Argento fans have waited eagerly 27 years for the last installment of Dario Argento's Witches Trilogy on The Three Mothers.
First of course was Suspiria, then Inferno and now Terza Madre, the Mother of Tears.
When one watches an Argento film we come to expect a uniquely surreal directing experience and an immersion of genius proportions. A darkly penetrating use of tactile impressions and textures, colors, music, and vantage points with film that get under your skin like Death itself pulling you into his fantasy world.
Sadly all these things are missing from Terza Madre, and in that sense the movie feels to be missing the Argento signature.
That aside, the film does killings in a very unforgiving and cruel manner that those of us in America never see. They were really quite impressive.
Argento even messes up his own mythology here, but I can forgive that I suppose. What I cannot forgive is pretty much everything else.
The acting is horribly shallow, expressing dialog so banal and linear it left nothing ambiguous, mysterious or enticing. The cgi of the good mother helping her character and the contrast of Sarah as a good witch was just wrong, and should been have left out. The magic shirt also should have been left out.
What made the other Argento movies so effective was the overall imbalance of darkness and light that stays in your mouth like a coppery taste of rich blood. This movie is too balanced, and thus comes off as lukewarm on a script level.
The all-out mayhem, suicides, violence occurring due to the urn being in Rome was not consistent throughout the film and I never felt any impending doom due to the overall poor pacing of the film.
This movie would have worked really well in the 80s when this plot line hadn't already been done to tears, but sadly the 70s and 80s used this plot line so often it is almost cringe-full to see it again.
The story was thin and I just didn't care for any of the characters was the big problem for me here. Sarah was out of reach as a good witch her inherited her powers from her bloodline to due battle with The Third Mother. It was simply not developed well, and not directed well. And the dialog was banal.
The ending is so horrible it makes me sad inside. Great deaths. Great breasts. But not much else.
Suspiria 10/10 Inferno 8/10 Mother of Tears 4/10
First of course was Suspiria, then Inferno and now Terza Madre, the Mother of Tears.
When one watches an Argento film we come to expect a uniquely surreal directing experience and an immersion of genius proportions. A darkly penetrating use of tactile impressions and textures, colors, music, and vantage points with film that get under your skin like Death itself pulling you into his fantasy world.
Sadly all these things are missing from Terza Madre, and in that sense the movie feels to be missing the Argento signature.
That aside, the film does killings in a very unforgiving and cruel manner that those of us in America never see. They were really quite impressive.
Argento even messes up his own mythology here, but I can forgive that I suppose. What I cannot forgive is pretty much everything else.
The acting is horribly shallow, expressing dialog so banal and linear it left nothing ambiguous, mysterious or enticing. The cgi of the good mother helping her character and the contrast of Sarah as a good witch was just wrong, and should been have left out. The magic shirt also should have been left out.
What made the other Argento movies so effective was the overall imbalance of darkness and light that stays in your mouth like a coppery taste of rich blood. This movie is too balanced, and thus comes off as lukewarm on a script level.
The all-out mayhem, suicides, violence occurring due to the urn being in Rome was not consistent throughout the film and I never felt any impending doom due to the overall poor pacing of the film.
This movie would have worked really well in the 80s when this plot line hadn't already been done to tears, but sadly the 70s and 80s used this plot line so often it is almost cringe-full to see it again.
The story was thin and I just didn't care for any of the characters was the big problem for me here. Sarah was out of reach as a good witch her inherited her powers from her bloodline to due battle with The Third Mother. It was simply not developed well, and not directed well. And the dialog was banal.
The ending is so horrible it makes me sad inside. Great deaths. Great breasts. But not much else.
Suspiria 10/10 Inferno 8/10 Mother of Tears 4/10