42/30
The film presents a fictional story about the social reality that plagues a small town
Story
Follow Emma on her journey to learn to communicate with a girl, Uxoa, who has been trapped in a hermit’s den for centuries, so she tries to convince Carol, a skeptical medium, to help her, a scary, melancholic, suffocating fantasy thriller with a touch of ghost story. A supernatural thriller, full of terrifying events, emotions, chills and a lot of terror; However, some are confusing and inexplicable, the causes of some spooky events are never well explained. It begins with a seemingly historical prologue about the plague, a chapel where the sick are imprisoned, and a regiment of beaked birdmen, but this is a reenactment of a parade as part of a small town’s annual festival, when the chapel is believed to be haunted by little Usoa, which opens for a short time. Follow the girl Emma (Maia Zaitegi) on her journey to learn to communicate with a girl, Uxoa, who has been trapped in a hermit’s den for centuries, so she tries to convince Carol (Belén Rueda), a skeptical and fake medium, to help her.
A tense and mysterious film, full of emotions, suspense, chills, red herrings, hair-raising twists
The latter literally carries wounds from her childhood, when her mother, perhaps a real medium, was more interested in the ghost of a local girl than her own daughter. This is an acceptable and acceptable film, with many not always sympathetic, deeply human and relatable main characters. This is a haunted film, with eerie horror and an ominous atmosphere when threatening creatures appear. Little by little, the mystery unfolds until its surprising conclusion, resulting in a sentimental ghost story, with a serious and melancholic undertone, like The Orphanage or Pan’s Labyrinth, but with its own characteristic female focus.
As the recording progresses, it lets down and prevents us from talking about a gem like Piggy
It is an engaging drama whose interest fades as the tiresome accumulation of seemingly terrifying elements increases in effective abundance. Although Cerdita focuses on pure horror, several things in La Ermita confirm that Pereda is a key figure in the current horror and fantasy genre. One is his frontal entry into genre cinema: he bets without hesitation on fantasy, adding some personal drama. However, Pereda manages to make a film that is more than worthy, but inferior to the previous one.
It turns out to be a decent and decent film, but not remarkable
Pereda has a great eye for the Gothic, relishing the trappings of Spanish horror without making a horror film. Starring Belén Rueda, who gives a good performance in her usual style, an expert actress in mystery and horror films such as: Juliet’s Eyes, Orphanage, You Won’t Sleep, During the Storm, Pact, Orbita 9 and Body A. In fact, Belén Rueda is the closest thing Spain has to a horror heroine or a “Scream Queen”, she pairs well with the prodigy Maia Zaitegi, who evokes the young Ana Torrent in Cria Cuervos or The Spirit of the Hive. The film is professionally directed by Carlota Pereda, who is clearly a talented writer and filmmaker.
As a female drama with a similar tone to the genre, it is the second solid showcase of Pereda’s talent
Won 2023: Sitges Film Festival: Official Feature Film Selection (out of competition) and 2023: Goya Awards (Spain): Nominated for Best Special Effects. His debut film was the much better ¨Cerdita¨, starring Carlota Pereda, winner of the Goya Award for Best Short Film, and Laura Galán, winner of the Goya Award for Best Short Film in 2018. Score: 5.5/10.