[Bub the Zombie]

Giallo is singular, Gialli is plural. It's Gialli cinema.

Secondly, Tenebre is by far the best work of Argento. I dare say its a notch above Suspiria, and makes a strong claim of being the best giallo ever made. It's a perfect little mystery with its healthy dose of colorful deaths and and vivid, starkly created imagery, accentuated by a very odd yet fascinating background score by Claudio Simonetti.

Plotwise, it is the most coherent Argento till date. It doesn't leave much stuff to the imagination ala Suspiria or Inferno, and neither does it border upon the supernatural overtures of the two. The flashback sequences add the surreal imagery for which Argento films are famous for, and several shots set in bright daylight and clammy, yet brightly-lighted rooms show that Argento does not forget the essence of Tenebre, which means "darkness" in Latin.

Goblin provides a deep, resonating, carnival-esque heavily dependent on synthesiser score to Tenebre, and they compliment each murder sequence perfectly. And each murder has vividly supportive FX done by Corridori, which makes them seem grotesquely real and unflinchingly brutal.

The only real flaw with Tenebre is the dubbing, especially of Daria Nicolodi. The Italian version must be a real rocker, with Nicolodi in all her resplendent form, but for the English-speaking world, it's a damper. Argento usually does not go for long characterisation, and that is amply evident by plenty of cameos here.

To appreciate a giallo, you must first understand it's style. Gialli are never meant to have much of a substance, because they are examples of stylish and chic film-making. Argento's giallos, especially the early ones like L' Uccello dalle piume di cristallo (The Bird With The Crystal Plumage), Il gatto a nove code (Cat O'Nine Tails), Profondo rosso (Deep Red), Suspiria, Inferno, all contain the charismatic Argento - vividly bright imagery and extremely bizarre soundtracks marking each murder sequence to it's entirety and adding generous doses of surrealism to the experience.

To admire Argento and his work, you have to be empathetic.