Profondo Rosso

Just a short walk from Piazza Bologna in Rome is Profondo Rosso, a modest-looking horror shop with a truly disturbing secret in the basement. Owned by legendary Italian horror director Dario Argento, this shop is a shrine to the blood-soaked brilliance of Italy’s giallo and horror cinema.

Upstairs you’ll find posters, masks, books, soundtracks, and memorabilia tied to Argento’s films—like Suspiria, Inferno, and Deep Red (Profondo Rosso). But the true heart of the experience lies below ground: a small museum packed with original props, prosthetics, and lifelike mannequins from decades of horror filmmaking.

Visitors descend into a cramped labyrinth of grisly wax heads, mutilated mannequins, torture scenes, and satanic iconography. Some scenes are lit like old horror sets, complete with shrieks and ambient groans. Others are more intimate and strange—frozen moments of cinematic terror, forgotten in time and dust.

Profondo Rosso isn’t just a shop or museum—it’s a fanatical love letter to horror. A must-see for fans of Italian genre cinema, and a place where film history, art, and nightmare live side by side.

The store is managed by the friendly Luigi Cozzi, who was also Argento's director and collaborator. He is the director of movies like The Killer Must Kill Again, Contamination, and Starchrash. If your in luck he will be there for a movie chat and a selfie.