Amer

Nostalgic romp for the Cattet/Forzani team, whose “Amer” brings to life a refined reimagining of the style and atmosphere of the great works by the masters of Italian “giallo” cinema.

There are plenty of touches reminiscent of a mid-1970s Dario Argento, both in the “giallo” component (mainly improbable childhood traumas and gloved assassins à la Mario Bava) as well as pure surrealism – in particular, the film repeatedly pays homage to “Suspira” (1977), starting with its use of color and continuing all the way to actual explicit references (the light-bulb shot is one glaring example). There are also plenty of unavoidable allusions to the great trailblazer Mario Bava (even including a variation of “The Drop of Water”, the memorable third segment of the 1963 film “Black Sabbath”).

It’s certainly not a film for everyone. In fact, following in the tradition of Dario Argento, interest in verisimilitude and narrative consistency is intentionally lacking. Beyond that, the dialogue is bare-bones, and in the strictest sense, the horror component turns out to be extremely lightweight.

Top scene: Ana’s dress tearing on her return trip home.