Inferno (1980)

Directed by Dario Argento. Starring Leigh McCloskey, Irene Miracle, Eleonora Giorgi, Sacha Pitoëff, Veronica Lazar, Gabriele Lavia, Alida Valli, Feodor Chaliapin Jr., Leopoldo Mastelloni, Ania Pieroni. [R]

Surreal horror film has student McCloskey answering his sister’s plea for a visit, getting entangled in a series of bizarre murders presumably carried out by the covens of a trio of witches known as the Three Mothers. High on style and low on coherency, writer/director Argento struggles to create a compelling clothesline for all the hallucinatory sights and situations. Continues the tradition of his most fruitful period—confusing plotting, weak continuity, scarce characterizations, and poor dubbing, but it still contains a few transfixing set pieces, and lots of the glaring colors and lurid bloodletting he’s best remembered for. Only really recommended for diehard fans of the maestro and the genre. Due to Argento being seriously ill during the shoot, some of the direction was handled by fellow horror notable, Mario Bava. Middle chapter in the supernatural horror trilogy dubbed “The Three Mothers” (preceded by Suspiria and followed by The Mother of Tears).

61/100