Film Review: Phenomena

About Phenomena (1985)

Jennifer Connelly stars as Jennifer Corvino, the daughter of an American film star, who enrolls in a prestigious Swiss boarding school under the tutelage of the prudish Mrs. Bruckner (played by frequent Argento collaborator and former beau Daria Nicolodi).

Possessing a unique telepathic gift, Jennifer is capable of communicating with insects on an instinctive level, often while sleepwalking. This trait soon brands her a freak among her snooty classmates but makes her a valuable asset to entomologist Dr. MacGregor (Donald Pleasence), who is currently employing the innate forensic skills of insects to aid police in tracking a serial killer targeting the boarders at Jennifers school.

Starring: Fiore Argento, Patrick Bauchau, Jennifer Connelly, Mario Donatone, Eleonora Giorgi

Directed by: Dario Argento

Runtime: 110 minutes

Studio: Anchor Bay

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Review: Phenomena 

Dario Argento’s cult horror classic tells the story of Jennifer Corvino (Jennifer Connelly) who is sent to a boarding school in Switzerland. There she learns that murders have been taking place for the last year and the girls at the school are very much in danger. Nice welcome, eh? One night, Jennifer goes sleepwalking and ends up lost in the surrounding woodland. She encounters a chimpanzee that guides her to the home of forensic entomologist, John McGregor (Donald Pleasance) who witnesses Jennifer’s comfort around insects and deduces she is able to communicate with them.

Following the murder of Jennifer’s roommate Sophie (Federica Mastroianni), the school comes to believe that Jennifer is insane when they discover a letter to her father talking of her ability to communicate with insects. With Jennifer’s gift and McGregor’s expert analysis of flies that have sought out corpses, the two make a somewhat formidable team that bands together to search for the killer in the area but can they stop him before he turns his focus upon them?

This is a very typical eighties horror film with a great soundtrack and plenty of blood and gore for fans. The plotline is a little bit silly to be honest but Connelly does her best with what’s there and it was a pleasure to have Donald Pleasance researching flies rather than chasing Michael Myers around as I’m used to seeing. This isn’t one of those horror films that will spring to mind as being among the greats but it has a bit of eighties charm to it and is worth considering. If that doesn’t sell it then the chimpanzee is one resourceful dude.

Phenomena is a quite good horror flick with an unusual angle of having a girl that can communicate with insects. Approaching the forensic aspect of murders was quite a nice touch and there are some genuine surprises when the brutal killer is finally unmasked. If you’re looking for a fun horror night with your friends this one is worth considering.

Verdict: 3/5

(Film source: reviewer’s own copy)

Film Review: Phenomena | Thank you for reading Tweedle Dee and Tweedle Dave