Trauma (1993) Reviews

• Impossible to recommend, but I liked it

  kintopf4322005-03-24

  I'm beginning to laugh at the distinctions people draw between "good" and "bad" Dario Argento films. They all seem to have some common technical elements: clever camera-work, grotesque but deliberately unrealistic violence, weird music, incomprehensible plots, "impressionistic" titles, and poor acting. None of them work perfectly, even for fans of this style. The variations between the movies, then, come from the genre accidentals – "Profondo Rosso" is a detective thriller, "Suspiria" an occult conspiracy tale, etc.; Argento seems to come along and apply his own unique vision of the giallo onto whatever horror style is fashionable at the time. It's his uniqueness, rather than his ability to produce great films, that has assured his place in the canon. So, then, "Trauma" turns out to be exactly what we would expect from an early nineties Dario Argento film. Camera-work? Check – even in this late period, Argento's eye and technique are strange and impressive. Violence? Double check – although what the actual purpose of that Decapitron device is supposed to be, I can't imagine. Weird music? Check – orchestral rather than Goblin this time, but still louder and a little more engaged than we would expect. Odd plot, check, arbitrary title, check, bad acting, check – Asia Argento actually manages to make Aura a likable character, but you can't deny that she garbles her lines and seems mostly amateurish throughout. (And she's hardly alone in those respects.) The slasher subgenre had died out a bit by this point, but no better reason for Argento to try to freshen it up a bit with his unique stamp. The story's quite watchable and fun, and occasionally funny too - more in the vein of "Phenomena" than the early stuff. It's frequently ridiculous, of course, but show me a movie of his that isn't. And while there's a sex element to the film, it has a surprisingly innocent quality, perhaps because Argento was directing his own daughter in the lead. (I'm sure Freud would have a field day with it, though.) In the end, it's hard to strongly recommend it to anyone – diehards are as likely to hate it as love it, and casual viewers are going to find his style absurd. So I'll give it a 6.5, with the simple comment that I would watch it again.

  More

• Underrated Argento chiller!

  Nightman852006-10-27

  Italian horror master Dario Argento's only venture into American film-making was this tight, unique thriller. Young man tries to help a troubled anorexic girl catch the 'head-hunter' killer that murdered her parents. Trauma is a film that has been given the shaft by many critics, including some of Argento's own fans. Trauma is a step outside of Argento's typical colorful style as it goes for a more subtle look. Still Argento does flair with some creativeness in this film. The camera work and atmosphere are splendid, helping to make the mysterious story all the more intriguing. Pino Donaggio also lends some good music to the film as well. The theme song 'Ruby Rain' sang by Laura Evans is a nicely haunting little piece by itself. Also different from the other works of Argento, this film is rather light on gore, but still manages to have some shocking murder sequences thanks to some wild set-ups. The cast is quite good. Chris Rydell shines as our likable young hero. Asia Argento, Dario's daughter, does a decent role as the young victim wrapped up in the mystery. Veteran actress Piper Laurie is great as always as Asia's psychic mother. The supporting cast hold their own too. Despite its differences from Argento's earlier classics, Trauma is a fine piece of film-making itself. It's a must-see for Argento fans and just right for those seeking an off-beat thriller! *** 1/2 out of ****

  More

• Giallo American style

  ODDBear2005-07-02

  Dario Argento's Trauma is his only American film in full length. The film is filled with elements from his previous Italian produced films. The Hitchcockian element from Argento's Animal trilogy is present here (the Hitchcock element even furthered by Pino Donaggio's music score, a frequent Brian De Palma collabarator), as is the Freudian undertone of repressed guilt and past sins from Deep Red and Tenebrae. This is Argento basically delivering his usual giallo in a more American style. And he's hugely successful at it, too. Trauma has a lot of great set pieces, some great scenes of extreme violence and gore to spare,a cleverly plotted and written story, decent performances from Rydell and Asia and genuine old fashioned suspense. And a devilishly clever ending. Trauma has it all in abundance. It goes a bit over the top concerning those severed heads and some make-up effects could have been better, I thought. But these are minor quibbles in an otherwise excellent suspense yarn from a master director. Trauma may well be his most underrated film. I have to say, also, that I find it immensely enjoyable that Argento used live sound here instead of his usual dubbing.

  More

• Underrated, but no masterpiece

  jangu2001-05-25

  There are some good stuff here to be sure. Argento-fans tend to rate this way down on the scale and criticize it for being to "americanized". I don't agree. Sure, there is a certain sense of "half-baked Argento" here and there, but I don't find that to be a minus point. If anything, being made in the states, it has more convincing performances and the production values can not be faulted. It's look may seem aneamic if viewed beside "Suspiria" or something more of Argento's more gaudy creations, but I think that this is intentional. Cinematography it absolutely top-notch, conveying a suitably spooky atmosphere to many scenes. The story is fairly straight-forward for an Argento movie, but not standard fare, and if this had been made by a newcomer it would have been hailed as very solid suspenser indeed. The plot twists and turns even if the outcome isn't too much of a surprise. However, one thing really bothers me about "Trauma". The sfx-work by Tom Savini is truly awful. Some scenes, like the one in the elevator-shaft, start creepy enough but are ruined by the effects overall cheesiness (the falling head is only laughable instead of frightening). Shame on you, Savini! Bring on Sergio Stivalletti! Another thing that's not very good is Pino Donaggios score, which he seems to have composed in his sleep. It's not bad, it's just that it seems so routine. Compared to "Deep red" and a few others, this is not Argento at his best. But even Argento at half-speed is better and more interesting than most directors produce within a lifetime.

  More

• A surprisingly great horror-suspense film...

  dr.gonzo-41999-10-29

  When I picked up TRAUMA at the vid-store, I wasn't really expecting much from it. I'm not a big Argento fan, but I do enjoy Italian horror/cult films. I have to say, I was totally impressed by it! It was a surprisingly great horror-suspense film with great camera work & gore as well. A lot of familiar faces in this film including James Russo, Cristopher Rydell, and Piper Laurie who you might remember from THE FACULTY. Also the lovely Asia Argento who commands the movie like she did in Michele Soavi's THE CHURCH. Before URBAN LEGEND, I KNOW WHAT YOU DID LAST SUMMER 16, & SCREAM 3000 there was Dario Argento's TRAUMA. And if you enjoyed any of those similar movies you should love this one as well. Except this one is ten times more scarier and realistic with tons of unexpected plot twists that would put all those movies to shame. Its just too bad Argento doesn't make any more horror movies 'round these parts.

  More