Our journey through Dario Argento's filmography reaches the 1990s, a decade where even the director's most devoted admirers begin to admit the wheels wobble a little.
In this third chapter of our five-part retrospective, Steven and Sean revisit Argento's contribution to Two Evil Eyes (1990), before tackling Trauma (1993), The Stendhal Syndrome (1996), and The Phantom of the Opera (1998). For Sean, much of this decade proved to be unexplored territory, while Steven arrived armed with previous viewings and the hope that a fresh revisit might reveal a few overlooked gems.
If the 1970s gave us the birth of modern Giallo and the 1980s delivered operatic horror at its most stylish, the 1990s feel like Argento searching for a new identity. The results are... mixed.
We find plenty to admire in Trauma, a film that proudly wheels out many of Argento's signature obsessions; black-gloved killers, elaborate murders, enough red herrings to keep a fishmonger in business, and a mystery that constantly dares you to look in entirely the wrong direction. It's an entertaining ride, even if it occasionally loses its way.
The biggest surprise of the decade, however, is The Stendhal Syndrome. Both of us come away enormously impressed by its intelligent screenplay, unusual structure, psychological ambition, and one of Asia Argento's finest performances. It's a film that deserves far more attention than it typically receives and stands as the clear highlight of Argento's later career.
Then there's The Phantom of the Opera.
Good grief.
What should have been a lavish Gothic romance instead leaves us scratching our heads at its baffling character motivations, muddled storytelling, and narrative leaps that would make even Argento's most dreamlike films raise an eyebrow. Stylish? Occasionally. Entertaining? Debatable. Coherent? Absolutely not.
A fascinating decade of highs, lows, missed opportunities, and one genuinely underrated masterpiece as we chart the point where one of horror's greatest auteurs began taking a decidedly more uneven path.
