MovieChat Forums > Suspiria (2018) Discussion > 3 reasons why this will not work

3 reasons why this will not work

posted 12 years ago by Zeego
21 replies | jump to latest

Here are my 3 reasons why a modern Hollywood remake of Suspiria will not work:

1. The colors. Part of what makes the original so iconic is its striking red/blue color scheme. However, almost all Hollywood horror movies these days are grey and washed-out looking. The executives will probably want this movie to follow the same trend. This will heavily stifle the movie's impact.

2. The music. Goblin's synthesizer score added to the surreal atmosphere of the original. The current trend in movie soundtracks seems to be bland orchestral scores. Violins just don't match the tone of the movie.

(UPDATE: I just found out that Steve Jablonsky will be doing the score. This pretty much confirms that it will be violins.)

3. The relevance. The Italian "giallo" subgenre was in its heyday when Suspiria was made. That movie will always represent the high point of a then-thriving subgenre. But as far as I can see, there is no equivalent trend in modern American horror. With a few notable exceptions, most American horror films of the last ten years have either been no-budget gorefests, or watered-down studio films. I cannot think of a way to update Suspiria to a modern context without completely diminishing its meaning.

Feel free to agree or disagree with my thoughts.

Dark? You don't know dark. Let me tell you more dark sh*t from Animorphs.

[–] UpperEastSider 12 years ago

What if a grey/white color scheme worked for this one?

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[–] Zeego 12 years ago

That might work, but I don't see how. Could you please explain?

Dark? You don't know dark. Let me tell you more dark sh*t from Animorphs.

[–] UpperEastSider 12 years ago

Well, it would work in the same way that the red/blue color scheme worked in the original.

You become like the 5 people you spend the most time with. Choose carefully.

[–] Zeego 12 years ago

I guess it could work, but it would work by creating the opposite effect.

Dark? You don't know dark. Let me tell you more dark sh*t from Animorphs.

[–] Doctor_Mabuse1 12 years ago

Does no one understand that this is to be a NEW VERSION of the story and not the exact same movie with precisely the same color and production design?

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[–] alloydclaims 9 years ago

"a NEW VERSION of the story..." ok, but then WHY BOTHER EVEN CALLING IT SUSPIRIA??? why ? ill tell you why. its a trend in hollywood to take a hit movie title with a ready made fan base, fart out some script, and just bank on the fact that the old fans will waste their money on it. its hideous. every *beep* remake except for a couple , have been truly awful. just call it something else. dont ruin the legacy of the greatest italian horror movie ever made.

[–] Freedomisanillusion 11 years ago

Suspiria isn't a giallo. It's a supernatural horror. The gialli are the films like Bird With the Crystal Plumage or Tenebre, or most famously, Deep Red.

[–] hey_treacle 11 years ago

very true Suspiria is a supernatural horror and no more a giallo than Inferno (i.e not at all). A remake would still be an awful idea mainly as its not that story that's great in the film its the entire stylistic devices and the camerawork. The best one could do would be copy it, whats the sense in that?

[–] Stay_away_from_the_Metropol 8 years ago

Suspiria plays like a giallo but focuses on supernatural elements rather than typical human killers, made by one of the masters of giallo, in the heyday of giallo. The fact that it plays like the perfect giallo but is stylized like a psychedelic horror film is exactly what makes it so special. I would never say "it's not giallo". It's not TRADITIONAL giallo, but it has all the elements of giallo. It is one of the only effective supernatural giallo horror films (Argento's next films which attempted to do the same things didn't work nearly as well in my opinion... Inferno and Phenomena).

[–] pc_buttspasm 8 years ago

It doesn't play like a traditional giallo. It plays like a late '70s Dario Argento movie. Traditional giallo, as seen in 1960s movies by directors like Mario Bava and Umberto Lenzi, bear no resemblance at all to Suspiria. Most '70s giallo, e.g. those made by Sergio Martino or Lucio Fulci (or even the Animal Trilogy by Argento) also don's resemble Suspiria.

It's not until Deep Red in 1975, after the giallo boom is basically over, that Argento started working towards the style of Suspiria. He maintained this style for Inferno, but when he came to Tenebre he shifted to a radically different style again.

[–] Slaterson420 9 years ago

Here are my 3 reasons why a modern Hollywood remake of Suspiria will not work

Well the good news is that it's no longer a Hollywood production nor is the director attached still American. It's now an Italian production with an Italian filmmaker at the helm. Are you more open minded to it now?

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[–] Zeego 9 years ago

I'm slightly more open-minded, but I'm still not sure if a modern-day remake in general will work.

[–] Slaterson420 9 years ago

Well Luca Guadagnino was one of the producers back when David Gordon Green was supposed to direct it, and Green left and Guadagnino took over as director because of creative differences. Now what do you think the creative differences between Green (who's made a lot of American commercial films) and Guadagnino (an arthouse filmmaker) would be? I bet Green would have made it more conventional, focused on plot more, Americanize it, when Guadagnino probably understands it better. One of his films on Rotten Tomatoes has the critical consensus of "It stumbles into melodrama, but I Am Love backs up its flamboyance with tremendous visual style and a marvelous central performance from Tilda Swinton." That sounds ideal for somebody to remake Suspiria.

100 Greatest Action Movies - http://www.imdb.com/list/ls000708268/

[–] megaruda 9 years ago

I think it would be a huge comercial success if done well, there are simply no new original movies that would bring something similar to what suspiria brought, it was just so creative and free, real art, colorful, bizarre, fantastic, bloody, charming. I would love a remake that represents that, if they go with gray. *beep* that *beep* I aint paying for that.

[–] 9 years ago

[deleted]

[–] jody_curvey 9 years ago

@Zeego. I agree on all accounts. Suspiria shouldn't be remade. It's a classic just like Demons (1985). But, unlike Suspiria, Demons could me remade into an excellent film if some of the original production crew and a few cast members return. Otherwise, it'll be atrocious.

[–] FabioPirovano 9 years ago

I agree with you, all the points are right

this bunch of pretentious will sink

"To photograph: it is to put on the same line of sight the head, the eye and the heart."HCB

[–] bababear 8 years ago

We all need to get out of the house more often. I can't help noticing that this discussion has gone on for three years, through one announced remake after another.

Here's the cold hard reality of it. The remake will or will not be made. If made, it may or may not suck.

But it alarms me that people who talk about what the produces will "do to" SUSPIRIA as I realize that so many of these people can drive, vote, and reproduce their own kind. Nobody can "do anything to" SUSPIRIA. When Argento called Cut and Print at the end of filming, that was that.

Think about all the lame remakes that have come into theaters (POINT BREAK; RED DAWN; POLTERGEIST; FOOTLOOSE; and especially GHOSTBUSTERS) that have come and gone, often almost unnoticed.

[–] pajamawolfie 8 years ago

I see what you're saying. I'm just here because I don't know anyone who like talking about movies. I'm not worried about what they'll do to the remake, as long as Argento doesn't pull a Ridley Scott or George Lucas and change up his awesome movie, I won't be mad. It's his right, but I admit it'd royally tick me off.

As for lame-o remakes, it's true what they say: money talks and b.s. walks. Every now and then I find one I like, but I can separated them in my mind from the originals (like how Nic Cage's Wicker Man is unintentionally hilarious, while the original is a straight-up classic.) Or all those sequels I pretend never happened.

And trust me: you don't want me to reproduce. LOL

There is no objective reality... and that's Sucker Punch