Reel Review: Dark Glasses (2022)

While it falls short of the excellence you want from Argento, “Dark Glasses” is a fun throwback to giallo greatness worth a bit of your time.

Dario Argento is one of the most important names in horror history. He is also a victim of his own success. His peak period from the 1970s through the 1980s is so highly regarded that the latter part of his career is seen as a supreme disappointment. While it is true that his later works are riddled with problems, they are held up for harsher criticism due to Argento’s impressive filmography.

Dark Glasses is the latest release from the legendary Italian director.

Diana (Ilenia Pastorelli) is a high-end escort who is blinded in a car accident. The person who caused the crash has been murdering call girls and is out to add Diana to their list. 

Those who feel like Argento’s days of making good films have long passed will initially feel some satisfaction. Arnaud Rebotini’s amazing score is reminiscent of previous works. While it is not as memorable as Suspiria or Deep Red, it is the highlight of Dark Glasses.

Argento’s decision to return to giallo was also wise, as he has a feel for the genre. The opening sequence is amazingly shot and gets off to a promising start. The colors and music work together to create an atmosphere that mixes sleaze with style. Everything culminates with a well-shot car chase and grisly crash.

 Unfortunately, Dark Glasses never quite lives up to those expectations.

The beauty seen in the beginning stands in contrast to the rest of the film, which sees occasional flashes of the trademark Argento touch, but never quite hits the mark.

Pastorelli does her best as Diana, even if the script does not give her much to work with. There is some interest in seeing her try to adjust to her new life, but more often than not, it tends to feel slow and awkward.

Her relationship with the orphaned Chin (his parents were killed in the beginning, and Diana feels partial responsibility) never feels authentic, making it hard to empathize with either.

The surprisingly subdued second act is followed by the more chaotic pace that Argento fans will be familiar with. Ironically, this is also when Dark Glasses feels the laziest. At this point, it becomes little more than a blind woman and child stumbling through the dark woods. I

t does include some giallo excesses to keep things from getting too stale, but many scenes go on longer than needed.

There is still fun to be had with Dark Glasses, however.

Its straightforward plot allows the audience to be immersed in the creepy atmosphere that Argento manages to convey.

There are also some gory kills, and the ending does bring everything full circle. Some may find it too ridiculous, but that is often the case with Italian horror.

Dark Glasses is very much a throwback.

The lighting, killings, and setting will all be familiar to longtime fans of Italian horror. The film has a tendency to get a little silly at times, but fans of Argento will be glad to see the master back in his natural element.

Dark Glasses premieres on Shudder on October 13, 2022.