I just rented Berberian Sound Studio. I liked it, particularly when scenes of the supernatural Argentoesque giallo manifest. I could appreciate it from the culture shock angle too; as I misunderstood communications and such when in contact with a wonderful Italian film family.
Toby Jones plays the nebbishy Gilderoy quite nicely, but it is the of Italian filmmakers around him that get my applause as well as watching the foley folks do their thing. An interesting arty moment comes into the third act when the primary color based charts of matching sounds to their scenes are flashed in almost a hallucinatory fashion. All of the colored arrows eventually point downward mirroring Gilderoy's uncertain experience. Also, the giallo-like sequences of his unravelling are fun.
Is he at Berberian Sound Studio supervising the sound production or not?
I can see where giallo and horror fans would find issue with this movie, but as someone who appreciates sound and color, I think Peter Strickland did a fine job there. If you can roll with a strange bit of uncertainty and culture clash and NOT seeing any of the horrors described, you might enjoy BSS too.
And looking in the credits, the wonderful actress performing the older resurrected witch is NOT Suzy Kendall, but Hungarian actress/poet Katalin Ladik. I THOUGHT I heard Kendall screaming ( which would line up with the supposed 'special guest screamer' credit.)
I am happy to see the giallo becoming a profound influence on young filmmakers. I'm looking forward to seeing The Editor and The Strange Colour of Your Body's Tears.
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