Fenomenas
It seemed like a dud to me, and one of those that annoy a little more because the idea was not bad. A group of women investigating paranormal phenomena in nineties Spain, inspired by the Hepta Group, with a recognizable cast and the possibility of mixing horror, local comedy, mystery and a touch of television nostalgia. On paper, something likeable could have come out of it, even a Spanish oddity with personality. But what I found was a film without strength, without fear and almost without humor.
The main problem is that it works neither as horror nor as comedy. When it tries to scare, it relies too much on familiar mechanisms: noises, doors, apparitions, shadows, sound jolts and that haunted-house repertoire we have seen a thousand times. There is no real construction of unease, no atmosphere that keeps growing. Everything seems prepared to fulfil the scare requirement, but almost never to create genuine discomfort.
As a comedy, it did not work for me either. The film wants to lean on the contrast between investigators with strong personalities, their arguments, their habits and the strangeness of the case, but the humor seemed stale, forced and quite flat. It does not have enough bite to be a black comedy, nor enough lightness to be truly funny. It remains in no man’s land: too weak to be scary and too uninspired to make you laugh.
The cast, which in theory could have been its great asset, does not manage to lift it either. Belén Rueda, Gracia Olayo and Toni Acosta have presence and craft, but the film gives them no real material. They seem pushed into repeating gestures, lines and dynamics that should have spark, but often sound mechanical. Even when you can tell they are trying to bring energy, the script gives them a very low ceiling. The problem is not that the actresses are missing; the problem is that the film is missing.
I was also very disappointed by the use of the paranormal case. There was room to build a more uncomfortable, more ambiguous or more atmospheric mystery, but everything moves along overly predictable paths. The investigation does not grip, the supernatural elements do not surprise and the supposed danger never gains real force. Instead of feeling that we are facing something strange or disturbing, it feels as if we are walking through a cheap attraction of pre-programmed scares.
The mixture of tone is another mess. At times it wants to be endearing, at times terrifying, at times costumbrista, at times an adventure about lady ghost hunters, at times a light drama about personal wounds. But nothing quite fits. That lack of direction makes the film feel undecided all the time. It does not know whether it wants us to laugh at its characters, worry about them or be scared with them. In the end, it achieves almost none of those things.
The saddest thing is that the Spanish context could have given it its own identity. The Hepta Group, Father Pilón, television, Madrid in another era, popular mystery culture, houses with history, skepticism and faith… there was material there for something with local flavor and personality. But the film reduces it to a fairly superficial wrapping. You can feel the intention to sell a recognizable Spanish horror comedy, but not to dig into what could have made it different.
It does not help that visually it is so functional. It is not outrageously ugly, but it rarely has images that stay with you. The house, the objects, the shadows and the corridors should have a life of their own, and yet almost everything feels too clean, too flat, too much like a platform product. It lacks dirt, texture, mystery. It lacks that feeling of entering a place where something has truly gone wrong.
I understand that some people may see it as simple entertainment, without asking much from it, and manage to pass the time with its clichés and actresses. But I did not connect with it at all. It seemed lazy to me, built out of formulas, with textbook scares and toothless humor. What others may see as lightness, I saw as a lack of ambition. And what could have been charming ended up irritating me.
In the end, it remains for me a poor and wasted opportunity. It is not scary, it is not funny, it does not make good use of its cast and it does not turn its real-life inspiration into something cinematically interesting. It is a Spanish horror-comedy product that seems to trust the concept and familiar faces to hold everything together. For me, they do not come close. A dud with paranormal wrapping, more concerned with seeming charming than actually being so.
The main problem is that it works neither as horror nor as comedy. When it tries to scare, it relies too much on familiar mechanisms: noises, doors, apparitions, shadows, sound jolts and that haunted-house repertoire we have seen a thousand times. There is no real construction of unease, no atmosphere that keeps growing. Everything seems prepared to fulfil the scare requirement, but almost never to create genuine discomfort.
As a comedy, it did not work for me either. The film wants to lean on the contrast between investigators with strong personalities, their arguments, their habits and the strangeness of the case, but the humor seemed stale, forced and quite flat. It does not have enough bite to be a black comedy, nor enough lightness to be truly funny. It remains in no man’s land: too weak to be scary and too uninspired to make you laugh.
The cast, which in theory could have been its great asset, does not manage to lift it either. Belén Rueda, Gracia Olayo and Toni Acosta have presence and craft, but the film gives them no real material. They seem pushed into repeating gestures, lines and dynamics that should have spark, but often sound mechanical. Even when you can tell they are trying to bring energy, the script gives them a very low ceiling. The problem is not that the actresses are missing; the problem is that the film is missing.
I was also very disappointed by the use of the paranormal case. There was room to build a more uncomfortable, more ambiguous or more atmospheric mystery, but everything moves along overly predictable paths. The investigation does not grip, the supernatural elements do not surprise and the supposed danger never gains real force. Instead of feeling that we are facing something strange or disturbing, it feels as if we are walking through a cheap attraction of pre-programmed scares.
The mixture of tone is another mess. At times it wants to be endearing, at times terrifying, at times costumbrista, at times an adventure about lady ghost hunters, at times a light drama about personal wounds. But nothing quite fits. That lack of direction makes the film feel undecided all the time. It does not know whether it wants us to laugh at its characters, worry about them or be scared with them. In the end, it achieves almost none of those things.
The saddest thing is that the Spanish context could have given it its own identity. The Hepta Group, Father Pilón, television, Madrid in another era, popular mystery culture, houses with history, skepticism and faith… there was material there for something with local flavor and personality. But the film reduces it to a fairly superficial wrapping. You can feel the intention to sell a recognizable Spanish horror comedy, but not to dig into what could have made it different.
It does not help that visually it is so functional. It is not outrageously ugly, but it rarely has images that stay with you. The house, the objects, the shadows and the corridors should have a life of their own, and yet almost everything feels too clean, too flat, too much like a platform product. It lacks dirt, texture, mystery. It lacks that feeling of entering a place where something has truly gone wrong.
I understand that some people may see it as simple entertainment, without asking much from it, and manage to pass the time with its clichés and actresses. But I did not connect with it at all. It seemed lazy to me, built out of formulas, with textbook scares and toothless humor. What others may see as lightness, I saw as a lack of ambition. And what could have been charming ended up irritating me.
In the end, it remains for me a poor and wasted opportunity. It is not scary, it is not funny, it does not make good use of its cast and it does not turn its real-life inspiration into something cinematically interesting. It is a Spanish horror-comedy product that seems to trust the concept and familiar faces to hold everything together. For me, they do not come close. A dud with paranormal wrapping, more concerned with seeming charming than actually being so.
Mini Review: It seemed like a dud to me, and one of those that annoy a little more because the idea was not bad. A group of women investigating paranormal phenomena in nineties Spain, inspired by the Hepta Group, with a recognizable cast and the possibility of mixing horror, local comedy, mystery and a touch of television nostalgia. On paper, something likeable could have come out of it, even a Spanish oddity with personality. But what I found was a film...
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