Friday, October 28, 2011

Nuestro Cine: Boo!

We hope to be back over the weekend with a few news and notes, while we'll resume next week our look at possible Latin American and Caribbean nominees for top foreign film at the upcoming Academy Awards.

With Halloween and the Day of the Dead being celebrated in a few days why not highlight a horror film?

The plot of Uruguayan flick “La Casa Muda” (“The Silent House”) can be boiled down to the following: father and daughter arrive at a creepy cottage, hear some noises coming from the upper floor and the father goes from room to room investigating the mysterious sounds. Yet the seventy-eight minute film unfolds in a unique way since it was allegedly shot in a single take. (Hence the tagline to the English-language movie poster: Real Fear in Real Time.”)

Adding to the film’s unique style was it’s very low budget ($6000) and that it was shot with a handheld digital camera. Furthermore, the film was purportedly based on real life events that took place in Uruguay in the 1940s.

“La Casa Muda” has a 76% rating on the Rotten Tomatoes website with critics praising it for aspects such as its score and filming in one take. The movie has also been featured in several international film festivals including the Cannes Film Festival. Meanwhile, English film critic and horror movie buff Mark Kermode gave a mixed review to the movie though he praised it for its “atmosphere.”

Below is the trailer for “La Casa Muda” where you can see for yourself if the film is gimmicky or spine tingling:

Video Source – YouTube users kermodeandmayo and CinemastarTV

Online Sources – imdb.com, Wikipedia, Rotten Tomatoes

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