Trauma
Trauma
R | 20 April 1994 (USA)
Trauma Trailers

A young Romanian woman and a recovering drug addict launch an unlikely investigation after her parents are murdered by a vicious serial killer known as The Headhunter.

Reviews
Pluskylang

Great Film overall

... View More
Reptileenbu

Did you people see the same film I saw?

... View More
Robert Joyner

The plot isn't so bad, but the pace of storytelling is too slow which makes people bored. Certain moments are so obvious and unnecessary for the main plot. I would've fast-forwarded those moments if it was an online streaming. The ending looks like implying a sequel, not sure if this movie will get one

... View More
Curt

Watching it is like watching the spectacle of a class clown at their best: you laugh at their jokes, instigate their defiance, and "ooooh" when they get in trouble.

... View More
Jan Strydom

TRAUMA is the fourth Dario Argento film I've seen for the first time and given that I've not yet seen the films considered to be his best just yet, this will be a review that won't compare it to films like SUSPIRA, INFERNO, DEEP RED, PHENOMENA and TENEBRE which I haven't seen but rather to OPERA, MOTHER OF TEARS and THE STENDHAL SYNDROME which are the only ones I have seen aside from TRAUMA.After I watched it I mainly thought this film was really weird, script wise the plot was really good and had an interesting twist to it, on a technical side the camera work was great, I just loved the style in which the camera was used, constantly moving and there were some strange angles at times, aside from all this the acting was rather dull and the score of the film was actually strange too, at times it played in scenes where it wasn't really needed and where it was needed it didn't really fit in with the scene.TRAUMA is also very low on gore and the violence in it which involves decapitations are very tame compared to the other three films I've seen and given that Tom Savini created some of the effects for the film, you would think it would showcase his work just like the other films he worked on did.The overall strange thing about it is is that it has its good points like the plot and the camera work and it has its bad points like the acting and the score, they almost balance each other out in some odd way.As far as recommending it goes, this might be a good place to start if you're just getting into Argento's films. and then move on up to his stronger films one at a time.Overall, compared to the others, I still favor THE STENDHAL SYNDROME, it just has something the others don't.

... View More
Eumenides_0

A mentally-disturbed anorectic sixteen-year-old runaway girl, Aura Petrescu, witnesses the brutal murder of her father and her psychic mother. The killer chases after her fearing she may have seen his face. Meanwhile the doctor who took care of her wants to have custody over her and return her to the hospital. One day while trying to commit suicide she's helped by David, an illustrator, who helps her discover the killer while keeping her free from the hospital.Dario Argento is a filmmaker who refuses to change and that's creatively dangerous. Since his first movie, the magnificent The Bird with the Crystal Plumage, he's been playing variations on the same formula: amateur sleuth tries to solve string of brutal killing after accidentally getting involved in the case. In Trauma the formula is becoming exhausted. A serial killer is on the loose decapitating his victims. A psychic during a séance channels the spirit of one of the victims. Before accusing the killer, however, the psychic is killed. If this sounds familiars to Argento fans it's because it's one of the plot points of Deep Red. There is suspense here but the director is hardly exploring new situations. Even his concern with anorexia is superficial at best. This is Argento resting on his laurels.Although Trauma lacks the inventive camera work of Deep Red or the lush colour palette of Inferno, it's by no means a bland movie without its sparkles of genius. Some things are in the movie just because, I guess, Argento thought they looked fun, like the shots of lizards. Argento uses animals in almost every movie and he tends to use them excellently, either as important plot points (Opera and Phenomena) or for their savage symbolism. The movie is also riddled with dark humour. One f my favourite scenes is when the killer follows Aura into the hospital and murders a nurse in the presence of a mental patient who watches in terror and then waves the killer goodbye. The gore is restrained, but fans of severed heads will be satisfied with their realism. It's a pity Argento cares more about props than acting or dialogue.The cast is exceptionally good. It has Piper Laurie, a very threatening Frederic Forrest, and even a brief appearance by Brad Dourif. Argento's daughter, Asia, and Christopher Rydell play the protagonists and give sadly the weakest performances. The problem is that the dialogue just isn't very good or natural. For consummate actors like Laurie and Dourif, who can turn cheese into gold, that's not a problem, but Rydell and Argento fail to rise above their material. I'll give the director credit, however, for playing the relationship between Aura and David very emotionally. Friendship and caring seldom exist in Argento's world, the protagonists being too busy solving crimes for that. Here he actually tries to explore the feelings each one has for the other and that makes Trauma one of his most touching movies.This was Argento's first production in the United States and it's tempting to lay the blame on those awful producers who just don't understand geniuses. But that's too easy. There's every indication that he had a tight control over the movie and perhaps that was the problem. If there had been a producer reigning in Argento, I doubt so much of the poor characterisation, ridiculous dialogue, not to mention silly ideas like talking severed heads, would have made it to the screen. Hollywood may be soul crushing for artists, but at least the average producer seems to care about things like logic and continuity. Sadly Argento doesn't. Argento's decay was a slow process that started after Deep Red, his last great movie in my opinion, the one where he synthesised his dream-like vision of the world with inventive cinematography, a vivid colour scheme and a cerebral mystery. Since then he's had many ups and downs. Trauma belongs at the bottom of his filmography and I recommend it only for Argento enthusiasts.

... View More
eugenehug

OK, I hated Tenebrae, I thought it was junk. I absolutely loved Trauma. If you are looking for top-notch acting, nope not here. If you are looking for cheap Giallo / Thriller w/ a decent amount of splatter, YES ! The movie has the right amount of story and tension that kept me watching. It built up the pace just right and delivered schlocky campy Euro-inspired horror / thriller action right up to the end.Asia was awesome and her flawed acting was perfect because it fit the campy nature of the genre. Perfect acting in that it all was flawed just right to fit by everyone. Sit back watch it and have a pizza, some vino and enjoy w/ a loved one on a dark stormy night. The ending was perfect for the film. Trash cinema at it's best.

... View More
slayrrr666

"Dario Argento's Trauma" is better than expected, even if it doesn't match his previous works.**SPOILERS**After failing a suicide attempt, Aura Petrescu, (Asia Argento) is captured and returned to the Farraday Clinic, where her mother Adriana, (Piper Laurie) is concerned for her behavior. Following a murder attempt on the clinic by a psychotic killer, she escapes and returns to David Parsons, (Christopher Rydell) who had initially saved her. Concerned for her when it appears that the deranged serial killer is following her, they soon realize that the killer is directly involved in a past incident in her life and is wiping out those that were formerly apart of that, forcing them to find what the connection is and use them to discover the killer's identity and stop them before the killer tracks them down.The Good News: There was some good stuff here that really helped it out. One of the better areas in the film is that there's a series of the usual artistic flair that Argento is known for that shine through, creating brief moments of breath-taking stylistic flourish. One of the better ones is where a little kid can't sleep because a woman keeps staring at him from a window in the house across the way, unaware that the eyes are contained in a decapitated head. Perhaps the most novel one is a scene where the heroine stumbles across a murder scene in the middle of the woods during a heavy rainstorm, and then turns to see the killer making off from the scene carrying two severed heads in front of their face, leading to a round of hysterical screaming, as well as forming the basis for the rest of the film to solve. It's one of the best scenes in the film as well. Also a scene where the freakish sight of a freshly decapitated head utters a few essential words with its death rattle are all vintage Argento. There's more in that woodland-setting scene, as there's an incredibly fun séance witnessed just beforehand that makes it all the better with the visuals and sound gags which really just make the whole scene a stand-out. Another excellent scene is the initial escape from the hospital during a strike by the killer, leading to general pandemonium when the victims are discovered among the residents and the stalking by the killer makes for plenty of great times. Even more fun is at the end, with the confrontation in the basement being quite entertaining. From the revelation about the kills, which is handled by an incredibly well-done flashback scene that certainly scores for how moody and original it is, to the suspense found within to the fun of it all, this is a great way to end off the film. The film also manages to work in one of the greatest weapons in slasher-filmdom, the mechanical noose that the killer uses here. Not only is it an ingenious device that allows for some spectacular kills, but looks realistic and performs well, which is a nice accomplishment. That alone leads to plenty of great kills with it, where the victims are decapitated with it in pretty gruesome ways that are quite fun and exciting. These here provide the film's best qualities.The Bad News: There was a couple problems with this one. One of the bigger flaws is the film's series of scenes that don't really offer up much in the way of suspense, really just making the film longer than it should be. This one has plenty of scenes that feature this part, mainly the subplot with the neighboring child. There's nothing worthwhile about it as it adds nothing to the film beyond the one key scene with the eyes, the different scenes with it don't offer up anything and the one attempt at suspense, the walk-through of the house after the lizard, is just utterly terrible and has no value to the film, and being taken out, as well as most of the scenes involving the kid as well, really should've been taken out of the film. The other flaw is the fact that, as well as the previously-mentioned kid scenes, is that the opening portions of the film concentrating on the numerous attempts to help out with the disease. While important for establishing character, these do nothing for establishing the pace of the film, offer up nothing to help solve the killers' identity and are just part of the attempt to make the film longer than it should be. While not at all detrimental to the film, and is barely noticeable at all, is the film's lack of Argento's style, being really toned down in visual prowess compared to his other efforts, but this isn't anything to hold the film down at all, and is barely noticed at all in most areas.The Final Verdict: With some good stuff here and a couple of minor, mild flaws as well, it has a lot going for it and is better than expected. Really give it a shot if you're an open-minded Argento fan or into these kinds of films, while those looking for more of Argento's Italian-style should stay to those films.Rated R: Graphic Language, Graphic Violence, Brief Nudity and a mild, shadowy Sex Scene

... View More