Tenebre (1982)

Director:

Dario Argento

Writer:

Dario Argento (writer)

Release Date:

February 1987 (USA)

Genre:

Horror | Mystery | Thriller

Tagline:

Terror Beyond Belief

Plot:

An American writer in Rome is stalked by a serial killer bent on harassing him while killing all people associated with his work on his latest book.

Plot Keywords:

Murder | Death | Serial Killer | Police | Author

Cast

Anthony Franciosa	...	Peter Neal
Christian Borromeo	...	Gianni
Mirella D'Angelo	...	Tilde
Veronica Lario	...	Jane McKerrow
Ania Pieroni	...	Elsa Manni
Eva Robin's	...	Girl on Beach (as Eva Robins)
Carola Stagnaro	...	Detective Altieri
John Steiner	...	Christiano Berti
Lara Wendel	...	Maria Alboretto
John Saxon	...	Bullmer
Daria Nicolodi	...	Anne
Giuliano Gemma	...	Detective Germani
Isabella Amadeo	...	Bullmer's secretary
Mirella Banti	...	Marion
Ennio Girolami	...	Department Store Manager (as Enio Girolami)

Also Known As:

Sotto gli occhi dell'assassino
Tenebrae
Under the Eyes of the Assassin
Unsane (USA)

Runtime:

110 min | USA:91 min (edited version) | 101 min (director's cut)

Country:

Italy

Language:

Italian

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Australia:M | New Zealand:R16 | West Germany:18 (cut) | Sweden:(Banned) | Italy:T (edited TV version) | Argentina:X (original rating) | Argentina:18 (re-rating) | Canada:16+ (Quebec) | Sweden:15 | Australia:R | Canada:R | France:-16 | Germany:16 (cut version: 2002) | Italy:VM18 | Spain:18 | UK:18 | USA:R | USA:Unrated (director's cut) | West Germany:(Banned) | Netherlands:12 (DVD rating) | Iceland:(Banned) | Finland:K-18 (2005) (uncut) | Finland:K-18 (1988) (cut) | Germany:BPjM Restricted

Filming Locations:

Incir De Paolis Studios, Rome, Lazio, Italy

Company:

Sigma Cinematografica Roma

Trivia:

The word 'Tenebre' is a Latin/Italian term meaning darkness or shadows.

Goofs:

Revealing mistakes: During the pre-credit sequence where the killer is reading the book. On long shots the writing is in Italian, but on the close up shots, its in English.

Quotes:

[first lines, read from Peter Neal's "Tenebrae"]
Narrator: "The impulse had become irresistible. There was only one answer to the fury that tortured him. And so he committed his first act of murder. He had broken the most deep-rooted taboo, and found not guilt, not anxiety or fear, but freedom. Any humiliation which stood in his way could be swept aside by the simple act of annihilation: Murder."

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Kill Bill: Vol. 1 (2003)

Soundtrack:

Take Me Tonight

The essence of giallo

The Story: An American bestseller-author comes to Rome to promote his new book, "Tenebrae". Shortly before he arrives in Fiumicino, a murder series starts, young girls are slashed with an old rasor blade - their mouths stuffed with pages of "Tenebrae".

Police starts investigation (Giuliano "I only drink on duty" Gemma), with little luck - murdering continues. In fact, hardly anybody survives - but the characters don't die in vain: All murders are directed excellent - especially the one with the current Mrs. Silvio Berlusconi, Veronica Lario, who plays "painting" Jane.

Tenebre is pure giallo. A cold movie, shot almost entirely in daylight, in E.U.R. - a district in the south of Rome; modernistic, cool - and very stylish.

There are about 10 very well directed, esthetic murder scenes, which manage to fit a logical plot, well, at least for giallo-standards.

11 black gloves out of 10 - Tenebre is a must see, if you want to explore the Genre Giallo - start nowhere but here. And two thumbs up for the great ABE DVD Version!