Suspiria, by Dario Argento. (1977). 98 mins. In English.

The tale of witchcraft at a German dance academy is one of the most beautiful, dream-like horror films ever conceived, and quite simply the crowning achievement of a stylistic master, director Dario Argento.

Based on the essays in Thomas DeQuincey's Profundiis Suspiria, Argento's film deals with one of "The Three Mothers" - ancient and powerful witches who live in various dwelling-places around the world in order to spread evil. Suspiriorum Mater (The Mother of Sighs) lives in Freiburg and is the focus of Suspiria. Its sequel, Inferno (1980), concerns Mater Tenebrarum (Mother of The Shadows), who lives in New York, and features a brief appearance by Lachrymarum Mater (The Mother of Tears) from Rome. Of the two films which were made, this one is clearly superior.

Flamboyant, thunderous, and nearly operatic in its sensory excess, Suspiria flies in the face of the widely-held opinion that horror works best through nuance rather than assault. The musical score by synth-rock group Goblin may be the Loudest ever devised, and Argento's baroque in nearly every frame visuals overwhelm the viewer.

Absolutely gorgeous to look at — and scary as hell — Suspiria is Italian director Dario's Argento's masterwork. With its dream-like narrative, experimental music score, stylized production design and meticulously crafted visual compositions, the film creates a world of beauty within a story of occult mystery and savage violence. Suspiria is a feast for the senses, an unparalleled symphony of light, color, shadow and sound. It is the Horror Film as Art.

American ballet student Suzy Banyon (Harper) arrives on a portentously dark and stormy night in Freiburg, Germany to attend the prestigious Tanz Akademie of Dance there. As a taxi deposits her at the academy's entrance she sees a young woman in the doorway, yelling something over the storm's noise to an unseen person within. The woman takes off into the night, running into the rain-drenched woods. Next day, as Suzy establishes herself at the school, she learns that the girl she saw that first night was brutally murdered by an unknown assailant. She also begins to realize that there's something distinctly odd about the school's faculty...

Further plot details aren't really necessary. If you've never seen the waking fever-dream that is Suspiria then it's best to experience it first-hand. The plot isn't that important to the film's impact, anyway — story and characterization have never been Argento's strong suit; aesthetics are. And what aesthetics! Suzy, by stepping through the ominous, ornately-appointed portals of the Tanz Akademie, falls down an Alice in Wonderland rabbit-hole into a nightmare world of the supernatural. The dreamscape constructed for her (and us) by Argento, cinematographer Luciano Tovoli and composers Goblin is nothing short of astonishing: frightening and beautiful in equal measure. Much like a character's reaction to art in another Argento film (1996's The Stendhal Syndrome), if the viewer can latch onto Suspiria's particular vibe then he or she may well be transported within it. A scary, unsettling ride to be sure, but one well worth taking.

We think it's one of the greatest horror films ever made, probably the best ever shot in color.