Opera — Opera ( UHD/ Blu Ray)
Opera was the tenth film by Dario Argento. The late 80’s opera house set picture blends murder mystery, euro drama, eerier stalking through lavish corridors, and of course, often brutally creative murder. The film has a soundtrack that blends ornate & soaring classical music, with throbbing heavy metal. Here from Severin- is a three-disc UHD and Blu-ray release of the film- featuring a new 4k scan, two versions of the film, and over eight hours of extras.
Opera (aka Terror At The Opera) was from the year 1987- been filmed between Opera house Teatro alla Scala in Milan and in a studio near Rome. It was of course directed by Dario Argento, who co-wrote the film with Franco Ferrini (Once Upon a Time in America, Phenomena, Demons).
The film is set around a stage effects-heavy and raven-bound production of Macbeth by short bleach-blond-haired Marco (Ian Charleson). The film opens in the opera house during rehearsals with shots of cawing & blinking ravens, and the lead female opera singer complaining about working with the birds- she storms out of the building to be promptly knocked down. So, in is called Betty (Cristina Marsillach)- a young and uncertain of herself self-singer.
As the film unfolds, a black-masked ‘n’ black-gloved killer is taking out friends and colleagues of Betty- but it gets even more terrifying and personal, as when the killer carries out each murder, he ties the young singer up, placing needles under her eyes.
Brought into the mix we get a selection of characters/ murder suspects- taking in Betty’s friend/ assistant Mira (Daria Nicolodi), Betty’s softly spoken boyfriend Stefano(William McNamara), stern, stubbily bearded and suit-wearing cop Inspector Alan Santini (Urbano Barberini).
As you’d hope/ expect from an Argento film we get a good selection of creative and well-filmed death’s/ murders- starting with hooking in the back of the neck slamming, through the mouth/ jaw stabbing and throat cutting with a large pair of scissors, shot in the eye though a peephole, and more brutal stabbings.
The film has a good enough sense of mystery/suspense from guessing who the killer is. We get a blend of suspenseful/at-point eerier stalking, intense/brutal murder footage, and rather flatly English-dubbed drama. I’ve always thought Oprea is one of Argento's just ok films. It came two years after Phenomena, which was full of quirky macabre charm, with Donald Pleasence as a Scottish etymologist with a chimp sidekick, who helps out a US teen with psychic power. After this Oprea just felt a bit too safe/ formal- been really an updated, gorier version of Phantom Of The Oprea, and rather controversially, I enjoy his official 1998 remake of the film, more than the film to hand.
Moving onto this new three-disc set, and we are presented with a new 4k scan of the film, this is full of depth & clarity, looking well balanced and crisp throughout.
The first disc is the UHD- taking in two versions of the film, the director's cut and the US cut. Also included are three new commentary tracks (more on those in a moment), and trailers.
Disc two is the first Blu-ray, taking in once again -the director's cut and the US cut. We get the three commentary tracks on the director’s cut- the first is with actresses Cristina Marsillach and Ángel Sala, Head Of Programming At The Sitges Film Festival. The second is with Alan Jones, Author Of Profondo Argento, and Kim Newman, Author Of Anno Dracula. And the third is with Mondo Digital's Nathaniel Thompson and Troy Howarth, Author Of Murder By Design: The Unsane Cinema Of Dario Argento. I played the third of these, which, as you expect with these two track pros, is excellent. They start by talking about how the film to hand has similar DNA/ feel to the director's most recent picture Dark Glasses (2022). We find out that Vanessa Redgrave was due to play the role of the opera singer who gets knocked over-, but this never happened, as when she got to Italy for the filming, she was requesting more money, Dario refused, so it never happened. They talk about how it was one of the director's more problematic shoots, with some saying it’s a very cold film, though from the technical point of view it’s a masterpiece. We find out that Daria Nicolodi was fearful of her life during the filming, as she generally thought Dario wanted to kill her for real on set. They discuss how the film was very much of a watershed, with the tone & feel of the director's work shifting after this point. They talk about Argento’s attempts at making a real opera. Later on, they discuss how the film ties into the Aids pandemic, with a cold and paranoid tone, with many of the characters not wanting to get close to each other. We find out the film had a fifteen-week shoot, with the pair declaring it has a very timeless quality. They talk about how the plot doesn’t really stand up to logic, and more.
On the second disc we get the following filmed interviews: The Eyes And The Needles (22.42) with Co-Writer/Director/Producer Dario Argento. Arias Of Death (37.24) with Screenwriter Franco Ferrini. The Eyes Of Oprea (19.16) with Actress Cristina Marsillach.
On the third disc we have the 1.85:1 Director's Cut, along with the three commentary tracks. On top of this, we get even more new interviews- Don't Close Your Eyes (37.46) with Film Historian Fabrizio Spurio. The Opera And Mr. Jones (12.42) with Alan Jones, Author Of Profondo Argento. With the disc being finished off with two archive extras- Conducting Dario Argento’s Opera (35.46) Featuring Interviews With Dario Argento, Director Of Photography Ronnie Taylor, Actors Daria Nicolodi, Urbano Barberini, FX Artist Sergio Stivaletti And Soundtrack Composer Claudio Simonetti. And Terror At The Opera (24.36) Q&A With Dario Argento, Franco Ferrini And Lamberto Bava At Cinema Farnese.
Once again, with this three-disc set Severin has presented us with the definitive version of this late 80’s Dario Argento film. With it taking in a great new 4k scan, and a truly bulging selection of extras. If you enjoy euro horror, or of course Mr Argento’s 80’s output- this is a must have release!.