set design and the lighting in the movie that make the effects and scares just that much better. The murders in this movie also make you cringe, since they are things that you would not want to think about and they haunt your dreams for weeks to come. I liked the story, although witches are not really my thing, I have found a little love for them over the years and this movie is the prime reason why. I know there are some other movies in this series, but I watched the finale before this one, so it will be a big surprise for me when I get to watch Inferno next to fully appreciate Dario Argento’s series on witches.  Stay Scared.

Five Takeaways

1. When you see a person running for their lives from a building you want to enter, you probably don’t want to go in there.
2. If you have pissed off your teacher who has ghostly powers, there is no escaping their vengeance.
3. If maggots start fall from the ceiling for no reason, get out of there.
4. While wine red wine is heavenly, it will not help to build up your blood.
5. When sleeping in a group, always bring some 'Breathe Right' strips or something to silence the annoying snoring people. 

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