Inferno - Discuss the film within The Three Mothers Trilogy
 

I suspect most people would disagree but I prefer Inferno to Suspiria - at least entertainment-wise but where do you see it fitting within the Three Mothers Trilogy and can it even be called a trilogy?

I agree. Inferno is the better film, though that opening sequence from Suspiria is pretty much unstoppable. Inferno is Dario's masterpiece. It's even more amazing considering how sick he was during production. I'd rank the three like this:

Inferno
Suspiria
Mother of Tears

MOT is not far behind btw! I'm sure many will disagree with me there. To me, it's only flaw is budgetary (and a couple instances of admittedly goofy dialog). I don't understand the hate this film gets in some circles.

I think that the problem with Mother Of Tears was that the fans expected something special in the vein of Suspiria or Inferno. What they eventually got was something that may have worked as a stand alone film (with a few tweaks here and there) but not in the context of the trilogy. it probably also didn't help that audiences in Italy allegedyl laughed throughout the film.

My own opinion is that Suspiria is the best film in the trilogy, with Inferno not far behind. Suspiria had a look about it and though the story, of what there is, is very simple, it draws me in from the beginning.

Inferno is a classic that, to me, is the crossroad between the giallo and his 'horror' period. There is a lot less use of light, but the stronger story and setpieces of eerie tension carry it through.

i agree that inferno is the best of the trilogy, just edging out suspiria. mother of tears unfortunately came 15 years too late, by the time the film was made darios movies were in a steep state of decline and he no longer had the ability to bring that intangible factor that made the first 2 so special. it probably should still be owned to complete the trilogy but it simply cannot hold its own next to them

The problem was that people expected him to make the exact same film he made 30 years ago and were unwilling or unable to accept that he's changed as an artist in that time. Why would making a film like Suspiria or Inferno (both very different films themselves) be interesting to him now? He's already done that. His goal with MOT was to bring the story into the real world and I think he succeeded. I'd argue that the long steadicam shot following Sarah's entrance into Mater Lacrimarum's dwelling, in and out of the shadows and through hints of light, shows that Argento is perfectly capable of duplicating his mid-late 70's style any time he wants to. But he doesn't want to. For that I think he should be applauded. If I want to watch Suspiria or Inferno, I'll pop one of them in. I'm happy to have something different. As to the audience laughing at it, well so be it. That's the way it goes with modern cinema audiences. Do you think a screening of Suspiria or Inferno today would be greeted any differently? I don't.

My favorite part of Inferno: the double murder accompanied by Verdi's Va Pensiero. Absolutely stunning work. For me, this sequence is the highlight of the trilogy.

Absolutely agree on the Verdi sequence - incredible - a moment unique in horror film-making.

After having seen a screening of Suspiria last year, I can safely say that no-one in that audience laughed. What I did hear as I was leaving was "there was no story" being said quite a lot by a modern audience.

Watching Mother Of Tears, you can see scenes where Dario has recreated shots from Suspiria and Inferno. The shot of Jessica Harper approaching the witches coven at the end of Suspiria is recreated with Asia in the tunnels at the end of MOT.

While I agree that it was right not to return to that 70's style of his movies, there was an illusive spark missing from MOT that it so badly needed. Whether this was due to budget, writing or studio intervention, I don't know, but it did affect the outcome and it has been something that has been sadly missing from Dario's work in recent years.

I still argue that this movie would have fared better if it had not been part of the trilogy.

Mother of Tears was enough evidence for me that Argento should bow out gracefully after inflicting such a film on the public.

The Card Player was a steep decline although it did have some good elements but Do You Like Hitchcock was appalling and I thought he couldn't get any worse until I saw MOT.

Inferno could be the highpoint of his career.

Suspiria does have some great moments but Inferno is relentless and is one highpoint after another.

I see all 3 films as separate entities and there is very little to connect them and all can be viewed without any knowledge of the others

Another thread mentioned a cut VHS .
I had the CBS FOX VHS which was uncut as was my recording from Sky Movies but is the cut tape a "widescreen" version that I had forgotten all about?

Fox Video released a VHS in Britain in the early 90's which was cut. I think the BBFC website quoted 20 seconds. The release was in widescreen.

I'm assuming that this is the one you referring too.l

its refreshing to hear that many other people prefer inferno over suspiria, the general consensus has always been that suspiria is the better film but it never was for me, suspiria is a classic but in my opinion inferno has always been argentos masterpiece, there is something that bit better than the rest, the whole film flows beautifully from beginning to end