Suspiria

A cult favorite among horror fans, Italian director Dario Argento's 1977 shocker stars Jessica Harper as Suzy Banyon, an aspiring American dance student who has travelled to Europe to study at a famous dance school, which is, in reality a front for a coven of witches. The opening scene which suspensefully drags out the murder of one of the students is a horrifying piece of stylishly macabre cinema. The plot, which follows Suzy's and a fellow student's efforts to uncover the secret behind the murder, is not particularly inspired. And the dialogue, which appears to be at least partially dubbed, is banal, at best. But Argento's garish palette (bright colors abound throughout the film) coupled with the unnerving--and faintly comical--thunderous soundtrack by the Goblins, make Suspiria a standout in the horror genre. In addition to the unrated version which features an extra five minutes of gore (scenes which are relatively tame by today's standards), the film is also available in a letterboxed collector's edition at the same price. Recommended. (R. Pitman)