Charming and brutal

Each character in this movie — down to the smallest one — is an individual rather than a type, prone to spontaneous changes of mood and sometimes amusing outbursts of pettiness or ill humor.

I think this is a new genre that they're all sort of working their way through it and haven't got all the kinks worked out yet but it's a genre that works for me.

There are moments in this movie where the great movie it could've been peek out... They're fleeting, here, but they're worth savoring, and they happen often enough to make it worth your while.

After the disappointments in America that were 'The Black Cat' episode of the omnibus film 'Two Evil Eyes' (1990) and 'Trauma' (1993), Dario Argento made 'The Stendahl Syndrome' back on familiar Italian soil. He was rewarded with what became his highest grossing film in his homeland.As Anna walks through the streets of Florence, the film is reminiscent of Roberto Rossellini's 'Voyage to Italy' (1954). Statues like those that overwhelmed Ingrid Bergman smother Anna with the cultural past. Entering the 'Galleria degli Uffizi' she is immediately entranced by the power of the fresco; Bruegel's 'Landscape with the Fall of Icarus' causes Anna to faint and split her lip (an image recalled from 'Trauma,' which on some levels is a less sophisticated 'Stendahl…'). We know nothing about her, or why she has gone there, other than she seems to be looking for somebody, and someone is watching her.Outside the museum Alfredo introduces himself by returning her bag. Anna is still stunned and Alfredo, trying to make talk states, "Great works of art have great power." Anna escapes into a taxi, and rolling up of the taxi's window a reflection superimposes his face onto hers indicating that the two will become intricately bound.Finding her way back to her Hotel (the name is on the key), she discovers her name is Anna Manni a Police Detective from Rome. Finding sleeping pills with a prescription stating 'to help relax and go to sleep,' she takes the tablets and rests. Does she fall asleep? A copy of Rembrandt's 'The Night Watch' (1642), hangs on the wall and seemingly comes alive with Anna stepping into it; she has entered a crime scene. Inspector Moretti tells her that there is another victim of a serial rapist who operates in Rome and Florence, and has stepped up to murder. Inspector Moretti wants Anna to go to Florence and liaise with the authorities there. She steps back into her room, and Alfredo is there. He rapes Anna, cutting her lip with a razor blade making it bleed as it did in the 'Galleria.' She blacks out and awakens in a car; Alfredo is raping a woman on the seat next to her. Anna escapes the car, and the 'Bystander Effect' materialises as she runs bleeding down the street and ghostly faces passively gaze out on her from the surrounding windows.This extraordinary opening with dream like logic tells us who Anna is, why she was in Florence, as well as introducing the crimes to be investigated and the hurdles Anna will have to overcome. On waking in hospital, Anna cuts her hair and on the train back to Rome develops a taste for self-harm, deliberately cutting her hand. Psychologist Dr. Cavanna diagnosis her with Stendhal Syndrome; conveniently situated on his desk is Stendhal's 'The Red and the Black'. Without giving too much away, Argento's favourite alternate killer theory enters the story. And yet shortly after the 'fresco chaos' overwhelms Anna, and the narrative takes a discordant shift. The film takes a turn for the Brian DePalma, with Anna donning a blonde wig, and nothing is quite as it seems. The film ends on a chilling note with disturbing image that suggest Anna's conflicted relationship with the hostile frescos that have repeatedly challenged her concept of reality. Stendhal Syndrome is a real syndrome, which was first diagnosed in 1982. Graziella Magherini's book, 'La Sindrome di Stendhal' (1993) forms the basis of the film, which is an Argento film that has none of his characteristic long takes or tracking shots; the film also lacks his tell tale set pieces. One of the things that work best in the film is the reuniting of Argento with Morricone, who delivers a score reminiscent of 'Vertigo', whilst still being highly original in its own right. The score which follows the same tune played either forward or backward, is beautifully hypnotic yet strangely disturbing.

A fairly middling-to-good thriller from Dario Argento; not up there with the best of his, but worth watching anyway, even if just for the stylish photography and twisting character study of madness. It's a very brutal film, too - not particularly gory, but unflinchingly violent nonetheless. Asia Argento is this film's lead, and she has both her good points and bad. Physically, she is able to convincingly look flaky and neurotic, but it has to be said she isn't much of an actress. She's capable, yes, but this is a demanding role and she doesn't quite convince in it. On the other hand, the villain of the piece, Thomas Kretschmann, goes frighteningly over the top as a rapist/psychopath, sweating profusely while spinning a razor blade in his mouth.However, I felt more for Marco Leonardi's supporting character than I did for Asia. He's an obviously doomed, hopelessly lovestruck cop, Asia's previous boyfriend who doesn't have a chance but who keeps coming back, rejection after rejection. You have to admire his persistence. The film is in typical giallo territory - nice locations, a serial killer brutalising women, a slow police investigation, a tormented lead - and the idea of the Stendhal Syndrome of the title is both original and interesting, in that it really exists. Argento enjoys having us transported into the world of pictures (although unfortunately this reminded me of King's disappointing novel, Rose Madder), where things go really weird.There are a couple of nasty rape sequences which are difficult to watch, but the gore isn't too bad. One scene has our killer taking a massive beating and getting drenched in blood, which is pretty impressive. The expected twist ending is well-handled, yet rings a bit hollow. Overall, THE STENDHAL SYNDROME is a passable thriller, with some nice suspense, excellent scenes of psychological insanity and another good score from Ennio Morricone, but is a bit too long and both very cold and very distant.

This is definitely Dario Argento's sickest movie yet, and definitely most depraved, but to be honest I just didn't feel this movie at all and not in my opinion one of Dario Argento's finest moments and further proved that he started losing his creative touch after the 1980's and what was he thinking casting his own daughter in this role. I'm not saying that Asia Argento was bad or anything in fact she played the role really well, it's just the fact that the things that happen to her in this, like getting graphically raped was unsettling and way too stylized in my opinion.The first half of the movie was okay, and we get some of Argento's classic touches with a plot cantering around a serial rapist/killer, and the main female character drifting off into a fantasy world when she sees paintings, which were beautifully shot, but then falls completely apart in the second half where it just failed to hold my interest once the killer was gone, and thrown in a completely unbelievable stupid twist ending that I saw coming a mile off.Asia Argento as I said before plays her role strongly and carry the entire film really well and Thomas Kretschmann (Alfredo) is chilling as the handsome-looking psycho, and really unsettling at the same time.All in all this just wasn't my cup of tea.

Dario Argent is one of the finest directors of horror worldwide and has many fine films under his belt. Unfortunately The Stendhal Syndrome is not one of them. The 90's are seen as a weak era for Argento, personally I have only seen this and The Phantom of the Opera from this time, and I actually enjoyed the widely lambasted Phantom. Phantom, although far from perfect, was still an enjoyable movie with plenty of whacked out Argento touches. The Stendhal Syndrome, starring Dario's daughter Asia, has a promising story that ultimately goes nowhere, and with horrible CGI effects and slow pacing the movie fizzles out into nothing.The story centres on Detective Anna Manni (Argento) who is tracking down an elusive serial killer/rapist in Florence. To Anna's disadvantage she suffers from Stendhal's syndrome in which she gets bouts of dizziness and hallucinations when she is exposed to the sight of paintings and artistic masterpieces. The killer begins to target Anna, using her illness to his advantage.Argento creates an unsettling atmosphere throughout, this is definitely one of his darkest movies. Camera-work has always been one of Argento's strongest points, and this movie is no different. There are some fantastic shots here, the streets of Florence are dark and menacing, and there is a excellent sequence where a victim is stalked through a room of marble statues. Ennio Morricone's score is perfect, creating a suitably unsettling atmosphere.But these cannot save the movie from being generally uneven. The structure of the story is it's weakest point, with 2/3 of the movie dedicated to the serial killer and the last 1/3 to Anna. There are many points where nothing really happens in a movie that is character-driven. This, and shocking CGI in certain scenes where it really wasn't needed detract from what could have been really good.2/5