Dark Glasses

The 2022 solar eclipse over Rome isn’t just a celestial event in the opening of Dark Glasses; it feels like a cosmic signal for the return of Dario Argento. After a decade of silence following the disastrous Dracula 3D (2012)—a film so poorly received it could have buried a lesser legend—the master of the Giallo returns with a surprisingly lean, mean, and unpretentious thriller. Watching this felt like seeing an old rock star perform an "unplugged" set; the pyrotechnics are gone, the voice is raspier, but the soul of the work is unmistakably there.

A Script Reclaimed from the Shadows

There’s a reason Dark Glasses feels like a throwback to the early 2000s: it literally is one. Dario Argento and co-writer Franco Ferrini (the duo behind Phenomena and Opera) actually penned this script two decades ago. It sat in a drawer at Urania Pictures until Asia Argento rediscovered it while writing her autobiography. This explains why the film lacks the typical "prestige horror" trappings of the 2020s. There’s no deconstructed trauma or elevated social commentary here. Instead, we get a high-class prostitute named Diana (Ilenia Pastorelli) being hunted by a maniac in a white van.

When the killer causes a car crash that leaves Diana blind and orphans a young boy named Chin (Andrea Zhang), the film shifts into a bizarre, touching, and occasionally gruesome "on the lam" story. The bond between the blind woman and the boy who becomes her "eyes" provides an emotional anchor that Argento’s films usually ignore in favor of elaborate set pieces. While I watched their first meeting, my neighbor began power-washing his driveway right outside my window, and the monotonous drone strangely complimented the industrial, synth-heavy atmosphere of the scene.

Digital Sheen and Practical Splatter

One of the biggest hurdles for contemporary fans of classic Giallo is the transition from the lush, grain-heavy Technicolor of the 70s to the crisp, sometimes sterile look of modern digital cinematography. Matteo Cocco, who handled the camera work, doesn't try to mimic the psychedelic palettes of Suspiria. Instead, he uses a cold, nocturnal blue that makes the inevitable splashes of bright red blood pop with jarring intensity. It feels like a modern "Shudder" original release because, in many territories, that’s exactly what it was. It lacks the "theatrical event" feel of Argento’s peak, but it fits perfectly into the current streaming landscape where mid-budget genre films finally have a home again.

The gore, handled by veteran Sergio Stivaletti, is wonderfully tactile. In an era where "digital blood" often looks like spilled grape juice, Argento remains committed to the squish. There is a sequence involving a pack of water snakes that is objectively ridiculous—it's the kind of logic-defying moment that makes you wonder if Argento has ever actually seen a snake or if he just thinks they're aquatic land-piranhas. Yet, that’s the charm. It’s an old-school sensibility filtered through 2022 technology.

The Contemporary Maestro

Is Dark Glasses a "legacy sequel" to the director's career? Not quite. It doesn't have the grandiosity of Deep Red or the sheer terror of Tenebrae. However, in a cinematic landscape dominated by massive franchises and "elevated" horror that is sometimes too afraid to just be a scary movie, there is something refreshing about a 81-year-old man making a film about a killer in a van. It’s a "meat and potatoes" thriller that reminds me why I fell in love with Italian horror in the first place: the style is the substance.

The score by Arnaud Rebotini is a massive standout. Originally, rumors swirled that Daft Punk wanted to provide the music (a pairing that would have broken the internet), but Rebotini delivers a pulsing, John Carpenter-esque electronic beat that keeps the 86-minute runtime moving at a clip. Even Asia Argento, appearing here as a supportive social worker named Rita, brings a grounded presence that suggests the family has moved past the operatic histrionics of their earlier collaborations.

The film doesn't reinvent the wheel, and the ending arrives with a bluntness that might leave some viewers blinking in confusion. But for those of us who spent our formative years hunting down grainy VHS tapes of Italian slashers, Dark Glasses is a comforting homecoming. It’s a small, focused nightmare that proves the old masters still have a few tricks left in the dark. If this ends up being the final movement in Argento’s long, blood-soaked symphony, it’s a dignity-restoring coda that honors his legacy without being buried by it.