Joe D’Amato’s Beyond the Darkness (Buio Omega) was a pleasant surprise. The master of Italian sleaze and trash was actually able to make a film that resembled art!! Beyond the Darkness is a tale about a young man and the horrifying loss of his only love. A rich orphan; the loss of love the young man experiences must have been especially traumatizing as he never had the love of a family. Despite all of his power, money, and prestige, he can’t buy what is forever gone.
Instead of trying to buy another love, the young man decides he'd rather butcher young women. He takes his lost love (after stuffing her rotting body) and puts her on display in a bed at his mansion. What else is a heartbroken young man supposed to do!?! The young man is also constantly shadowed by his mature housekeeper who wants his love. The housekeeper tries to play on the man’s mental imbalances but he eventually gets tired of that and takes appropriate action. Her only benefit to the man is that she helps him dispose of the bodies of the women that he slaughters.
Beyond the Darkness features a tranquilizing score by legendary Italian musicians, Goblin. I was surprised by the emotional impact that Beyond the Darkness had during scenes of sadness of the young man’s lost love in combination with the melodic talents of Goblin. Throughout the film, the music is very consistent with the overall feel of Beyond the Darkness. Even when the young bachelor burns a young woman’s body alive, I couldn’t help to feel sorry for the depressed lad.
Beyond the Darkness is a masterpiece of Italian horror cinema. I have yet to see another film by Joe D’Amato that had any redeeming qualities. Beyond the Darkness features the full frontal nudity you would expect from the Italian sleaze director, but it also features genuine human emotion. I wouldn’t be surprised if Beyond the Darkness was a personal and “auteur piece” of the stereotypical Italian director. Maybe old D'Amato had a lost love he could never get over. Every director has to put themselves into their film at least one time during their career.
Instead of trying to buy another love, the young man decides he'd rather butcher young women. He takes his lost love (after stuffing her rotting body) and puts her on display in a bed at his mansion. What else is a heartbroken young man supposed to do!?! The young man is also constantly shadowed by his mature housekeeper who wants his love. The housekeeper tries to play on the man’s mental imbalances but he eventually gets tired of that and takes appropriate action. Her only benefit to the man is that she helps him dispose of the bodies of the women that he slaughters.
Beyond the Darkness features a tranquilizing score by legendary Italian musicians, Goblin. I was surprised by the emotional impact that Beyond the Darkness had during scenes of sadness of the young man’s lost love in combination with the melodic talents of Goblin. Throughout the film, the music is very consistent with the overall feel of Beyond the Darkness. Even when the young bachelor burns a young woman’s body alive, I couldn’t help to feel sorry for the depressed lad.
Beyond the Darkness is a masterpiece of Italian horror cinema. I have yet to see another film by Joe D’Amato that had any redeeming qualities. Beyond the Darkness features the full frontal nudity you would expect from the Italian sleaze director, but it also features genuine human emotion. I wouldn’t be surprised if Beyond the Darkness was a personal and “auteur piece” of the stereotypical Italian director. Maybe old D'Amato had a lost love he could never get over. Every director has to put themselves into their film at least one time during their career.
-Ty E
I think all film-makers must have total contempt for their audience by definition (especially in the case of the makers of Hollywood blockbusters) because they know that hundreds of millions of idiots around the world are going to pay as much as $12 or even $15 each to see the laughable pile of garbage that they are making.
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