Phenomena (1985)

Country of Origin: Italy
Year of Production: 1984
Running Times: 79 mins 31 seconds (UK - video) 82 mins (USA - video) 83 mins (UK - theatrical; USA - theatrical; West Germany - video) 103 mins (France - theatrical) 109 mins 47 seconds (USA - DVD) 105 mins (Belgium - theatrical; Germany - theatrical) 110 mins (Italy - theatrical; video) 111 mins (UK - DVD); 115 mins (Japan - DVD); 116 mins (Japan - theatrical)
Format:Technicolour Eastmancolor Kodak Panavision 35mm
Ratio: 1.66:1
Sound: Dolby Stereo

PRODUCTION
Production Company: Dacfilm
Production Executive: Angelo Jacono
Producer: Dario Argento
Production Manager: Cesare Iacolucci

SCRIPT
Script: Dario Argento, Franco Ferrini

DIRECTION
Director: Dario Argento
1st Assistant Director: Michele Soavi
2nd Assistant Director: Bettina Graebe

PHOTOGRAPHY
Director of Photography: Romano Albani
Underwater Photography: Gianlorenzo Battaglia
Camera Operator: Stefano Ricciotti
Assistant Camera: Aldo Bergamini
Steadicam Supplied and Operated By: Nicola Pecorini and Co
Gaffer: Alberto Altibrandi
Key Grip: Agostino Pascarella
Special Entomological Photography: Ferdinando Armati
Stills: Franco Bellomo
Cameras and Lenses: Panaflex Panavision
Cameras and Lenses Supplied By: A.R.C.O. 2 SrL

EDITING
Editor: Franco Fraticelli
1st Assistant Editor: Piero Bozza
2nd Assistant Editor: Roberto Priori

MUSIC
Music: Bill Wyman and Terry Taylor (Valley; Valley Bolero); Iron Maiden (Flash of the Blade); Motorhead (Locomotive); Simon Boswell (The Maggots); Andy Sex Gang (The Naked and the Dead; You Don't Know Me); Goblin (Jennifer; Jennifer's Friend; Sleepwalking; Firefly Phenomenon; Old Dark House; Transmute; The Wind), Claudio Simonetti (Phenomena); Fabio Pignatelli (The Insects); Frankie Goes to Hollywood (Two Tribes)
Music Editor: Piero Bozza
Music Producer: Vincent Messina
Music Published By: Bixio C.E.M.S.A. / Cinevox

SOUND
Supervising Sound Editor: Franco Fraticelli
Sound Editor: Nick Alexander
Sound Mixer: Giancarlo Laurenzi
Stereo Sound Effects: Studio Anzellotti
Re-Recording: International Recording
Re-Recording Engineer: Danilo Sterbini
Dolby Sound Consultant: Federico Savina

MAKE UP AND COSTUMES
Make Up: Pierantonio Mecacci
Hair: Patrizia Corridori
Wigs: Rocchetti and Carboni
Costume Designer: Giorgio Armani
Wardrobe Assistants: Marina Malavasi, Patrizia Massaia

SPECIAL MAKE UP EFFECTS
Make Up Special Effects: Sergio Stivaletti

SPECIAL EFFECTS
Special Stage Effects: Tonino Corridori
Special Optical Effects: Luigi Cozzi

DESIGN AND SET CONSTRUCTION
Production Design: Maurizio Garrone, Nello Giorgetti, Luciano Spadoni, Umberto Turco
Set Dressers: Rina Villani, Renato Lori
Chief Set Builder: Aldo Taloni
Set Painter: Mario Grilli
Construction Grip: Giuseppe Pagnotta
Titles: Moviecam 2000

MISCELLANEOUS
Script Continuity: Vivalda Vigorelli
Dialogue Coach: Sheila Goldberg
Production Secretaries: Serenella Severini, Fabrizio Diaz
Chief Production Accountant: Ferdinando Caputo
Production Accountants: Giulio Cestari, Renato Rinaldi
Entomology Consultant: Enrico Stella
Assistant Entomologist: Fabio Dell'Uomo
Insects and Animals Supplied By: Maurizio Garrone
Tanga Owned and Trained By: Daniel Berquiny
Transport: Romana Trasporti; Cartocci Brothers
Insurance Agent: Cinesicurta
Unit Publicist: Enrico Lucherini

LOCATIONS
Locations: Schwägalp-Pass, Kanton Appenzell, Switzerland; waterfall at Thurfälle in Unterwasser, Kanton St Gallen, Switzerland; Zürich, Kanton Zürich, Switzerland; De Paolis IN.CI.R. Studios, Rome, Italy

STUNTS
Stunt Co-Ordinator: Giorgio Ricci

CAST
Jennifer Connelly (Jennifer Corvino)
Daria Nicolodi (Frau Brückner)
Dalila di Lazzaro (the directress)
Patrick Bachau (Inspector Rudolf Geiger)
Donald Pleasence (John McGregor)
Fiore Argento (Vera Brandt)
Federica Mastroianni (Sophie)
Fiorenza Tessari (Gisela Sulzer)
Mario Donatone (Morris Shapiro)
Francesca Ottaviani (Grubach's nurse)
Michele Soavi (Kurt)
Franco Trevisi (real estate agent?)
Claudio Spadaro (real estate agent?)
Fausta Avelli, Marta Biuso, Sophie Bourchier, Paola Gropper, Ninke Hielkema, Mitzy Orsini, Geraldine Thomas (schoolgirls)
Marisa Simonetti (schoolgirl - uncredited)
Alberto Cracco (UBS bak teller - uncredited)
Gaspare Capparoni (aka Kaspar capparoni) (Karl - uncredited)
Antonio Maimone (Dr Grubach - uncredited)
Davide Marotta (Patau - uncredited)
Fulvio Mingozzi (Mr Sulzer - uncredited)
Tanga (Inge - uncredited)

PLOT SUMMARY

Jennifer Corvino arrives in Switzerland to enrol at an exclusive finishing school. She suffers from sleepwalking and is able to communicate telepathically with insects. When a serial killer begins picking off fellow students, Jennifer joins forces with a paraplegic entomologist, a vengeful, razor wielding chimpanzee and a psychic fly to track down the maniac.

Utterly insane, this was Argento's most bizarre movie to date. It certainly isn't very good, though it's hard not to warm to its loopy charms. The hideous heavy metal is painful to the ears and what passes as a plot is an insult to the intelligence, but any film that features a deranged chimpanzee armed with a cut-throat razor can't be all bad.

France
Theatrical Distributor: AM Films

International
World Sales: Intra Films

Italy
Theatrical Distributor: Titanus Distribuzione
Video Dsitributor: Creazioni Home Video; Mondadori Video

Japan
DVD Distributor: Culture Publishers

Netherlands
Video Distributor: EVC

UK
Theatrical Distributor: Palace Pictures
Video Distributor: Palace Video (1986)
DVD Distributor: DIVID 2000

USA
Theatrical Distributor: New Line Cinema
Video Distributor: Media Home Entertainment (M831)
DVD Distributor: Anchor Bay (1999)

West Germany
Video Distributor: New Vision (1988)

Australia
Rating: R

France
Rating: -12

Germany
Rating: 18

Italy
Rating: 14

Spain
Rating: 18

UK
Rating: 18
Initially released theatrically and by Palace Video with 17 seconds of cuts on top of the 20 or so minutes removed by the distributor. In 2000, an uncut print was released on DVD.

USA
Rating: R; unrated

1984
June
18: 2nd unit shooting begins

August
Day Unknown: Main unit shooting begins

October
Day Unknown: Main unit shooting ends

1985
January
31: Italy - theatrical release

June
12: France - theatrical release

August
30: USA - theatrical release

1986
February
Day Unknown: Portugal - shown at the Fantasporto Film Festival

April
18: UK - theatrical release

1988
February
17: West Germany - video release

1999
March
16: USA - DVD release

From Dario Argento the Master of Terror

It Will Make Your Skin Crawl

A new breed of terror

Evil is alive and killing

A nightmare ALIVE!

Creepers - UK / US title
Nasty Creepers (?)
Rampaging Insects

SEE ALSO
Zéro de conduite (1933)
Quattro mosche di velluto grigio (1971)
Profondo rosso (1975)
Suspiria (1977)
Inferno (1980)
Labyrinth (1986)
Opera (1987)
La Chiesa (1988)
Alien Beasts (1991)
Trauma (1993)
Dark City (1998)
Trainspotting (1996)

FOOTAGE INCLUDED IN
Il mondo dell'orrore di Dario Argento (1985)
The Valley (1985)
Jennifer's Theme (1985)

Art of Darkness pp.280; 298
illustrated review; credits; video data

Premiere (France) June 1985 p.22
review (by Guy Delcourt)

Pressbook
credits

Is It Uncut 5 p.23
illustrated note

KEYWORDS

insects, schoolgirls, serial killers, psychics, apes, chimpanzees, telepathy, police, entomologists, waterfalls, schools

Last Updated: 15 October, 2008