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Movie
Poster for The Stendhal Syndrome

The Stendhal Syndrome

1996 · 120 min

A queasy, hypnotic descent into trauma and madness, blending art, brutality, and psychological disintegration into an unsettling experience.

Tagline
Murder is an art — and she’s the canvas!
Overview
A young policewoman slowly goes insane while tracking down an elusive serial rapist/killer through Italy when she herself becomes a victim of the brutal man's obsession.

Search YouTube for the trailer

Stream in the UK
  • BFI Player
More options Data from JustWatch
In your watch list

How it feels

Written by AI. It can be wrong.

Tone
  • darkstrength 3 of 3
  • tensestrength 2 of 3
  • eeriestrength 2 of 3
  • bleakstrength 2 of 3
Pacing
slow-burn, 1 of 4, from slow-burn to relentless
Attention
demanding, 4 of 4, from background-friendly to demanding
Themes
  • trauma
  • obsession
  • madness
  • identity
  • violence
Places
  • big city
  • single country house
Era
contemporary
Audience
adult
Form
  • twist ending
Content intensity
  • Gore strong
  • Language mild
  • Violence strong
  • Sex strong
All scales, 0 to 10
Scales, 0 to 10
ScaleValue0 to 10
Action4
Horror8
Humour1
Realism6
Romance3
Tension8
Darkness9
Complexity6
Emotional weight8

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Where to watch in the UK

Stream
  • BFI Player

Streaming data from JustWatch.All options on TMDB

Details

Genres
horror, mystery, thriller
Directed by
Dario Argento
Written by
Franco Ferrini, Dario Argento
Starring
Asia Argento, Thomas Kretschmann, Marco Leonardi, Luigi Diberti, Paolo Bonacelli, Lucia Stara, Lorenzo Crespi, Vera Gemma
Music
Ennio Morricone
Cinematography
Giuseppe Rotunno
Runtime
120 min
Country
Italy
Languages
Italian

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