Tags
asia argento, dario argento, dark glasses, giallo, ilenia pastorelli, shudder australia, slasher
Movie review: Dark Glasses
There has been a 10 year absence since “The Master of Horror” Dario Argento stepped behind the camera to call the shots. That feature was the much maligned adaptation to Bram Stoker’s gothic masterpiece, Dracula… in this case in the 3D variety.
Apparently stirred into action when Argento’s daughter Asia discovered the script, Dark Glasses bears a lot of the hallmarks to what made this directing auteur great. Tapping into the giallo scene that built his name, Argento weaves a narrative around Italian escort Diana (Ilenia Pastorelli) who is attacked and pursued by a serial killer. She manages to escape but in her flight she is involved in a car crash, resulting in her loss of sight and the death of two of the occupants in the other car. They were the parents of Chin, who manages to survive the wreck and becomes the subject of Diana’s guilt and road to recovery.
At first Chin is reluctant to receive her care but soon warms to her maternal protection. The issue and conflict arises with the serial killer still on the loose and hellbent on finishing off what he started,
The Prognosis:
Dark Glasses imbues the heightened sexuality and psychological trauma that is oft’ a part of Argento’s cinematic playground.
Pastorelli produces a compelling and sensual-yet-damaged protagonist in distress, but the narrative falls in numerous places and loses structure as result.
This patchwork of Argento’s formative years has moments of success and is still visually arresting at times, but it struggles to string together a cohesiveness worthy enough to allow these notes to sing.
- Saul Muerte
Dark Glasses will be streaming on Shudder Anz from Thurs 13th October.