Spanish Horror competition
Following the success of THE ORPHANAGE (EL ORFANATO) it seems that Spanish horror films are flavour of the month and these two DVD releases that have popped out of the woodwork, seem to confirm it. (review discs were not available at the time of posting)
The first of these is THE ABANDONED, a metaphysical Spanish horror film from Nacho Cerdà, and most certainly not your normal run of the mill slasher-of-the-week fare. Starring Karel Roden (THE BOURNE SUPREMACY, HELLBOY, BLADE 2) and Anastasia Hille (THE HOLE), THE ABANDONED pushes the haunted-house movie into an abstract realm where the past and present fold into each other. Superbly crafted by Cerdà and his first-rate cinematographer Xavier Giménez (INTACTO, THE MACHINIST), this is a rare horror film that moves from the real world into a kind of psychic space, and slowly suffocates its characters inside their own heads.
Marie returns to her homeland, Russia, where her mother's dead body has been found under bizarre circumstances. She never knew her, having been adopted and brought to America as a baby. The only clue as to what might have happened is an isolated, abandoned farm in the mountains that supposedly belonged to her natural parents. Being the only next of kin, she inherits the place, but no one will take her there as the local superstitions state that the area is...DAMNED. A cycle of horror comes to fruition, as she learns the real reason she has been summoned for this perverse reunion with her past... And the brutal secret behind her family.
The second film, which has a first rate cast including Gary Oldman and Paddy Considine, sounds more like your standard run-of-the-mill cabin in the forest flick. It’s summer 1978: Norman (Paddy Considine) and Lucy (Virginia Ledoyen) are an English couple who are going through a difficult patch in their relationship, and so decide to spend the summer with their friend Paul (Gary Oldman) in the north of Spain. Very much off the beaten track, their friend’s house seems ideal for a peaceful holiday. But their tranquil summer turns to horror when they discover a girl with horribly deformed hands locked away in a cabin in the woods. Filthy and unable to talk, the girl is obviously terrified and so the couple decide to take her to the police. A group of local villagers however have other ideas and refuse to let the girl go, pursing the holidaymakers through the forest and taking them into a whirlpool of violence.
Both films are released on May 19 through Momentum Pictures and available from major retailers including Amazon and Play.
The first of these is THE ABANDONED, a metaphysical Spanish horror film from Nacho Cerdà, and most certainly not your normal run of the mill slasher-of-the-week fare. Starring Karel Roden (THE BOURNE SUPREMACY, HELLBOY, BLADE 2) and Anastasia Hille (THE HOLE), THE ABANDONED pushes the haunted-house movie into an abstract realm where the past and present fold into each other. Superbly crafted by Cerdà and his first-rate cinematographer Xavier Giménez (INTACTO, THE MACHINIST), this is a rare horror film that moves from the real world into a kind of psychic space, and slowly suffocates its characters inside their own heads. Marie returns to her homeland, Russia, where her mother's dead body has been found under bizarre circumstances. She never knew her, having been adopted and brought to America as a baby. The only clue as to what might have happened is an isolated, abandoned farm in the mountains that supposedly belonged to her natural parents. Being the only next of kin, she inherits the place, but no one will take her there as the local superstitions state that the area is...DAMNED. A cycle of horror comes to fruition, as she learns the real reason she has been summoned for this perverse reunion with her past... And the brutal secret behind her family.
The second film, which has a first rate cast including Gary Oldman and Paddy Considine, sounds more like your standard run-of-the-mill cabin in the forest flick. It’s summer 1978: Norman (Paddy Considine) and Lucy (Virginia Ledoyen) are an English couple who are going through a difficult patch in their relationship, and so decide to spend the summer with their friend Paul (Gary Oldman) in the north of Spain. Very much off the beaten track, their friend’s house seems ideal for a peaceful holiday. But their tranquil summer turns to horror when they discover a girl with horribly deformed hands locked away in a cabin in the woods. Filthy and unable to talk, the girl is obviously terrified and so the couple decide to take her to the police. A group of local villagers however have other ideas and refuse to let the girl go, pursing the holidaymakers through the forest and taking them into a whirlpool of violence.Both films are released on May 19 through Momentum Pictures and available from major retailers including Amazon and Play.
Posted 12 May 2008 by chrisp
