"Boogie down with some soundtrack-heavy giallo." by Lindsay Costello 26. DANZA MACABRA: Boogie down with some soundtrack-heavy giallo. Inferno If you've been following along with our psychotronic film reviews this month, you might've read my reflections on The Beyond, in which I revealed myself to be a Fulci girlie. (I'm more intrigued by the underdog director's inventive gore than Dario Argento's glossy, but sometimes thin narrative structures.)  There's still so much to celebrate about Argento's work, though. The giallo giant's surreal, atmospheric art-house style is echoed by modern auteurs like Nicolas Winding Refn and Panos Cosmatos. I'd speculate that Argento's proclivity for prog-rock scores inspired John Carpenter's beloved synth-heavy soundtracks, too. Wedged between Argento's celebrated flicks Suspiria and Tenebrae is the 1980 entry Inferno, an undersung middle child of his filmography. It's an eerie, somewhat inscrutable little slice of folklore. When poet Rose Elliot finds an alchemist's book in an Upper West Side antique shop, she learns that three malevolent sisters rule the world, one of whom might be in her midst. Rose, her brother, and their various associates are then stalked by cloaked killers. Keyboardist-composer Keith Emerson's tense score isn't Goblin-level god tier, but it gels perfectly with the creepy proceedings. (Emerson's pretty freaky in his own right—he's known for stabbing his keyboard with knives to hold powerful notes.) Beyond that framework, Inferno largely coasts on vibes. Expect late-night libraries, braless women, fractured glass, rabid cat gangs, and a guy who gets murked by a bunch of rats. (That's one of Inferno's best scenes, by the way. “The rats are eating me alive!” a character hollers, overcome by hordes of the little suckers in the middle of Central Park. A hot dog vendor wanders over and butchers the rest of his body. New Yawk, am I right?) And sure, Inferno relies heavily on aesthetics, but there are some visionary aspects of the film, too. Early on, Rose explores the cellar of her shadowy apartment building and stumbles across an old ballroom that's completely flooded. After dropping her keys in the murky water, Rose dives into the ballroom, where she's nudged by a rotted corpse floating among Victorian flourishes and antique chandeliers.  The scene delivers an entrancing mix of claustrophobia and dramatic gelled lighting design. It's chic—Argento always is. It's also difficult to escape. The Stranger is participating in Scarecrow Video’s Psychotronic Challenge all month long! Every October, Scarecrow puts together a list of cinematic themes and invites folks to follow along and watch a horror, sci-fi, or fantasy flick that meets the criteria. This year, Stranger staffers are joining the fun and we’re sharing our daily recommendations here on Slog! Read more about Scarecrow’s 2024 challenge—and get the watch list—here. And you can track our daily recommendations here! 💀