Alan Jones Hosts Argento Season

• 15th Apr 2011

Well wouldn’t you know it – we just get done covering a stack of Argento for Arrow video, and we are always praising the booklet that comes with each release that includes writing by Britain’s best Horror journalist, Alan Jones – and then this happens: He goes and hosts a season of the films for the Horror Chanel.

When renowned horror journalist, author and broadcaster Alan Jones met Dario Argento for the first time in 1982 on TENEBRAE he had no idea he would become a permanent fixture in Dario’s life, visiting all his subsequent film sets and writing the best-selling book ‘Profondo Argento’ about his career and the enigma he still presents to the world (And one day hopefully they update and republish this book!).

As Alan says: “I promised Dario on the day we met that I would always make sure his fans were kept reliably informed on his movies and future plans. It’s a duty I have solidly adhered to and one I know his legion of fans have appreciated. Hosting the Argento season on The Horror Channel is yet another part of that commitment I made to bring his unique work to the attention of the widest possible audience.”

Kicking off the season on Friday 13th May (10.55pm) is an uncut and uncensored version of THE STENDHAL SYNDROME starring Asia Argento (pictured) as Anna, a young police officer who sufferers from a rare hallucinatory disorder which causes her to blackout when looking at works of art, When she is incarcerated by the sadistic murderer she’s been sent to apprehend, she comes face to face with evil personified.

Alan Jones: “This is Incredibly strong stuff, brimming over with copious sexual violence, sadistic rape, razor-blade torture and extreme blood-letting.  Argento’s most sustained seat-edged, nerve-jangling opening since SUSPIRIA”.                                         

Next up on Fri 20^th May is SLEEPLESS (10.55pm) which sees the director return to true giallo form in a nightmarish slasher movie of       considerable style and tension. A retired

police detective is forced back into action to try and solve the case of a serial killer Steel yourself for a bravura thrill ride of Argento patented murderous set pieces including a stunning opening sequence aboard a train.

Alan Jones: “A triumphant redefinition of his giallo roots, Argento’s symphony of terror goes for shock sensation with set-pieces that shimmer with well-crafted suspense for a full-throttle pulp friction work-out”.

 THE CARD PLAYER, starring Argento’s other daughter Fiore (pictured) closes the gut-churning season on Fri 27^th May (10.55pm). In this giallo for the digital age a serial killer is at large in Rome, playing a deadly game with the city’s police. For every woman he kidnaps, the investigating offers are given the chance to win them back by entering a game of online poker, though losing results in the ultimate price being paid…

Alan Jones: “A unique twist of fate thriller containing some wonderfully choreographed classic Argento cat-and-mouse sequences, an often heart-stopping thrill ride”.

  TV: Sky 319 / Virgin 149 / Freesat 138

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