You make a fair point but I for one don't want to see Argento make something "tacky, tasteless and laughable". As cult film fans I think most of us will still see it with an open mind anyway though.

Give me this over the current trend for teeny bloodless hampire films anyday!;)

Except with all his films up until (and including imo) opera. Argento set a gold standard as far as italian genre movies were concerned. They were operatic, well constructed classics that held their own against much bigger productions, if this were lugi cozzi's Dracula we would probably be cheering but the fans expect a lot more from argento than sadly he seems able to deliver lately.

I agree with you on that front, Argento has been one of my heroes for his pushing of boundaries and individuality, since I was introdeced to him by a friend when I was a teenager I have been in awe with his work, Im in my forties now and was rewatching Deep Red last night, he just does not seem to lose his magicical hold over me, same with Fulci. Right now whilst I type this I am listening to Goblin 'live' so he has broadended my horizons in many other areas not just film. It has been heartbreaking at times to see his work go down hill, but I have accepted that he is past his best and take whatever I can from his work now. More dissapointing than anything for me is the topic 'Dracula', its been done to death and he could of developed his own 'monster' or theme so that he would not be bench marked by so many against past representations. I am not saying I want something laughable or tacky from Argento, I meant we all love films that cover those areas thats why were on this forum, we embrace a diverse range of films. Lets hope we have at some point a swan song from him, its the least the maestro deserves eh?

I'll give a shot! Although I did frown when I recognized Rutger Hauer. He's a bit like Steven Seagal.......Way past his prime and reduced to making anything for a quick buck!

Have you seen Hobo With A Shotgun. One of his most recent films but I'd say one of his very best!

I never thought I'd see an Argento fan welcoming the release of one of his films described as that! If the trailer is representative – and I've learned never to trust trailers – it looks barrel-scrapingly awful and a massive step below the likes of Deep Red, Suspiria, The Bird with the Crystal Plumage and all the other films where he fused high art with popular entertainment.

Even so, I will try and see it with an open mind.

If you read my post I said that we are fans of films of that ilk, not fans of argento's film/s being like that! I said we embrace these types of films , that do not fit into mainstream tastes, thats why we are on this forum. I also said it breaks my heart to watch him slide away in terms of creativity, that does not sound like a fan who is accepting the way he is going but I will still try and draw anything I can from it and also give it a go. If it comes across that way then it wasnt meant to! :doh: Lets hope he can turn his hand to one more magical film. I would think he has a quite solid fanbase that will not grow massively no matter what he turns out, so why not go back to basics and make a retro giallo with trademark lighting, a good twist and some rollercoaster camerwork. Bread and butter but a crowd pleaser Im sure.:pop2:

I see what you mean now, but your initial post mentioned Argento and crappy B-movies. Yes, most of us love both, but it's strange to see them mentioned in the same breath!

Like you, I think it's extremely sad to see what happened to Argento and how the artistic flair and magnificent camerawork which were features of his earlier films have all but disappeared.

heh, sorry about the confusion! Need to structure my paragraphs a bit better eh? I agree, its not just Argento though is it? Ive read a few times on this site about how Fulci, Romero, Hooper, Carpenter, Corman all lost or have lost their way! Surely too may geniuses to be a coincidence? In certain areas creativity can grow with age but with horror film directors it seems to diminish. Shame. Hence we seem to live in the past with our love of movies eh? Can anyone name any good upcoming or present good directors who might have that special gene that I may not of heard of?