LIVID

Lucy is a young nurse who takes care of sick people at home. It is her first day of work, and the one showing her the profession is Mrs. Wilson, a woman who is as grumpy as she is full of useful information. During her first shift, she learns from the woman that one of their patients, Mrs. Jessel, a former dance teacher now in a coma for years and constantly attached to a respirator, keeps a hidden treasure in her decaying house. After her work shift, Lucy confides in her boyfriend and, together with another friend, they decide to sneak into the house in search of the treasure. It goes without saying that they will not find a welcoming environment and that in reality Mrs. Jessel has many skeletons in the closet. Often, dance has been an effective means of narrating scary stories in cinema. Will seeing young girls dressed in white moving gracefully and knowing that little by little their white dresses will be stained with red be a stylistic choice that genre lovers find winning? Who doesn’t remember the legendary “Suspiria,” a story of witches and ballet shoes with chalk tips? Or the recent psycho-thriller “Black Swan,” which juggles between split personalities and theatrical performances? This “Livide” is no less. A transalpine horror directed by a promising duo Alexandre Bustillo and Julien Maury, who had already surprised (and shocked) France with the good “À l’intérieur,” an ultra-violent survival horror with a strong focus on women in delicate conditions. Almost completely abandoning the ultra-gratuitous violence that characterized the first work of the French duo, here we enter a magical dimension, very horror, characterized by many elements that connect to the most classic fears: the forest at night, a dilapidated mansion where an old disabled woman stays, young people who at night get involved in affairs that are not theirs. And then there is she, Mrs. Jessel, an abominable monster that shows us that creatures of the night are no longer just a fashion for teenagers in love but still know how to scare. Speaking of scaring, let’s say that “Livide,” at times, scares. There are well-aimed scares, some telephoned minutes before, others unexpected but the trophy winners are the fairy-tale situations that occur inside the house, especially those related to flashbacks and dance. Speaking of dance, it is a fundamental element in the film, which, even if not deeply explored as a subject, is used mostly as a pretext to pay homage to “Suspiria.” Because “Livide” oozes Argento more than once. After spending some nice words on the setting, the suggestion that permeates the entire film, and the goodness of the antagonist creature, alas, we have to spend many words on the sides that do not convince. As with their debut film, the plot is not the strong point of the directors. There is no real story at the base of the film, the screenplay is practically absent. The last part is so inconclusive that it is difficult to understand. The directors have a strong desire to surprise the viewer at all costs and they succeed because they have talent in showcasing horrors but if initially you are fascinated in front of important scenes, soon you start yawning. It’s a shame because there are also deep arguments like the transmigration of the soul, the dark side within us, the theme of the double but they are just leaves on a dead tree that are destined to detach and die sooner or later. Alexandre Bustillo and Julien Maury are good and should focus on screenplays not their own. A remake of Hellraiser had briefly passed through their desks, but it did not stay. With their desire to surprise and in hand a powerful and visionary story like that of Barker’s masterpiece (which, by the way, did not need a remake) they could have made a great film. Summarizing “Livide,” one could compare it to a majestic house of cards. A structure without the supporting skeleton, however beautiful to look at, is already over by the end. It deserves half a pumpkin more.