Plot in one sentence: paunchy, psychotic estate agent John Savage spends a hellishly boring day on the road, driving towards an oh so predictable conclusion.
As the opening credits kick in, set to a wonderful big band score, you anticipate a great story which is about to unfold... alas, it's just one more Filmirage movie.
The first shot of John Savage in the film is so nice it feels like it's coming from a different, better-quality production. Throughout LE PORTE DEL SILENZIO there are moments which stick out and hint at what could have been.
Obstacles our supposed protagonist has to overcome are decidedly unexciting: he gets pulled over by cops (but they let him go quite easily), his car gets stuck in the mud, he has to wait at a red traffic light and so on - and this is supposed to be a supernatural thriller movie?
Although only Franco Piana is credited as the composer, there are also stock 'horror' cues in the film that sound like Carlo Maria Cordio's work. They possibly come from Fulci's THE TOUCH OF DEATH and Lattanzi's KILLING BIRDS.
Camera and crew reflected in the car door - a rare amusing moment
in an otherwise monotonous film.
LE PORTE DEL SILENZIO could have made a passable 20-minute film. As a feature it is insufferably long. Little is to be gained from the experience, even for people who are 'into' Fulci.
Can I recommend LE PORTE DEL SILENZIO? - Only to those who are absolutely dying to see what Louisiana back roads looked like circa 1991. Anyone looking for any substance or a story that actually progresses should steer clear of this one.
For an alternative take on Fulci's final film, please read Nigel's review HERE.
There is also a nice review from Eric Cotenas HERE.
For an alternative take on Fulci's final film, please read Nigel's review HERE.
There is also a nice review from Eric Cotenas HERE.
This comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteLet me try that again... Oh yeah, Door to Silence. Fulci's final film. What a huge disappointment. I hated this movie and I didn't see anything that resembled hidden or wasted potential. I definitely agree that it would have made a decent short film. Nice review, duder. I think you may have given me a new appreciation for this one (though I don't know if I'll ever watch again without fast-forwarding).
ReplyDeleteThanks for your thoughts, Richard!
ReplyDeleteTo be fair, this review isn't meant to encourage people to watch or especially re-watch Door to Silence. I don't particularly appreciate it myself.
Fulci creates this hard-to care for hero and sticks us in a car with him for nearly ninety minutes - not much fun.
I did very much like the Jazz score, but that's about it.
Alex I do disagree with you occasionally when you defend what I consider the indefencible but am surprised this time I was gonna find myself in disagreement with you over this one- I love this film, okay it is what you say- lots of driving around but it is very much in the fulci style and it is a style I adore- loved the ending and it was an ending that made me think more about what I had seen in the prior 90 minutes so it may be worth looking over for the subtle and not so subtle clues.
ReplyDeleteIt reminded me incidentally of the French production Dead End. Dead end however is a far better film and had the sense to spice the thing up with a little action from time to time. That said they are on many levels very similar films.
Just to add - I believe my wife enjoyed Door Into Silence too.
Hello Nigel!
ReplyDeleteThank you very much.
Disagreement is always welcome, especially if it's as well-articulated as yours.
Sticking up for the films you care about is essentially what makes blogging fun!
I respect your opinion and I am sure that you and your wife are not the only two people who enjoy this film.
I've watched Door to Silence for the first time last May and though it pretty dire. Recently I got a better quality copy of it, but still had no fun with the film.
If it didn't have Fulci's name attached to it, I doubt I would sit through to the end.
There is no motive for Melvin.
Why is he so desperate to go back home?
Frankly, I couldn't care less.
A more traditional scenario of running away from death rather than chasing after it through the dirt tracks would have worked better, at least for me.
Maybe he isn't going home- I think this was the same thing with Dead End they are visiting a town that doesn't exist- I saw it as he was dead or at least dying- sort of Jacobs ladder thing- there need not be a motivation for reaching the destination- beyond the travel to the light thing, thats how I saw it anyhow. So thats why I didnt look to much for his motivations- so maybe it was an out of body experience, maybe it was reliving his last moments, that I don't think was overly clear.
ReplyDeleteI think this is where it has something in common with the beyond- the beyond had a lot of weirdness that I have always assumed to be expressions of the confusion caused by the situation- in a way allowing the viewer to experience the disorientation that would accompany the opening of a gateway- logic, time and space melting. In a way by giving an experience in that instance we are changed from voyeur to a sort of participant in the experience and feel the confusion that our characters feel.
I see door to silence in the same way- things being unclear in the viewers mind to mirror the mind of a pratagonist who isnt quite sure what the hell is happening.
Just a thought.
Sorry, I haven't seen either Dead End or Jacobs Ladder. To tell the truth, I don't like The Beyond much, either(but I absolutely love City of the living dead). That's why I never reviewed it on here - why upset people who like it?
ReplyDeleteI also think Door to Silence is about an out of body experience, it just didn't have to be a feature-length one ;))
Your thoughts are very interesting, I wish the actual film resembled what you describe a bit more.
I generally dislike late 80's/early 90's films, no matter by who.
Some films stick with you, others don't. For me Touch of Death is a film with subtle magic. I don't care for the gore in it, it's 'the Fulci touch' I like.
And Door to Silence is more in line with disposable 'Filmirage srl.' films: Witchcraft(La casa 4),Killing Birds, etc. I view it as more of a D'Amato mass-produced US-filmed home-video-aimed horror, not a highly personal Fulci film.
Interesting you mention touch of death- again its fulci allowing the viewer into the mind of the protagonist- a humdrum film, just like the day to day of lester, oh and the camera dwelling on physical imperfections so we view the women as parsons does- I am not sure at what point fulci's career took this direction- probably after zombi 2, not sure it applies to murderrock but in so many of the films fulci seems to want the viewer to experience what the protagonists experience- perhaps the antithesis of brecht and alienation theory, aside from that ending of Nightmare Concert where we are shown a camera crew at the end- but I took that more as a shot at the censors anyway with the "look its only a movie" finale.
ReplyDeleteThe theory certainly applies to city of the living dead as much as the beyond, manhattan baby, and even to an extent New York Ripper where it, for me at least, makes me viewing some of the scenes feel as sleazy as the situation- but here he doesn't draw the viewer in more leaves the viewer outside as voyeur.
I will maintain thats what fulci attempts with Door To Silence, but yes it could have probably been tighter as a short- it reminded me of the old twighlight zone or outer limits anyways.
oh and a bit more- hehe, I love discussing Fulci- I felt with door to silence he even filmed a car in that fulci way- what was missing however which I loved in his early 80s films was that hard focus shot he uses with a particular music cue - sort of a short stab then a bit of melody, that gets me every time.
ReplyDeleteI think I know what you mean by the Fulci way, it's like in The House by the Cemetery in the library scene they rack focus to show the bar on which Freudstein supposedly hung himself and it's accompanied by a sound effect.
ReplyDeleteI greatly enjoy Murderock, even more than Touch of Death.
I love discussing Fulci, too;))
What upsets me about Door to Silence is:
a) over-indulgence
b) lack of any payoff - all Filmirage films have a stupid 'twist' ending, every fucking one of them! They even tacked it on to otherwise excellent Stagefright('right between the eyes!').
Also, lack of familiar faces makes it harder to warm up to Door to Silence. No Al Cliver, no Fulci cameo...instead we have mainly non-actors filling out the supporting parts. The kind of people who are so terminally lacking charisma that your eyes just slide off them when they're on screen.
I know, this was a rare direct sound film for Fulci but I'd much rather have a heavy-accented professional actor than those local nobodies.
John Savage is a good actor, but he is stuck behind the wheel for most of the film. Interestingly, there are shots where his lips are moving but there's just music on the soundtrack. He was probably cussing at himself for having accepted such a part;))
...oh and that D.E.A.T.H. numberplate - c'mon, that's just too corny!
ReplyDeleteI'm not sure in the case if door to silence it was a twist ending in the sense of a film that didn't know how to end- for that I see nightmare city as an example of that, but this was more one of those 6th sense type twists where the movie has been deliverately toying with perceptions the whole time- so a twist yes, but in a good way.
ReplyDeleteI think its a film worthy of a deeper look- because there are things throughout that obviously don't feel right, but I am sure there maybe far subtler things too- I dont know how to describe this well but will illustrate- you know when you ve worked through the night or have been partying too long and there is a weird disengaged feeling with the surroundings- conversations nearby feel almost if they are coming from a different room- thats the best way I can explain the feelings that Door into Silence feels to me- and post zombi 2 for most of fulci's work I get that he is trying to create a "feeling" beyond the usual passive viewer thing we get from action films for example, it is as if fulci is trying to make us participents in an experience (or feeling)rather than just shock us with things, as such I dont think fulci wants us to identify with the character in the sense of asking us to like or hate them - merely to get us to feel how the situation feels to the protagonist- especially felt this was the case in the so called gates trilogy but also with lester parsons, the seedy voyeurs in new york ripper, the confusion of madness in Nightmare concert even for one brief moment in Demonia where an echo voice says something like "tommy no!!!!!!!" before the human wishbone which was a trick i believe was also used in Manhattan Baby.
And I don't know if you noticed this, but in many of these films it is a continuation of the same concept as the beyond told in different forms and viewed from different angles- even the devils honey up to a point is a version of the beyond and the flirtation with crossing to the other side- halsey I believe is dead on the inside in that- so one character flirts with death as another rediscovers what it means to live.
going of on tangents here a bit but door to silence probably tries to do in 1.5 hours what the beyond does in a minute- the process of crossing to the other side, its all an expansion of themes laid out in the trilogy
I think the DEATH number plate was a dreadful addition to the thing - put in there from those who I guess the filmmakers thought may not get it- I think the 6th sense achieved that with the dropping of a ring- so subtle but hit me like a ton of bricks- it didnt need anyone holding up a sign saying Bruce Willis is dead, but this is indeed what door into silence did- in this case I dont think he was really chasing death as such, that was a play on perceptions, the perceptions maybe of a man who didnt realise he was dead
ReplyDeletefor comparison by the way here is my old review of the film-
ReplyDeletehttp://www.italianfilmreview.com/2010/01/door-to-silence-le-porte-del-silenzio.html
and certainly I did agree that the film was much longer than it needed to be
Dearie me, you DO love Fulci very much, don't you!
ReplyDeleteCall me a cynic, but not for a second will I be convinced that Door to Silence is not a shallow movie.
Great cinematography, decent continuity, but the film has nothing to tell and thus becomes a frustrating experience.
Demonia I used to like very much but can't watch it any more.
I am glad that you're able of seeing such amazing things in Fulci's work, and all the interconnections in his later work that you mention are fascinating. But it takes a genuine Fulci enthusiast to appreciate all that.
Maybe I'm becoming disillusioned but of late I mainly see the ruthless commercial side to those films, and little else.
Just read your review and it covers some of the same points as mine, but seen in a different context, which is great. Let me add a link to your review here if you don't mind
ReplyDeleteI think you are indeed right- but maybe I am seeing a complexity here- fulci was more director than producer and I generally don't like the term auteur as I see film as collaborative and every input will bring something of themselves, thus the changing styles there- but even while I generally don't go for auteur as a theory i think there is something very personal in all fulci's film that seems to try to find a comfort from personal tragedy. The change in his film from the late 60s - it was straight up comedy to that point, and a western and a few rock n roll flicks- now that should to a point just suggest that here is a man just going with the flow, playing to whats popular in the day. But there is certainly far more going on- and some may see it as sad but I dont. Death is not a bad place in Fulci's films- life is. Life is cruel but death is a place of peace- the glimpses we get of the beyond are of a serene place (admittedly heavily cribbed from the silent Italian "L'inferno")
ReplyDeleteLosing family in tragic circumstances I think Lucio made film from the heart- but this is where I return to the collaborative thing- there are producers, there are markets, there are things he would have had to compromise on or put in there maybe against his better judgement.
Lucio Fulci lost family in tragedy, ill health and death would be stalking him too- for all its supernatural themes there is little of horror in Door to Silence- the dead incidentally can be pretty benign in his films- emily the blind ghost for example or those sent to take back to what is her home.
While the process of what death entails in fulci films are pretty grizzly- spider attacks and that beating lester parsons dished out- these it is not death I think we are asked to fear as such but the final moments of life- death is not an end in these films as all from blind ghosts to topless nuns come back.
So yes the ruthless commercial side is there- but for a director if they weren't there he couldnt make his films in the first place- maybe to an extent this was appeased, (see the DEATH number plate which was ill advised) but I can imagine a producer saying what the fuck is this about? no one will get this, so that I feel was bolted on, because we know lucio can be far more subtle
also to add to the above- in showing death in grizzly detail, maybe fulci is saying something here too- not about fearing death as such - even in his later western death was not an end for the guy who thought he could talk to the dead, it was a comforting place too- one free of racism as the dead where his friends without colour prejudice.
ReplyDeleteI think if the death scenes in fulci's films do create a fear, it is not just of pain, it emphasises something that the living should fear - that is losing someone, cos that is far more painful than anything, whereas the dead in fulci's films havent ended there, they talk to the living. okay they also get revenge, be cruel, or whatever but they are still on that journey-
when you watch slasher films and indeed a lot of horror you are faced with all the moralist stuff- people who like sex get it in the neck, so do bad guys, with a lot of fulci horror- there is no feeling of people who deserve the fate, who deserves to die? well everyone does really it begins at birth and the journey in reality ends with death and while we are upset when someone young is taken from us - with our senses we experience countless things every day, we notice sounds and senses - smells, colours, life is a beautiful thing, but it ends for everyone. In fulci films however there are sharper observations about the cruelty of life- the cruelty we see in scenes with characters who die and we think "what the fuck did they do to deserve that?" but in a way this is very honest- I have lost friends, and have asked the same question myself at times.
Fulci had to deal with his own tragedies, he had to make peace with whatever it is he had to make peace with- he was a gifted director who had an outlet- so he clearly used that. The commercialism of giving the fans what they wanted, he had to do that, but he did it his way for sure.
Thanks for an epic comment filled with genuinely interesting insights and well worth a post of its own! Of course Lucio's films are still that little bit more special. Look at other films that use the houses from The Beyond and House by the Cemetery as locations - there is none of the magic atmosphere. Look at The Wax Mask, which could have been Lucio's film - and again something is clearly lacking there.
ReplyDeleteI also think the auteur theory is highly dubious.
But Fulci could write his name all over a film, even a risible one like Demonia.
Nigel, you impress me!
ReplyDeleteYour posts at IFR are rather concise and than you just reel off a real ode to Fulci on a whim - wow!
Ah yes Demonia- a remake in all but name- when people talk of a trilogy they overlook Demonia- even the seance in that looks familiar.
ReplyDeleteWhile I suspect it was not his intent I have a way of looking at Sodoma's Ghost and Demonia- Nazisploitation and Nunsploitation, two great exploitation genres of the previous decade. Neither made commercial sense in the 80s as they ran against the flow- but he tells them as supernatural tales- the spectre of filmmaking for exploitation directors only a short while past- makes them both sad films, they were of the quality that could be expected for the era in Italian film - neither exploited currently cool genres, and was a swansong for that great wave of Italian exploitation that at his peak would have seen cinecitta as a hive of activity as assorted nuns, nazis, fedora wearing killers and hard nosed cops sat down for lunch after filming one of the over 300 films a year the industry was churning out in its heydey.
I ve yet to see a fulci film I dislike, think I ve seen about 48 so far and have the rest, a handful of the comedies, still in my in tray.
Oh just so you know- the IFR style was cooked up simply because I got maybe about 1000 titles to review and I would never get through them without writing capsule reviews, I really would love to write some longer stuff on some films- the plan down the line is for a second blog and a book is being considered- there are a few people pushing me in that direction. Just wonder if the world needs another fulci book after the excellent "beyond terror"
ReplyDeleteGreat to hear about your further plans, should be wonderful.
ReplyDeleteBeyond Terror is a great read, I'm sure there are plenty of people who would gobble up another Fulci book, because there still are aspects that need to be covered.
Funny you should review this, I also found myself revisiting the film for a DVDBeaver review/comparison of the Severin and Raro discs not so long ago (http://www.dvdbeaver.com/film3/dvd_reviews53/door_to_silence.htm).
ReplyDeleteYes, an odd coincidence.
ReplyDeleteLet me link your review up on here as well.
Even Fulci at his worst seems to demand reassessment, and its easier to find their merits if you let some time pass after the initial viewing.
ReplyDeleteWell, Le Porte... isn't the worst Fulci around. To me Sodoma Ghost is even less endearing. Fulci is very 'in' at the moment. Franco is becoming that way, too. A lot of people are keen to explore and find some deeper meaning to their stuff. That will pass eventually, making way for another period of obscurity for these film-makers. A permanent one, perhaps.
ReplyDeleteI simply haven't got the time to keep giving these films second and third chances. There are plenty of fans out there who can praise something like Le Porte del Silenzio, it can easily do without my approval.
Hey, Alex.
ReplyDeleteFirst, let me say that I agree totally that Sodoma's Ghost is pretty bad.
I wrote also a positive review of Le porte. I grew up near the area where it was filmed, so a lot of atmosphere and imagery was familiar to me.
I watched this again after I read your review. It seems to me that Fulci was moving into a newer period of his work. Had he lived his subsequent work might have been very different. Watching A Cat in the Brain, for example, before watching Le porte, it is understandable that Fulci was really trying something different.
I understand your not liking this. Melvin is a pretty unlikable character who is really having a bad day.
I also know what you mean about film makers, like Fulci and Franco, enjoying a period of critical reappraisal. It will pass, I agree. It seems as if Argento's time has passed.
Your a great writer Alex with excellent film tastes. I always look forward to your reviews.
Thanks very much man,
ReplyDeleteI really appreciate it when you stop by.
Yes, it seems public interest in Argento is declining at the moment. I thought he did extremely interesting things with Sleepless and Giallo. But oh my God, was Mother of Tears a piece of shit.
I wonder if the bridge from the opening credits of Le porte del silenzio is the same one from the Beyond?
The bridge-- it is. A new one has been built since Hurricane Katrina. I must have traveled the old bridge hundreds of times.
ReplyDelete