Lovesusti The Worst Film Ever

Thehibikiew Not even bad in a good way

Humbersi The first must-see film of the year.

Philippa All of these films share one commonality, that being a kind of emotional center that humanizes a cast of monsters.

morrison-dylan-fan For my 10th anniversary on IMDb,I decided that I would celebrate the event by watching a "new" title from an auteur film maker who has been a major part of my film viewing over the last 10 years:Dario Aregento.Planning to watch The Card Player,my DVD player that it was far from happy with the hand that it had been dealt,by constantly jamming the DVD up! Frantically searching round,I spotted a TV movie by Argento,which I had been slightly uneasy over viewing,due to sadly not having seen that much of Alfred Hitchcock's work.With there being no other Argento titles in my sight,I decided to find out if you could still like the film,even without knowing Hitchcock.The plot:Taking a break from his film studying,student Julio opens the window of his flat and looks across the street.Appearing across the street like a dream,Julio spots a neighbour called Sasha undressing.Enjoying the rush of voyeurism,Julio starts to keep a close eye on Sasha,which leads to him seeing Sasha having an argument with her mum.Getting set to rent out a title from his friend Andrea's video store,Julio is caught by surprise,when he runs into Sasha at the store.Getting hold of the film Strangers on a Train just before a fellow sexy video customer, (what are the chances!) called Federica.As he leaves the shop,Julio notices Sasha & Federica deep in conversation.In the mood for a voyeurism hit later that night,Julio instead witnesses Sasha's mum getting brutally murdered by a black coat wearing stranger.As he calls the cops,Julio begins to fear that he is about to enter his own Hitchcock tale.View on the film:Originally designed to be the first episode of a 7 part Italian Thriller TV series, (which after the series budget was cut in half,led to this being the only filmed episode)co-writer/(along with Franco Ferrini) directing auteur Dario Argento & cinematographer Frederic Fasano open this stylish Giallo with a scene straight from a long forgotten Brothers Grimm story,which along with showing the beginning of Julio's voyeurism streak,also subtly recalls the witches from Argento's "three mothers" trilogy.Whilst he does include a handful of Hitchcock references,Argento gives this TV movie an eye-catching,feature film canvas.Argento scans the screen with ultra-stylised whip-pans showing Sasha's skin (played by an elegant Elisabetta Rocchetti,who also appears naked in the TV movie!)setting Julio's voyeurism weakness off.Along with the flesh & impressively blunt levels of blood,Argento also sinks the Giallo into a Film Noir atmosphere,with the use of water allowing Argento to rift on his past Deep Red,and to also scatter unrelenting rain across the screen,which builds up an excellent tense mood,as Julio tries to figure out which Hitchcock he is trapped in.Whilst the screenplay by Argento & Franco Ferrini is a little too focused on seeing how many homages it can include,the writers still make the Giallo mystery its own thing,thanks to flashbacks to Julio's childhood allowing the writers to make Julio's almost- stalker like obsessions block any attempt by Julio to get help in solving the murder.Entering the title looking like Harry Potter's geekier brother (is that even possible!) Elio Germano gives a wonderful performance as Julio,with Germano avoiding the easy sleaze-ball route that the character could have take,by giving Julio a real sincerity,and a real determination which heats up as Julio tries to find out how much the mysterious killer likes Hitchcock.

gavin6942 A film student with a habit of spying on his neighbors witnesses a murder one night and is quickly sucked into a web of seduction and danger. Can he help the police identify the killer before the killer identifies him? And what of his girlfriend who disapproves of this hobby? This film marks the thirteenth Dario Argento film I have seen. And while I can safely say he is my favorite horror director (and one of my favorite directors in general), this film is a weak spot on his impressive record. While the plot itself is somewhat weak, it could have worked as a tense, suspenseful giallo. Why didn't it? Many critics point to the fact this film was made for television, and surely this was a factor. The camera used was of less quality, and it comes off with a soap opera feel. But Argento tries to make this work: despite being on television, there is still some blood and a fair amount of nudity. Yet, it just doesn't hold my interest (or apparently many other people's).I have heard some say that his "style" is different here, and that seems to be true. There are few shots that scream Argento. One close-up on some eyes, another scene with a flooding of color, but overall the film seems washed out with too much light and it just doesn't seem "movie" worthy. Oh, well.True Argento fans will want to see and possibly own this one, but I can tell you with certainty: it is probably the worst film of his you will ever see. I own it, and I'm pleased about that, but I don't expect to give it much replay. The special features consist of a director bio and a behind the scenes that is in Italian, so unless you understand Italian it probably won't tell you much.

jotix100 Some say that imitation is the best form of flattery. This seems to be the case with Italian director Dario Argento. He is a man that loves to shock with his stories of blood and gore in a genre known as giallo in Italy. Alas, "Ti piace Hitchcock" his 2005 made for television film doesn't quite live up to his previous work, although it is not a horrible movie.Argento sets his film in a Torino neighborhood where Giulio, a young student of cinema, and with a what appears to be an unlimited amount of time in his hands, loves to spy his neighbors from his window. He discovers Sasha, a young woman who is always fighting with her mother about money.Giulio, who loves to watch old films in DVD format, meets Sasha at the neighborhood store where she is about to rent "Strangers on a Train", one of Hitchcock's best films. Federica, a beautiful blonde, has the same idea in mind as she is about to grab the only copy in the store. Giulio realizes there is more than really meets the eye between what appears to be a casual encounter.There are references of Hitchcock's work throughout the story, like when Giulio is taking the shower, which reminds us of "Psycho", which is also prominently displayed at the video store. When Sasha's mother is victim of foul play, Giulio decides to investigate, putting himself in harm's way. Eventually, he is also a target for knowing too much, or perhaps because he gives that impression. Other references to Hitchcock include a "Rear Window" sequence, as well as another one to "Vertigo".The film is entertaining, although the dubbed version we watched on a cable channel was badly dubbed, which was distracting. One can hope Mr. Argento has more blood in mind on his next venture.

Tim Hayes Since he started in the business, Dario Argento has been referred to as the Italian Hitchcock. So it came as little surprise that he would one day helm a film called Do You Like Hitchcock? Stylistically, there are differences between the two directors. Hitchcock was far more suspense oriented and rarely showed violence on screen. It was usually referenced by a shot and a reaction. The shower scene in Psycho being the most obvious example. Argento, however, does not shy away from violence. In fact, he fully embraces it. Both create tension and atmosphere in their work and Argento's early work does actually feature their fare share of suspenseful moments. First off, the film borrows plot points liberally from Rear Window (the most obvious) and Strangers On A Train. Fans of Hitchcock will recognize these points and enjoy them. Giulio is a film student who witnesses several fights between a girl and her mother across the street. when the mother turns up dead, he begins to suspect the daughter was in on a plot to have her killed. He begins investigating and soon finds himself caught up in a web of lies and deceit. The acting ranges from good to poor, partially as a result of the dubbing from Italian. This being a TV movie, there is little in the way of violence except for a great scene near the end of the film and the set-piece murder that kicks things off. Oddly enough, however, there is a lot of nudity and sex scenes. Argento is very restrained here and in a way its nice that he took this approach to the material. All in all, as far as TV movies go this is superb. My problems with the film come from an obtuse ending that left me puzzling it out for several hours and a backstory that is never satisfyingly tied into the main plot line. Still, the film is decent and worth a look.