Trauma (1993)
Director: Dario Argento
Movie review
From Time Out Film Guide
This rarely seen gorefest from Italian horror director Dario Argento failed to get a UK cinema release, despite containing all the best and worst elements of his uncompromising style. David Parsons (Rydell) is a journalist who takes young anorexic Aura Petrescu (Argento) under his wing after her parents are apparently murdered by a serial killer wielding a decapitating machine. As the unstable Aura and David become closer, a pattern to the killings emerges. Argento's first American backed film pays homage to Psycho, yet he conspicuously lacks Hitchcock's ability to direct actors - there isn't a half decent performance to be found here, and his own daughter in the female lead is particularly awful. Also, a barely credible plot and uneven pacing don't help. Yet Argento's occasionally brilliant camerawork and the evident glee with which he sets about the decapitation scenes make this just about worthwhile.Author: TH
Cast & crew
Director: Dario Argento
Producer: Dario Argento
Cast: Asia Argento, Christopher Rydell, Frederic Forrest, James Russo, Laura Johnson, Piper Laurie, Brad Dourif, Hope Alexander-Willis full cast
Genre(s): Horror
Duration: 105 mins
Most popular on this site
Top Stories
A Bond a day: No. 11 'Moonraker'
Time Out revisits the 21 Bond movies day by day to celebrate the release of 'Quantum of Solace'
The essential guide to the London Film Festival
Get the inside track on the all the films and events you'll want to catch at the Times BFI 52nd London Film Festival
Terence Davies: interview
Wally Hammond talks to visionary British director Terence Davies about his deeply personal and long-awaited new documentary ‘Of Time and the City’
W.
Read our early review of Oliver Stone's George W Bush biopic, 'W.', playing at this year's London Film Festival
Ten friendly ghost movies
To celebrate the release of 'Ghost Town' in which Ricky Gervais plays a New York dentist who can see dead people, Time Out counts down ten great friendly ghost movies.







What do you think?
Post your review now