Amelia's Children

After the crazy "Diamantino," Gabriel Abrantes opted for a conventional horror film. Kind of. As a horror fan, I can only thank him. And for a first work... it's not bad at all to start with one of the best works of the genre in the Portuguese language.

In the story, in New York, Edward (Carloto Cotta) lives peacefully with his girlfriend, Ryley (Bridgette Lindy-Paine). In search of his biological family, Edward ends up discovering he has a brother and a mother in Portugal, but soon realizes that uncovering his origins can be quite dangerous.

There's some excellent work here in introducing the plot and creating mystery. The film begins with a strong opening scene in the past (with Alba Baptista as the young mother) and then transitions to the present, initially presenting us with the main couple in a comprehensive yet not overly expository manner. These are the two best-developed, most well-rounded characters, greatly aided by the excellent performances of Carloto Cotta (who plays two very distinct roles) and Bridgette Lindy-Paine. Lindy-Paine, in particular, carries the film more than expected, always being the character who pieces together the plot. Anabela Moreira's outstanding work should also be highlighted; even covered in makeup, she manages to shine in the role of the most enigmatic character, the mother of the brothers.

The way Abrantes handles the genre is quite interesting, adding some dashes of humour (although some of the audience seemed to think it was purely a comedy) and blending in elements of traditional Portuguese folklore, as well as incorporating social commentary related to family and romantic relationships with a good dose of madness.

The soundtrack is excellent, as is all the work on the sound effects heightening the tension of the movie. From a visual perspective, the outstanding production design stands out (the interior spaces look like works of art), and the cinematography, especially in the darker scenes, is noteworthy. At times, the film leans into some genre clichés-several characters following voices in the dark, dreams within dreams, and more dreams-but it manages to rise above them by always keeping us entertained and engaged, concluding with a very strong third act.

In Portugal we trust!

For fans of European psychological horror films, this film is fresh meat.

The atmosphere of the film is really uncomfortable, and we are sucked in by the mystery of the plot, which remains easily fixed until the end.

Alba Baptista had little screen time, but listen to me, this woman deserves more roles in horror films.

It succeeds in delivering deeply unsettling imagery and ideas, and effectively utilizes its runtime well despite the film's very slow pace.

While the film does feel very slow at times, I can respect the fact that its attempts to tell a very complex and disturbing story, which it manages to accomplish with great precision.

As a Portuguese, I was afraid the film wouldn't be what I expected, but this is what we needed and what our COUNTRY needs.

First of all, this movie is mostly in English so don't get scared off by it being Portuguese. The leads both do a commendable job with average dialogue and plot.

Those things really aren't the main reason to watch. It's the creep factor for me. Super freaky mother character with really good prosthetic make-up that steals the show.

The story is also very creepy and I believe is Portuguese folklore. About the witch mother - no more details here you'll have to watch it. You'll find out pretty quick that the house is not going to be a fun place to visit.

Overall it's a good film, not great. Enjoyable horror and well acted. 6.4/10.

I mean, what can I even say about this movie that I absolutely despised? Can I talk about the good elements of it, the parts I enjoyed, the parts that worked to create an interesting narrative? I wish I could, but I honestly can't think of a single redeemable quality in this entire film. The characters were unlikable, the story wanted to be grotesque but wouldn't show you anything to actually induce fear, and even the cinematography was basic and had no passion. The times the movie wanted to be creepy were so few and far between, that the only thing that ended up being truly nightmare inducing was Amelia's face after years of cosmetic surgery.

It's truly incredible how you have a movie about a witch that has children with her own sons and then eats them to regain her youth, a horrifying premise in and of itself, and you end up making the most mundane and least scary movie possible. I just don't understand how this even happened. It's like the creative team read the premise and then decided to not ruffle any feathers, not offend anyone, and not really create anything truly horrific, instead opting to alude to the witch and use dream sequences to sometimes show what she does, but never having the cojones to actually do it.

This is the worst kind of horror movie to me. A movie that uses a great premise but ends up yielding a tame, inoffensive movie where nothing really scary happens, everything is suggested and not actually shown, and the conclusion ties nothing together, leaving the viewer to wonder why he even wasted and hour and a half of his life on this movie. I really wish I would have read reviews for this film beforehand, as I would have wanted to be warned before investing my precious time on a film that wouldn't enrich my life in any way.

This is why I'm writing this review, to save as many of you from watching this movie as possible. Do not make the same mistake as I did, as life is way too short to spend it watching these types of movies that contribute nothing of value to your life. Read a book, take a walk, listen to your favorite album on repeat. Anything is preferable to watching this film.

=== Disclaimer! This is not a serious review. ===

Watched purely because crushing on Carloto Cotta :- )

Well, the wig and the w__ker hipster accent was quite funny. A lot of things seemed funny but I genuinely couldn't tell you where to draw the line on how much of it was intentional. I'm also easily scared so all in all, I was watching it like, okay, this is ridiculous but scary.

So the premise that it can be um.. tricky to get on with your family is nothing new - I do indeed have relatives, duh. But the film offered me another perspective: dealing not only with my own family but the family of my (hypothetical) partner. Currently single, I sometimes imagine what it'd be like in a new relationship. You know, you get a nice boyfriend (not with *that* accent but anyway). And he's good-looking, of Portuguese descent, and everything's fine but then, his weird bloody relatives enter the stage... And there you are, complaining to your friend on the phone how you're having trouble cos' they have too much influence over him, etc, etc. Say what you want, that IS scary to me!

Overall, if you don't take it too seriously it's a fun film for a one-time watch. Consider it a horror with the elements of comedy.

P. S. The accent is not real, as in they used a voice-over actor for it. And somehow the thought that my fave Carloto couldn't physically sound like that gives me comfort <3.