Pardon the pretentiousness that could be taken from the following; I’m just typing while thinking.
Take from this what you will, but there’s seriously no greater joy for me than when unsuspected visitors to my bedroom finger through my DVD collection, only to leer my way with hesitation and mild shock. That me, the nice, friendly and warm fella they thought they knew so well has such a perverse appreciation of truly fucked-up cinema. Sure, they glance at Billy Madison and other non-threatening standards, but then they also see Lucio Fulci’s The House by the Cemetery, and Dario Argento’s Deep Red, and the many recent foreign horror flicks with the off-putting cover art designs. And then I proceed to fawn over the elaborate death scenes, how the respective director makes you squirm while reeling in sadistic glee.
Truth is, I’m accepting more and more every day that there’s this inner dark side beneath my naturally disarming ways. Take the book I purchased this morning—-Ramsey Campbell’s The Face That Must Die. I know tons of people reading The Lost Symbol, thinking that they’re onto something quite intriguing, but not I; I’m enraptured by British horror writers. Just last week, I stormed through James Herbert’s ferocious ’70s novel The Fog. And every night, before I drift off into slumber city, I take in another entry from Jack Ketchum’s demented short story collection Peaceable Kingdom. His “To Suit the Crime” is a must-read; it’s an intense exploitation story bookended by a Rod Serling-esque twist.
The reason for this self-examination is the following, the first full trailer for Amer, a French new-age-giallo from filmmaking duo Helene Cattet and Bruno Forzani that could potentially show Dario Argento how he used to make horror. Amer is currently making the festival rounds, and the praise is slowly mounting. The trailer, released earlier today, is bizarre and moving, lavish and somewhat vile. Meaning, exactly my kind of thing. You want to know more about me? Watch the trailer, after the jump, and wonder why I’ve replayed this five times in a row now. But first, here’s the synopsis found on Bloody Disgusting
Desire has always been linked to one’s look. And cinema too. Luis Buñuel knew that very well when he filmed the short of a razor over an eye with a detail shot. Hélène Cattet and Bruno Forzani recover this image in an experimental film with immaculate style. Someone watches a girl through a keyhole. The wind lightly lifts a woman’s skirt as a group of men look on. The fantasy of a dress tearing. Composed of fragments -of eyes, lights, shadows, gestures– and without dialogues, Amer delves into the life of Ana, always halfway between the real and the imaginary. A film of sensations, always shot skin-deep.
Head beyond the jump for the hypnotic trailer:
THEATER OF MINE 
Hmmm. Interesting that a lot of French filmmakers are working in directing teams; AMER, INSIDE, LA HORDE, HAUTE TENSION etc…
I see the ‘problem’ with American horror films is the need of the often first-time director, directing from HIS own script. This need to be the all powerful creative force, eh?
Thanks for the heads-up on AMER.