THE STENDHAL SYNDROME

Police officer Anna, following the trail of a serial killer, finds herself in Florence. Here, during an investigation at the Uffizi, she suffers a fainting spell, the so-called "Stendhal Syndrome", due to which she loses consciousness, imagining herself catapulted into the paintings she was observing. The killer thus easily captures her, but the girl manages to free herself and eliminate the madman. The killer's corpse, however, disappears and the murders continue. Who is the real culprit? This time the master was not up to his reputation. Despite moving in his favorite field, the thriller, and despite a subject and some quite original ideas (like the idea of the "Syndrome" of the protagonist), the film is little engaging, at times boring and excessively slow (something rather rare for an Argento film), but above all (a more serious flaw for a giallo) predictable. In fact, the ending, which should represent the surprise, the "shocking" element of the story, is easily foreseeable already halfway through the film. Even Asia Argento this time does not fully convince in the complex role of the protagonist. Some good moments can be found - after all it is always the great Argento behind the camera - such as the dreamlike journeys of the young protagonist inside the paintings or the sequence in which the killer observes the police officer through a hole in the skull of his last victim, but it is really too little. Absolutely perfect, as always, the special effects curated by the specialist Stivaletti. Recommended only to the most die-hard fans of the director.