You might think you are in for a wild ride when a film opens with a lesbian sex scene and a machete wielding maniac but don’t get too excited just yet. Argentinian director Adrían García Bogliano comes to the project with a handful of films under his belt but still manages to deliver a cheap and poorly made film that comes off surprisingly amateurish.
One of the biggest flaws of the film is that it is preoccupied with retro mimicking without the craft. It often felt like the filmmaker grabbed a grocery cart full of everything they wanted to have in a movie and enthusiastically stirred it together to make a stew that over-seasons and spoils even its most promising ingredients. There are the makings of a statement about sexual coming of age or something else you could write a grad paper about but the film becomes more and more disengaging as it becomes clear that it’s not going to capitalize on the the ideas it presents but sadly fumbles.
There are titillating scenes that should make the movie exciting but it just comes off a bit awkward. The bad acting piles on to seal the deal. The particular set of horror rules by which violence and misfortune is unleashed on characters read like a list a grumpy spirit left behind for the babysitter: No sex (Eww gross, Mom and Dad!), don’t let the kids wander off, no exploring, and absolutely no fun! Watch out, because the very moment you hit puberty creepy demons are going to want to get all up in your soul and do things to you so you should just stand there and dutifully ruin your parent’s sex life. It’s for their own good.
Odd editing and jarring stylistic choices make it clear that effort was made to try to use dramatic shots and sounds artistically and build tension in a nod to 70’s horror movies but ultimately the film fails to land what it sets out to do. If you see this Devil coming, it’s best to turn and walk the other way.
Rating: 5 out of 10
-By Laura Gaddy