TRAUMA was the first mainstream Hollywood film that director Dario Argento took on. Dario before hand was very well known as a master of the Italian giallo films, a sub-genre to the horror film, that only a handful of great Italian directors could pull off. It was first thought to be a good move for Argento, who might have been able to help the slumping horror genre of the 90’s in American. TRAUMA however failed to do that and was panned by critics so much so that some members of the cast refused to see the film. It even cost Argento some of his fan base at time time as well.
TRAUMA is about a anorexic young woman named Aura Petrescu (Asia Argento) whom escapes from a psychiatric clinic. She meets a man named David (Chris Rydell) who wants to help her out, however she is caught and is sent to live with her parents. However a murderer is on the loose beheading his victims with an odd power tool like device and kills Aura’s parents. Soon people all around Aura are being killed, and it’s up to her and David to find out who is committing these murders before the killer gets to them.
The script has some issues, and it does lack when it comes to really getting the story told on screen. It’s a script that is all over the place story wise and at times it’s hard to really tell what’s going on. The pacing is also off and just about when you think the film will work out it’s kicks and get into a simple storyline, it drags off into another direction. The dialogue is written pretty well, but the script has issues that can easily be identified.
As far as the acting goes in TRAUMA will do actually have a decent cast. A young Asia Argento leads the cast in this film, and is pretty good in her role. Piper Laurie of CARRIE fame plays Aura’s (Asia’s character) mother in the film gives a very good performance in the film as does a few others in the supporting cast such as genre veteran Brad Dourif, James Russo, Frederic Forrest as well as the rest of the supporting cast were all very good in their respected roles. One also can’t forget to mention Christopher Rydell’s performance as well, who was the actor that held this film together.
The production value for TRAUMA was very good for it’s time. Argento really knows how to use the camera and bring suspense and terror to each of his shots. I can however see why TRAUMA never went over well with American audiences, as it does at times look like an art house horror film and the suspenseful and scenic dream sequences would not only bore, but turn off the common movie goer, or horror fan. The special make-up effects were done and supervised by make-up master Tom Savini, and let me tell you folks they all look pretty good for their time. There is plenty of original death sequences and plenty of heads do roll if you catch my drift.
Overall, TRAUMA is a film that is not for everyone. The script made it hard for me to really get into it, but the effects and good acting did help me get though it. It’s not a horror film for the modern horror fan, and it’s not Argento’s best work. Fan’s of Tom Savini will enjoy the great make-up job he does in this film, and the DVD even has a special feature of Tom’s behind the scene footage of his effects on the film. Fan’s of Argento will probably agree that it’s not his best work, but being that it’s part of this five film box set it’s worth a look only if you enjoy Argento’s work.
Trivia Tidbit: TRAUMA was referenced in Lucky McKee’s film MAY.
– Horror Bob
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