![]() ![]() Neal notices that TV interviewer Cristiano Berti has an unusually intense interest in his work. Maria, the young daughter of Neal's landlord, is later hacked to death with an axe after discovering the killer's lair. Tilde, a lesbian journalist, is murdered at her home along with her lover Marion. Neal is soon contacted by the police in the form of Detective Germani and his partner, Inspector Altieri. The murderer sends Neal a letter informing him that his books have inspired him to go on a killing spree. Just before Neal arrives in Rome, Elsa, a young female shoplifter, is murdered with a razor by an unseen assailant. Neal is unaware that he has also been followed to Rome by his embittered ex-fiancée, Jane. He is accompanied by his literary agent, Bullmer, and his assistant, Anne. Peter Neal, an American writer of violent horror novels, visits Italy to promote his latest work, Tenebrae. The original version later became widely available for reappraisal, and has come to be considered one of Argento's best films by many fans and critics. The film's theatrical distribution in the United States was delayed until 1984 when it was released in a heavily censored version under the title Unsane, which received a mostly negative critical reception. However, in the United Kingdom, it was added to the infamous list of " video nasties" and banned from sale until 1999. Tenebrae was a modest success in Italy it reached theatres with little controversy after Argento made cuts to one of the most violent scenes. Several former members of Italian rock band Goblin provided Tenebrae 's music, a synth-heavy score inspired by rock and disco music. Employing director of photography Luciano Tovoli, Argento also intended that the film simulate the stark, realistic lighting featured in television police shows at the time production designer Giuseppe Bassan created supporting environments that were cold and austere, with sharp angles and modernistic spaces. Shot on location in Rome and at Elios Studios, Tenebrae utilized mostly modern-looking locations and sets, allowing Argento to realize his vision that the film reflects a near-future with a diminished population the director filmed none of the historical landmarks that usually featured in films set in Rome. ![]() The director also wanted to explore the senselessness of killings he had seen and heard about while staying in Los Angeles in 1980, and his feeling at the time that true horror came from those who wanted "to kill for nothing". The telephone calls culminated in death threats towards Argento, who channelled the experience into the writing of Tenebrae. Argento was inspired by a series of incidents which saw an obsessed fan telephone the director to criticize him for the damaging psychological effects of his previous work. The film has been described as exploring themes of dualism and sexual aberration, and has strong metafictional elements some commentators consider Tenebrae to be a direct reaction by Argento to criticism of his previous work, most especially his depictions of murders of women.Īfter Argento had experimented with pure supernatural horror with 1977's Suspiria and 1980's Inferno, Tenebrae represented the filmmaker's return to the giallo subgenre, which he had helped popularize in the 1970s. John Steiner, Veronica Lario, and Mirella D'Angelo also feature in minor roles. John Saxon and Daria Nicolodi co-star as Neal's agent and assistant respectively, while Giuliano Gemma and Carola Stagnaro appear as detectives investigating the murders. The film stars Anthony Franciosa as American author Peter Neal, who – while in Rome promoting his latest murder-mystery novel – becomes embroiled in the search for a serial killer who may have been inspired to kill by his novel. '"darkness"', also known as Tenebre) is a 1982 Italian giallo film written and directed by Dario Argento. ![]()
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