Alice Oscura, Featured Writer
Disclaimer: The following contains MAJOR SPOILERS
A film that I don’t see often mentioned is Italian filmmaker Dario Argento’s Phenomena that was released in January 1985. This year, as the film celebrates its 40th Anniversary, let’s take a look back at this stylised slasher-inspired horror.
The first thing that you need to know about the film is that it is being distributed under two distinct film titles. When New Line Cinema purchased the rights for distribution in the United States, over 20 minutes had been cut from the original film, and it was released under the title Creepers. Many horrorphiles and Argento fans have argued that the American version, for want of a better word, “sucks” when compared to the original cut. I personally have never seen the US version and will not go searching for it because from what I’ve read in the forums online, they’ve cut out all the parts that highlight Argento’s trademark directing style for these types of films.
Phenomena focuses on 14-year-old Jennifer Corvino (played by a very young Jennifer Connelly), who is the daughter of a famous American actor. The teenager is newly transferred to an elite boarding school for girls in the Swiss Alps for a year while her father is off shooting his new film in the Philippines. Jennifer has an unusual ability to communicate telepathically with insects and is prone to bouts of dangerous sleepwalking.
At the same time, young girls from the area are being murdered by a serial killer. An entomologist named Dr John McGregor (Donald Pleasence) who lives near Jennifer’s school had been employed by the local police to assist in identifying the time span between the victims. Dr McGregor is the first one to acknowledge Jennifer’s telepathic ability when he notices how the insects in her vicinity seem to become affected by her emotions. By the way, the doctor is paralysed so he requires the use of a wheelchair, and the assistance of his pet chimpanzee named Inga, who he has trained to help him with daily tasks. Soon, Jennifer and Dr McGregor mutually agree to try to find the serial killer using her abilities, as they’ve each lost someone to the killer. While all this is going, Jennifer is being bullied by fellow students and the headmistress of the school, who thinks that the teenager might be suffering from some type of mental breakdown.
Phenomena’s plot is definitely convoluted, uneven and riddled with plot holes but, there are so many other entertaining aspects to the film that contribute positively towards the film and helps it maintain its status in the pantheon of cult horror classics.
Firstly, the performances of Jennifer Connelly and the late Donald Pleasence are one of the strongest elements of the film. Connelly was just 15 years old at the time, and the film was the actress’s first cinematic leading role. The young actress gave a powerfully, multifaceted and sophisticated performance which served as a counterbalance for the weaker plot devices within the film. Pleasence appears to be tapping into his experience from his role as Dr Sam Loomis (Halloween franchise). As Dr McGregor, his role is especially pivotal to Connelly’s character, as the kindly and supportive scientist is the only adult within Jennifer’s proximity that doesn’t think that she is insane. The moment that he himself is murdered by the unseen killer is a particularly climatic one for viewers, as we witness the desperate attempts of his pet chimpanzee Inga trying to break a window after she is locked out of the house by the killer in order to save her master.
There are so many other trademark elements that simply scream Dario Argento’s style. Here he employs the stark contrast of the picturesquely beautiful backdrop of the Swiss countryside as he proceeds to unsettle audiences with his signature quirky, wild twists and executions of the violent sequences of the film accompanied by disconcerting heavy metal musical scores. Oh, and just heads up, you shouldn’t watch this film if you’ve got a severe aversion or phobia to bugs and maggots. There’s lots throughout the film, so I strongly advise that you try not to eat or drink anything while you’re watching.
Moments of poor acting and/or overacting do make the film suffer somewhat, but Connelly and Pleasence do the heavy lifting, at least until the final act. Italian actress Daria Nicolodi and former romantic partner of Argento plays the role of Frau Brückner, the chaperone for the Swiss girls’ boarding school that Jennifer now attends. Her character does a 180 degree-spin into the absolutely insane, which led me to having some serious déjà vu regarding the entire sequence on the lake. It felt very Friday the 13th-ish. I don’t want to spoil it for those of you that haven’t seen the film yet, but trust me, if you have seen any of the earlier Friday the 13th films, you’ll see what I am referring to almost immediately.
Despite the fact that Phenomena is easily considered to be one of Argento’s weaker films, it still shows that the director wasn’t afraid to push boundaries or try something totally bonkers and off the wall with this classic Italian slasher horror. It’s what makes him renowned — his contentious eccentricity that takes the viewers into a dark world where beauty and art can co-exist with horror.
Fun Fact: Dario Argento’s daughter, Fiore Argento plays a small role in the opening sequence of the film as Danish tourist, Vera Brandt, who is seen to be one of the first victims of the serial killer.
Dark Alice’s Score: 6 out of 10
Have you seen Phenomena? What did you think of it? And you can check out more classic horror content below:
Alice has an old soul and a curious mind. I believe that anyone can be a hero and that the good guys should always win! I dislike cruelty to animals and think that they have far superior qualities to humans. My motto is there is no future without the past. I also have a weird penchant for Paranormal TV shows even though the slightest sound makes me jump. I enjoy writing reviews and throwing in fun facts to pique the readers’ curiosity. My ultimate goal in life would be to become a published writer one day. Read More