Tenebrae is, in my opinion, Argento’s absolute masterpiece. This was Argento at his most creative, and what we get is nothing short of a perfectly crafted film. It’s also the most “giallo” of all the gialli he has made. What I mean by that is that everything is turned up to the max. All the tropes are here, the kills are really brutal yet almost beautiful, and the story twists and turns are just about unmatched. He also created the best and most tension building scene ever, with a very long crane shot going around the outside of a building while the theme is played very loudly. Trust me… you’ll know what I mean when you see it.

Tenebrae has the best story Argento has ever written. It’s tight and tension filled, yet it gives room for speculation, and when it all comes together it’s the best ending he has ever written. I can’t say enough about how good this story is.

The acting is decent all over, but there are some standouts. Anthony Franciosa is of course one of them with an excellent performance as the lead Peter Neal, but I also want to mention Daria Nicolodi (of course) as Anne and Giuliano Gemma as the detective. Both demanding eye time when they are on-screen.

For some reason, the guys of Goblin are credited individually on this film, but that doesn’t seem to make the music any less great. The theme especially is very good, and one of the best tension enhancers ever made. Especially combined with Argento’s artfully shot murders.

As I said above, Tenebrae is Argento’s masterpiece. The filmmaking the “master” shows here is almost unparalleled, and no one with any sort of interest in filmmaking or films in general, should let Tenebrae go unseen. This is essential cinema!!!!