DARK GLASSES
Theaters / Shudder
A serial killer is hunting prostitutes in Rome. The latest target is seductive, high-priced escort Diana (Ilenia Pastorelli). A chase through the midnight streets results in an epic car crash, and while Diana survives, her injuries leave the young woman blind. The accident also makes adolescent immigrant Chin (Xinyu Zhang) an orphan, as both his parents are killed in all the automotive carnage.
Dark Glasses is legendary writer-director Dario Argento's best film in almost two decades — which honestly isn't saying all the much considering that his last few efforts include the likes of Dracula 3-D, Mother of Tears, and The Card Player. While unsurprisingly not rising to the classic heights of Tenebrae, Deep Red, or Suspiria, this is still a fast-paced, suitably gruesome giallo that gets the job done. Even if it does play a bit like an "Argento Greatest Hits" compilation album, I still enjoyed the heck out of it, and I'd happily watch the film again.
It's a given that Diana and Chin are going to end up together. It is equally obvious that the killer will not be satisfied with only maiming his chosen victim and will come looking for her as soon the opportunity presents itself. There will be a cadre of charismatic — if still moderately clueless — police detectives on the case, and a variety of increasingly dangerous events will force Diana and Chin into a corner from which "flight" becomes impossible and "fight" is the only option.
The director's talented daughter Asia Argento is on hand as a caring and patient instructor who helps newly blind adults navigate their new reality, and I'm happy to say that she shares instant chemistry with Pastorelli from the first second they appear together. There's also a wonderful canine performance that's a bit different than how Argento typically showcases guide dogs (think the poor blind piano player in Suspiria), and it's refreshing to see a heroic "good boy" given the star treatment by the director for once.
This is definitely a mood piece, as almost everything that happens throughout the quickly paced 86 minutes is relatively preordained. I had the killer pegged early on. But I also think Argento knew that was going to be the case, so at roughly the midway point, he just stops trying to conceal the psychopath's identity. There are also elements of the director's famed "Animal Trilogy" (The Bird with the Crystal Plumage, The Cat o' Nine Tails, and Four Flies on Grey Velvet) littered throughout, almost as if the filmmaker was paying homage to himself instead of blatantly repeating what he did during his heyday.
But the thriller is gorgeously shot by cinematographer Matteo Cocco, crisply edited by Flora Volpelière (Les Misérables), and scored within an inch of its life by composer Arnaud Rebotini (BPM (Beats Per Minute)). Pastorelli and Zhang are surprisingly wonderful together, and I really liked how their friendship matured and evolved as things went along.
But it is Argento's handling of the picture's key set pieces that positively stood out to me the most. The director recaptures some of that nightmarish-dreamscape, stream-of-consciousness insanity that has always been the hallmark of his best works. The assault by the killer on his first unfortunate victim immediately propelled me to the edge of my seat, and the ethereally chilling car chase between this madman and Diana even more so. Best of all is a moonlit chase through a secluded forest and marsh that truly annihilated me, a mad rush to apparent freedom through a seemingly empty field that was thrillingly suspenseful.
There is plenty of gore and even more blood, as it's not like Argento was ever going to skimp on either. But none of it feels gratuitous, as almost all of the nasty stuff quite nicely fits the moment in which it is delivered. Dark Glasses is a satisfying return to form for the director, and this nifty little retro Giallo slasher is a tasty October treat worth savoring.