Purgatorio (Purgatory)

Purgatory starts as I expected: kid terrorizes broken mom who's lost her child.  But that's where my expectations break from the script.  Never devolving into outright physical horror, the plot nevertheless becomes far more sinister.

Featuring outstanding performances by Oona Chaplin (of Game of Thrones) and Sergi Méndez, the film is a psychological trip with a special twist.

Purgatorio (Purgatory)

2014, 83 minutes, directed by Pau Teixidor

O'Apostolo

Based on Spanish Catholic mythology, O'Apostolo delves into the story of a cursed village, where the dead walk the streets at night, claiming the souls of traveling pilgrims.  Ramón, an escaped prisoner, just needs to slip in, grab some stashed loot, and make his escape toward a simpler life.  It won't be that simple.  Steeped in Catholic mysticism, corruption, and occult, and wonderfully animated in clay and ink, the film hits all the right notes for an excellent story.

O'Apostolo
2012, 80 minutes, directed by Fernando Cortizo

Las Brujas de Zugarramurdi (a.k.a. Witching and Bitching)

This Spanish film really wants to stir up gender hatred.  It starts with a robbery: a group of street actors - and one young boy - steal a huge bag of old gold from a local store.  As they flee, their motivations emerge: alimony, custody, disdain.  All they need to do is make it across the border to France and they can start anew, but first they must pass through Zugarramurdi, a town known as the seat of witchcraft, occupied entirely by women with a deep-seated hatred for men.  Seems simple enough, right?

A lot of action doesn't make up for a weak plot, but it does make for an engaging midnight film.  It was fine, stupid in places, but I have no interest in seeing it again.

Las Brujas de Zugarramurdi (a.k.a. Witching and Bitching)
2013, 115 minutes, directed by Alex de la Iglesia

It's not really a comedy, but I needed something to tag it with to convey the comical nature of the plot.

Grup 7 (Unit 7)

Late 1980s: Ceville, Spain.  The city prepares for the 1992 world expo.  A group of four narcotics detectives - from a rookie to a brutal, hard-nosed detective - work the streets to clear them of heroin ahead of the world's attention.  Their actions quickly get out of hand as they try to stay one step ahead of internal affairs and the drug traffickers.

The plot in this film is, let's say, subtle.  Think of it more as five-years-in-the-life of four detectives.  A strong, quality film.

Grup 7 (Unit 7)
2012, 95 minutes, directed by Alberto Rodriguez

[REC]³ Génesis

 When you're whole premise - demonic zombie infestation film with shakey cam - becomes a cliché, what should you do?  For Paco Plaza, the answer is kick it out, literally in this case, and fortunately not that long into the film.  This leaves the third installment of the [REC] franchise (Quarantine per the U.S. remake) with a very different feel than the first two.  It, too, has lost the claustrophobic charm of its predecessors, set this time in the spacious buildings and grounds of a reception hall.  It's her wedding day, and nothing is going to keep the bride from her groom.  This isn't a demonic zombie film.  It's a love story.  With demonic zombies.

[REC]³ Génesis
2012, 80 minutes, directed by Paco Plaza


Scott, people don't ask questions during your Q&A for a reason.  First off, you ask 60% of the questions yourself.  Then when you cajole a question from the audience, you take the gist of it, come up with a different question of your own, and "restate" it to the director so he'll answer your version.  And you interrupted the director while he was talking to put words in his mouth!  Twice!

The Skin I Live In

I'm sitting in Maudie's Mexican restaurant Tuesday morning, writing up my reviews of films from the past few days.  Maudie's salsa is good, not great.  "Pete's" tacos, with eggs, jalapenos, cheese, onions, sausage, are decent.  But if you put Maudie's salsa on Pete's tacos, something magical happens.  The flavors blend and merge and they become my favorite breakfast tacos.

I mention this because The Skin I Live In, the first secret screening of FF2011, is the best film I've seen so far.  And yet, I can't pin it down to any one thing.  Parts of the film are a little slow, a few parts are a bit uncomfortable, and a few continuity goofs just don't make sense.  But when you put the whole film together as the director did, something magical happens.  The bits and pieces from the three-act story join and it becomes totally fantastic.  It's Antonio Banderas at his creepiest.  You have to see this film.  Do your best to read as little as possible about it first.


The Skin I Live In
2011, 117 minutes, directed by Pedro Almodóvar

Before the screening, we were told that Sony politely asked us to not say what the film was, or to review it before October 12.  WTF?  It premiered at Cannes, so it's not like it's new.  All I can guess is that they want buzz in the days before its Oct. 14 New York limited release.  Sorry Sony, but this isn't the 1980s any more.  You don't get to control your films' social exposure.  And you certainly don't get me to join into your advertisement campaign unless you're comping me something. =)

Juan de los Muertos (Juan of the Dead)

Finally, a film that was just what I expected.  Sure, it was designed for the Fantastic Fest crowd - the director used what slow, limited internet access he could to read film sites like Ain't It Cool News.  And sure, it was pretty predictable.  But that's okay.  That's what I expect from a zombie film.  A Cuban take refreshes the genre again.

Juan de los Muertos (Juan of the Dead)
2011, 100 minutes, directed by Alejandro Brugués

"I took many scenes from real life, and just put zombies in it." - Alejandro.

Director Alejandro Brugués of Juan de los Muertos.  My sister-in-law also calls him "hot".

 .

Extraterrestre (Extraterrestrial)

So, Dominic Monaghan and Elijah Wood are in the row right behind me.  They weren't involved in the film; they're just here hanging out.  Gotta love Fantastic Fest.

The film is a little slow paced.  There's no rolling-in-the-seats laughing, but it's enjoyable nonetheless.

Extraterrestre (Extraterrestrial)
2011, 90 minutes, directed by Nacho Vigalondo

The intrepid Tim League, introducing the director of Extraterestrial

Director Nacho Vigalondo introduces his film Extraterrestrial

Nacho Vigalondo alongside star Julián Villagrán of Extraterrestrial during the Q&A

Penumbra

Again, like the last film, this was not at all what I was expecting.  This was a dialog-driven film more than anything else.  Fortunately the lead actress Cristina Brondo pulls it off.  As a Spanish realtor, she spends a few months each year handling business in Argentina, including for an old apartment she inherited with her sister.  A prospective tenant is running late, but when he arrives, his motivations are suspect.

Penumbra
2011, 85 minutes, directed by Adrián García Bogliano & Ramiro García Bogliano

Director Adrián García Bogliano and a member of the production crew during the Q&A.

This has nothing to do with the film, but I wanted to point out the suckling pig display at the Highball during the opening night party.

El paramo (The Squad)

This was not what I expected.  When I think "military squad" and "horror" images of Predator waft through my mind.  Instead of a murderous rampage with an alien/occult foe, The Squad is very close up, very suspenseful, very introspective.  If such a film sounds appealing, look for this in 2012.

El paramo (The Squad)
2012, 107 minutes, directed by Jaime Osorio Marquez

Director Jaime Osorio Marquez of El paramo.  My sister-in-law called him "hot".

The director during the Q&A.  He sat near us during our subsequent screening, but my sister-in-law wouldn't go talk to him.  Not that he spoke English...

Director BenDavid Grabinski of "Cost of Living", a short film that played before the feature.

"Cost of Living" production crew.

Chronoscrimines (Timecrimes)

All the way back in 2007, Timecrimes was the second film I reviewed.  The darling of Fantastic Fest that year, I consider it the best time travel movie I've ever seen.  It's just so tight.

I didn't expect to get it in my Netflix queue.  They have some sort of problem with the second disc of season three Dexter, and so rather than continue with that I jumped way down on the list to bring me a repeat favorite.  Fortunately I convinced my wife to watch so I could share in the enjoyment of something new through her mind.

I missed some awesome films.  It's just hard to tell what will shine.  But I'm proud to say I was at the world premiere of Nacho Vigalondo's first feature film, and it was truly amazing.  Rent this when you can.  (As always I recommend subtitles and the native Spanish, to pick up the intended nuance of speech.)

Chronoscrimines (Timecrimes)
2007, 88 minutes, directed by Nacho Vigalondo

[REC] 2

Having seen the first installment just last week, I was frightened to think of the many ways that the writers/directors of this film could screw it up in a sequel. But I have to say that I am almost entirely satisfied with the premise, the mechanics, and the twists it takes to continue telling the same tale. Although it picks up five minutes after the conclusion of [REC], with the same first-person camera work, the film has a very different feel while being part of a small, happy family. I do just wish this second installment had the decisive conclusion of the first so it didn't feel quite as made-for-sequel ready.

[REC] 2
2009, 85 minutes, directed by Jaume Balagueró and Paco Plaza

[REC]

As usual I neglected to plan ahead to see my Fantastic Fest prequels via Netflix. I expected to find only the U.S. remake Quarantine at the local Blockbuster, but to my surprise they had not just one but two copies of [REC].

This is a delightful low-budget shakey-cam survival horror flick. I quite recommend it in its original version and native tongue, as the actual low-quality tape (instead of the via-special-effects fake stuff that Hollywood would use) and low-budget effects leave room for the imagination to take over.

Next week, we'll have to see how much I like the convoluted plot they'll have to use to make a sequel...

[REC]
2007, 78 minutes, directed by Jaume Balagueró and Paco Plaza

El Orfanto (The Orphanage)

The Spanish have stolen the show. Juan Antonio Bayona's masterpiece El Orfanto is a beautifully-told ghost story. There are few shocks or other horror elements that would scare off potential audience - sadly just the Spanish with subtitles will doom this to a poor American release.

The writer and director were on hand to answer questions after the movie. Director Juan Bayona described his movie as a "connection to childhood". Writer Sergio Sánchez added that he "redid Close Encounters but replaced aliens with ghosts and added some angry Carlos." While in screenplay form they received strong feedback that this movie was a mix of genres and therefore unable to succeed. I'm very pleased that they proved that wrong.

El Orfanto (The Orphanage)
2007, 100 minutes, directed by Juan Antonio Bayona

La Hora Fría (The Cold Hour)

I had high expectations for this movie. It's one of the few truly "sci fi" films to screen at this year's Fantastic Fest, and sci fi is my favorite genre. I loved the concept, and the movie was filmed and choreographed beautifully. When it was introduced, we were told that "all questions would be answered" if we just stayed until the very end. Alas, I disagree, and after a night of restless sleep filled with dark passages and impending doom, I have to say that I'm not satisfied. Just what, exactly, does come out at the Cold Hour?

La Hora Fría (The Cold Hour)
2006, 93 minutes, directed by Elio Quiroga

The Backwoods

I don't like horror, and I'm not a huge fan of survival films, but The Backwoods, seen September 21, tells a strong story beyond that of the typical "raw chase." A solid story of relationship and family strife envelopes the brief action, telling the stories of both the hunters and the hunted.

The Backwoods
2007, 98 minutes, directed by Koldo Serra

Cronoscrimines (Timecrimes)

I'm a sucker for sci fi, and time travel is a big sub-genre. Time travel movies can be divided into two camps - those where you can change history, and those where you can't. The latter category is much harder to pull off, because the same scene shot multiple times can look cheesy with continuity flaws. This movie falls into the "cannot change history" category, but I have to say that the entire film just feels "tight". Nothing obvious jumped out that distracted me from the strange but intriguing story.

"How do you change things if you can't change anything?" That was the question director Nacho Vigalondo posed during the Q&A after this world premiere. I think he answered that question well, and I'd recommend this movie to anyone who likes the genre. As this was the first showing of the first movie from this director, I certainly expect to see more good things from him.

Cronoscrimines (Timecrimes)
2007, 88 minutes, directed by Nacho Vigalondo