From Brilliance to the Nadir and Back Again

Dario Argento's third and final entry into the Three Mothers Trilogy has finally concluded with the release of, the appropriately(if slightly uninspired), The Third Mother. For the uninitiated, Dario Argento is something of a deity in horror cinema. He burst onto the italian cinema scene with his inventive and wildly imaginative giallo films but really cemented his legacy with Suspiria, the first in the Three Mothers trilogy. For horror afficianados, Suspiria carries the same weight as other horror classics such as The Texas Chainsaw Massacre, Halloween, The Exorcist, and The Evil Dead that arrived in the post-60's era of horror movies. The film follows American ballet dancer Suzy Banion as she arrives at a German ballet school and encounters a coven of witches behind the many gruesome and outlandish murders shown throughout the movie. Highly stylized with its nightmarish swath of primary colors bathing the screen and its tremendously effective soundtrack, Suspiria is a clinic on bringing surreality of nightmare to the silver screen. Argento followed shortly after with the release of Inferno, the second part of the trilogy, with mixed feelings on the fan side. While still showing flashes of brilliance, many saw it as a step down from Suspiria in nearly every aspect, and they would be correct. This was akin to following Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band with Phish, suffice to say anybody would be let down. Argento would finish out the decade with Opera. While being very entertaining, if sometimes wildly inconsistent(murder scenes are accompanied by Iron Maiden wailing!), it did mark the end of Argento's brilliant streak of horror films. The films that followed ranged from tepid to downright awful.

And now, after over twenty years of anticipation, Argento finally finished his beloved trilogy, but with what results? Suffice to say, when held next to Suspiria the Third Mother feels woefully inadequate. Although, in and of itself, it does fare better than Inferno did but for very different reasons. For reasons not entirely known, Argento ditched the nightmare aesthetic of the previous two entries for a tone that evokes a true sense of evil not really found in his other movies. The film revolves around Sarah(played by Argento's daughter, Asia) and her adventure in bringing down the titular witch. All the while Sarah tries to avenge her mother's death and dispose of the Third Mother once and for all, she has to deal with a Rome that's on the brink of madness. The streets run rampant with suicide, murder, and wholesale carnage. All the while, the witch's followers chase Sarah all around the country killing anyone they come across. Suffice to say, with it's satanic tone and gnostic imagery the movie comes across as far more evil and sinister than any other film Argento has made. Although while there's a heaping helping of baby-killing evil, there's very little suspense or tension to speak of. While not a true return to form for Argento, it is an extremely enjoyable shocker that is a welcome addition to his pantheon of horror.

Now, I suppose is the time for the real crux of writing this. How is it that an extremely talented filmmaker can suddenly veer from the brilliance of Suspiria to the ho-hum Sleepless? And it's not just Argento, you can count in Francis Ford Coppola(from The Godfather to Jack), Brian De Palma(from The Untouchables to Mission to Mars), and John Carpenter(The Thing to Ghosts of Mars), just to name a few. It's not like aging athletes whose bodies breakdown and can no longer attain their previous glory. Do the creative juices stop flowing? Even if they do, the films lack the technicality and skill previously showcased in their better films. Do many filmmakers just have so many stories to tell and after that they just don't have the motivation to infuse the less personal movies with the same flourish and dedication that they normally would? We may never know because for the filmmakers themselves this would seem a pretty intangible concept and I, for one, sure as hell am not going to ask John Carpenter about the creative process behind Escape From L.A. It begs to question, is Sofia Coppola walking down a similar path? While Marie Antoinette was no Waterloo, it lacked the same verve and vitality as her previous works. But then again, why should I care? My lack of enthusiasm for Marie Antoinette doesn't detract from my enjoyment of Lost in Translation nor will the image of Snake Plisskin catching a gnarly wave take anything away from my immense love for The Thing. It's far more prudent to enjoy the movies you love and look back on them fondly and with appropriate reverence. For the sheer amount of work and passion that these filmmakers pour into their works, it's usually better just to cut them a break on their crappy movie and enjoy what you enjoy. This same principle extends to watching movies in general, but I suppose I should leave that for another discussion.