Finally, a perfect example of truth in advertising.
A couple of days ago, The Chicago Cinema Society released the news that they had recovered a nearly pristine 35MM uncut Italian-language print of Dario Argento’s 1977 masterpiece, Suspiria. According to the TCCS, the print was discovered in a storage area in an old cinema in Italy that was no longer in business. Now, these are the kind of treasure hunting results I can really get behind.
The beloved film has been in the news lately—specifically due to the modern remake by director Luca Guadagnino starring Tilda Swinton that has lots of people preemptively shaking their heads. There is also a highly anticipated Blu-ray restoration of Suspiria set to be released by Synapse Films. Synapse worked with Suspiria‘s visionary cinematographer, Luciano Tovoli who oversaw every last detail of the restoration which is due out sometime this summer.
While the discovery of the 35MM print in Italy is spectacular in its own right, the folks at The Chicago Cinema Society were not prepared to find that the 98-minute, six-reel print was completely uncut meaning it included scenes that had been previously removed for various U.S. and international releases. In perhaps the best news of all regarding the fantastic find, TCCS will be holding special screenings of the print all across the U.S. starting in late July. Here’s a link to a list of theaters showing the recently unearthed, blood-drenched gem. I’ve posted a few short NSFW clips uploaded by The Chicago Cinema Society from their first screening of the film below. You can see more over at TCCS’s YouTube channel.
Previously on Dangerous Minds:
Dario Argento’s horror classic ‘Suspiria’ and the most vicious murder scene ever filmed, 1977
Stunning fluorescent stills from Dario Argento’s horror masterpiece ‘Suspiria’
The Horror: Restaurant based on Dario Argento’s ‘Suspiria’ opens in Tokyo
Watch Keith Emerson and Dario Argento work on the soundtrack to ‘Inferno’ in 1980