---
title: "Berberian Sound Studio"
year: 2012
kind: "film"
canonical: "https://film.one/film/berberian-sound-studio"
fi1m_score: 78
critics_score: 70
critics_reviews: 21
published: "2026-09-17T07:48:21.690269+00:00"
updated: "2026-09-17T07:48:33.484638+00:00"
region: "US"
licence: "© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL."
---

# Berberian Sound Studio (2012)

Directed by Peter Strickland · 1h 32m · Horror, Drama, Thriller

**Fi1m score: 78** · Critics 70 from 21 reviews

*In a sentence:* A horror film in which even the vegetables deserve danger money

> Peter Strickland makes the manufacture of horror effects funny, absorbing and unsettling, with Toby Jones as a nervous sound engineer. The plotting grows thin, but we recommend it to anyone who likes horror that makes them listen.

## Synopsis

In a recording studio in 1970s Italy, British sound engineer Gilderoy (Toby Jones) takes on the sound work for a horror film. He wants to get on with the job, but it means spending his days manufacturing the noises of human suffering. Among those around him are Francesco (Cosimo Fusco), Santini (Antonio Mancino) and Elena (Tonia Sotiropoulou). Vegetables are destroyed to imitate injuries, and the violence these effects accompany stays out of sight. Gilderoy has the technical skill for the work; his reserved manner leaves him ill-equipped for the studio’s cultural misunderstandings.

## Review

Peter Strickland’s *Berberian Sound Studio* makes the manufacture of horror effects absorbing, funny and disturbing. We recommend it, provided a thin story will not spoil the pleasure of watching people do peculiar work with great concentration. Gilderoy, a timid British sound engineer played by Toby Jones, has come to an Italian studio to work on a horror film. The director keeps its violence largely out of sight and makes us attend to the people providing its sounds.

Toby Jones gives Gilderoy enough reserve to make his discomfort interesting before it becomes alarming. He suggests a man who would prefer the job to take care of the conversation, and whose skill cannot quite protect him from feeling out of place. The comedy of cultural misunderstanding works because we recognise the embarrassment, rather than simply enjoying an awkward man’s difficulties. Even when the film becomes harder to follow, his uncertainty remains easy to understand.

The vegetable destruction is the clearest demonstration of what the film can do. We flinched at the noises of bodily injury made from ingredients we could see were harmless. Showing the process does not stop the sounds from suggesting wounded flesh, and the sheer effort involved has its own awkward comedy. By leaving the violence to our imagination, the film also makes us notice how readily we supply it.

Nic Knowland’s cinematography makes those damaged vegetables unpleasantly compelling to look at. We study the ingredients because the finished sound is so much worse than anything we are being shown. Jennifer Kernke’s production design makes the analogue studio credible as a place of work, which matters when the work itself is so peculiar. The setting remains somewhere a conscientious engineer might want to be, long enough for us to understand Gilderoy’s involvement.

Chris Dickens’s editing makes the sound-making procedures worth following even when we would rather not hear the results. It gives the specialised work a rhythm we can settle into, an important part of the film’s appeal for anyone who enjoys watching people practise a craft. James Cargill and Trish Keenan’s music contributes to the anxiety without displacing the effects. The score keeps the listening uncomfortable, even when the practical business of producing these noises has become familiar.

The weakness is what happens once we understand how uncomfortable Gilderoy is. Peter Strickland keeps finding ways to sustain that feeling, but some stretches repeat what Toby Jones has already conveyed with less fuss. At 92 minutes, it is hardly overlong, yet there are passages where we wait for another reason to care about this particular man. The uncertainty stops being interesting when it becomes difficult to tell what he wants beyond getting through the next ordeal.

The decision to build a horror film around skilled labour gives this a welcome strangeness. The fear grows from listening closely to a job being done, which is enough to distinguish it without any knowledge of Italian genre cinema. Choose it for a patient evening, and give the sound your full attention.

*Fi1m score 78, published 17 September 2026.*

## What the critics say

Most critics respond warmly to Berberian Sound Studio, with praise concentrated on its sound design, Peter Strickland’s control of atmosphere and Toby Jones’s performance as a timid engineer becoming increasingly unsettled by his work. The reviews repeatedly admire how vegetable-based effects and unseen violence make the audience imagine the horror rather than watch it. Several also value the workplace humour and close attention to analogue sound production, which give the unease a convincing practical setting.

The spread is wide, however, and reservations centre on repetition, thin storytelling and an unsatisfying final stretch. Even some admirers find the film opaque or one-note, while the strongest detractors regard its psychological shifts as insufficiently developed. The Hollywood Reporter argues that the later surrealism frustrates general audiences; Collider praises the craft but finds no compelling story or persuasive reason for the engineer’s unravelling. The disagreement is chiefly over whether the atmosphere sustains a full film.

### Reviews we read (21)

- **Evening Standard**, Charlotte O'Sullivan (90/100, inferred): The critic hails this as one of the best films of 2012, a witty and claustrophobic thriller about a sound engineer descending into confusion while working on a giallo. She singles out the clever avoidance of exploitative visuals and the director's playful handling of cultural stereotypes for praise. [Read](https://www.standard.co.uk/culture/film/berberian-sound-studio-review-8099273.html)
- **The Guardian**, Peter Bradshaw (90/100, inferred): The critic finds the film seriously weird and seriously good, an unclassifiable musique concrète nightmare that confirms Peter Strickland as a major British talent. He singles out Toby Jones's career-best performance as the mousy sound engineer whose work draws him into psychological collapse. [Read](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2012/aug/30/berberian-sound-studio-review)
- **Variety**, Guy Lodge (90/100, inferred): Strickland's film is a tense, teasing triumph and a delicately detailed immersion into the world of Z-grade Italian horror cinema. It excels in tonal mastery and atmospheric sound design while offering Toby Jones a standout role as the sound engineer. [Read](https://variety.com/2012/film/reviews/berberian-sound-studio-1117947830/)
- **Empire**, David Hughes (85/100, inferred): The review calls it an excellent follow-up to the director's debut, anchored by Toby Jones's flawless performance as the sound engineer whose sanity unravels amid the horrors of the Italian studio. It praises the shift from audio-geek delight into Lynchian nightmare territory. [Read](https://www.empireonline.com/movies/reviews/berberian-sound-studio-review/)
- **The AV Club**, A.A. Dowd (B+): A bewitching genre whatsit that evokes 1970s Italian horror through sound alone without spilling blood; hypnotic as a psychological thriller and procedural tribute to Foley work and audio engineering, though a little one-note. [Read](https://www.avclub.com/berberian-sound-studio-1798177079)
- **Radio Times**, Alan Jones (4/5): The critic highlights the film's sly deconstruction of 1970s Grand Guignol cinema through its focus on sound effects created from vegetables, calling it a dazzling curio that cleverly questions perception and the power of what is heard. [Read](https://www.radiotimes.com/movie-guide/b-jg8tlh/berberian-sound-studio/)
- **Vulture** (80/100, inferred): A strange and beautiful homage to 1970s giallo films, using sensuous and gruesome sound imagery to build unease and displacement for the protagonist; enthralling overall despite a minor misstep at the end. [Read](https://www.vulture.com/2013/06/movie-review-berberian-sound-studio.html)
- **Film Comment** (70/100, inferred): The critic praises the film's affectionate yet unsettling take on giallo filmmaking and its focus on sound design and psychological unraveling. Strickland's direction blends humor, horror, and experimental elements effectively in a structurally clever film-within-a-film setup. [Read](https://www.filmcomment.com/article/berberian-sound-studio-uneasy-listening/)
- **Slant Magazine**, Chuck Bowen (70/100, inferred): An unusual workplace drama and black comedy that hauntingly paints a sonic portrait of alienation, forcing the viewer to imagine the horror through rich sound effects while brilliantly foregrounding the fear of being alone. [Read](https://www.slantmagazine.com/film/berberian-sound-studio/)
- **Time Out**, Tom Huddleston (4 out of 5 stars): The critic praises the film's stylistic ambition, innovative sound design, and Toby Jones's central performance as a sound engineer unraveling under the influence of a lurid horror production, but notes that its Lynchian ambitions lead to a somewhat deflating climax. [Read](https://www.timeout.com/movies/berberian-sound-studio)
- **Screen Daily** (60/100, inferred): The review describes the film as an idiosyncratic, impeccably crafted mindbender that playfully evokes 1970s Italian giallo cinema, amusing dedicated buffs with its analog nostalgia and sound work but likely to leave general audiences feeling there is less substance than meets the eye or ear. [Read](https://www.screendaily.com/berberian-sound-studio/5043735.article)
- **Los Angeles Times**, Sheri Linden (50/100, inferred): The film is a twisted tribute to analog moviemaking and 1970s Italian giallo horror, using atmosphere to provoke comic shudders and making the muck practically palpable through vegetable destruction and sound effects. Strickland tends to repeat himself and doesn’t quite find a satisfying denouement for the inventive premise. [Read](https://www.latimes.com/entertainment/movies/la-xpm-2013-jun-12-la-et-mn-berberian-sound-review-20130613-story.html)
- **The New York Times**, Nicolas Rapold (50/100, inferred): The film is an affectionate workplace comedy about a timid British engineer mixing sound for a 1970s Italian horror film, with culture-clash humor giving way to an uncanny seepage between reality and artifice. It is ultimately not unlike many of Strickland’s beloved Italian films: superb exercises in style and atmosphere while remaining imperfect. [Read](https://www.nytimes.com/2013/06/14/movies/an-engineers-sonic-ordeals-in-berberian-sound-studio.html)
- **IndieWire**, Beth Hanna (30/100, inferred): A stylish but ultimately slogging release review of the film’s descent into madness via sound work. [Read](https://www.indiewire.com/criticism/culture/review-stylish-berberian-sound-studio-a-bit-of-a-slog-197526/)
- **The Hollywood Reporter**, Neil Young (30/100, inferred): Imaginatively dramatizes the nightmarish side of moviemaking through a timid sound-mixer’s misadventures on a grisly giallo in 1970s Italy, but a third-act spiral into Lynchian territory leaves general audiences frustrated. [Read](https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/general-news/edinburgh-review-berberian-sound-studio-344612/)
- **HeyUGuys**, Jamie Neish (5/5): The critic praises the film's deconstruction of horror through sound design and atmosphere, highlighting Toby Jones's performance as a man losing his grip on reality. It singles out the organic unease created by sound and visuals of decaying vegetables. [Read](https://www.heyuguys.com/eiff-2012-berberian-sound-studio-review/)
- **Digital Spy**, Simon Reynolds (90/100, inferred): The film is destined to be an instant cult classic thanks to its psycho-surreal style and Toby Jones's impressive lead performance. Strickland is praised for inventive direction and editing that fetishizes the moviemaking process while blurring reality and horror. [Read](https://www.digitalspy.com/movies/a403276/berberian-sound-studio-review-brit-horror-is-instant-cult-classic/)
- **The Playlist**, The Playlist Staff (A-): Praises the film's original take on post-production and psychological unraveling, masterful tone and sound design, and Toby Jones's subtle performance. Notes humor and sinister elements but criticizes some opacity and caricature. [Read](https://theplaylist.net/tiff-review-berberian-sound-studio-is-an-unnerving-original-psychological-horror-anchored-by-the-great-toby-jones-20120910/)
- **Paste**, Tim Grierson (8.0): The film masterfully uses sound and suggestion to create psychological dread without showing graphic violence, leaving the viewer unsettled in the same way as the protagonist. It highlights the excellent aural design and score by Broadcast as key to immersing the audience in the story's themes of reality, art, and mental fragility. [Read](https://www.pastemagazine.com/movies/berberian-sound-studio)
- **Collider**, Matt Goldberg (C-): The film attempts to build tension around a sound engineer's descent into madness but lacks a compelling story or reason for his psychological unraveling. It praises the strong sound design, cinematography, and the characters' passion for their work while noting the overall effect feels forced and dismissible. [Read](https://collider.com/berberian-sound-studio-movie-review/)
- **Eye for Film**, Keith Hennessey Brown (50/100, inferred): The film is a curate's egg—good in parts—with strong homages to giallo films and impressive direction, but it doesn't develop its plot or go anywhere. Praise for Toby Jones's performance and the sound design. [Read](https://eyeforfilm.co.uk/review/berberian-sound-studio-2012-film-review-by-keith-hennessey-brown)

## Details

- **Director:** Peter Strickland
- **Director:** Peter Strickland
- **Writer:** Peter Strickland
- **Cinematography:** Nic Knowland
- **Editor:** Chris Dickens
- **Music:** James Cargill, Trish Keenan
- **Production design:** Jennifer Kernke
- **Costume design:** Julian Day
- **Producer:** Keith Griffiths, Mary Burke
- **Cast:** Toby Jones as Gilderoy; Tonia Sotiropoulou as Elena; Cosimo Fusco as Francesco; Hilda Péter as Auditionee; Layla Amir as Equestrian Girl; Eugenia Caruso as Claudia; Antonio Mancino as Santini; Fatma Mohamed as Silvia
- **Runtime:** 1h 32m
- **Release (the US):** 22 September 2012
- **Genres:** Horror, Drama, Thriller
- **Box office:** $312,757
- **Trailer:** https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GlNCiGVQsd0

## Where to watch in the US

- AMC+: streaming
- Amazon Prime Video: add-on
- The Roku Channel: add-on, hd
- Amazon Prime Video: rent $3.99, hd
- Amazon Prime Video: buy $19.99, hd

*Checked 2026-09-17.*

Also available in: BE, CA, GB, IE, NL, US. Add `?region=XX` to this URL for another country.

## If you liked this

- *The Conversation* (1974), Fi1m 92: The close listening is just as absorbing, and the solitude just as uncomfortable. — [Fi1m page](https://film.one/film/the-conversation.md)
- *The Shout* (1978): Sound becomes threatening again, in a stranger and more openly supernatural setting.
- *Cure* (1997): A patient investigation for those who prefer their dread difficult to explain.
- *The Headless Woman* (2008): Another disorientating study of perception, with sound doing much of the unsettling work.
- *Censor* (2021): Horror becomes a day job again, with similarly poor prospects for peace of mind.

---
© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL. Canonical: https://film.one/film/berberian-sound-studio