Tenebrae marks one of Dario Argento’s finest Giallo pictures. It has all the hallmarks of one of the greats. Religion, black gloves, straight razor, long coat, disguised killer, elements of a whodunnit, etc… Synapse Films presents an amazing edition of the Argento classic. A completely beautiful set of discs that really does make it feel like you are watching the film for the first time all over again.
While this wasn’t at all the first Giallo picture ever made, it did manage to set a bar for being absolutely stunning and beautiful despite its intense use of gore. One famous scene, in particular, sees a young woman with a freshly slashed throat – spraying her blood all over the room. The result looks like a painter making their masterwork. However, instead it is the arterial spray painting the walls from stark white to crimson.
The synopsis for Tenebrae goes like this:
Tenebrae stars Anthony Franciosa, John Saxon, John Steiner and Daria Nicolodi.
American mystery author Peter Neal (Anthony Franciosa, Death Wish II) comes to Rome to promote his newest novel, Tenebrae. A razor-wielding psychopath is on the loose, taunting Neal and murdering those around him in gruesome fashion just like the character in his novel. As the mystery surrounding the killings spirals out of control, Neal investigates the crimes on his own, leading to a mind-bending, genre-twisting conclusion that will leave you breathless!
DISC 1 (4K ULTRA HD BLU-RAY) – ORIGINAL VERSION
– 2022 4K restoration from the original camera negative
– 4K (2160p) UHD Blu-ray™ presentation in Dolby Vision (HDR10 compatible) in its original 1.85:1 aspect ratio
– Original Italian and English front and end titles and insert shots
– Restored original DTS-HD MA lossless Italian and English 2.0 mono soundtracks
– English subtitles for the Italian soundtrack
– Optional English subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing for the English soundtrack
– Audio commentary by authors and critics Alan Jones and Kim Newman
– Audio commentary by Argento expert Thomas Rostock
– Audio commentary by Maitland McDonagh, author of Broken Mirrors/Broken Minds: The Dark Dreams of Dario Argento
– Yellow Fever: The Rise and Fall of the Giallo, a feature-length documentary charting the genre from its beginnings to its influence on the modern slasher film, featuring interviews with Dario Argento, Umberto Lenzi, Luigi Cozzi, and more.
– Being the Villain, a newly edited archival interview with actor John Steiner
– Out of the Shadows, an archival interview with Maitland McDonagh
– Voices of the Unsane, an archival featurette containing interviews with writer/director Dario Argento, actresses Daria Nicolodi and Eva Robins, cinematographer Luciano Tovoli, composer Claudio Simonetti and assistant director Lamberto Bava
– Screaming Queen, an archival interview with Daria Nicolodi
– The Unsane World of Tenebrae, an archival interview with Dario Argento
– A Composition for Carnage, an archival interview with Claudio Simonetti
– Archival introduction by Daria Nicolodi
– International theatrical trailer
– Japanese “Shadow” theatrical trailer
– Alternate opening credits sequence
– “Unsane” end credits sequence
– Image galleries
Tenebrae arrives on 4K UHD beginning September 26. As we get closer to the release date be sure to check out Synapse Films.
