1978

A Fulci-Inspired Descent into Political Terror and Macabre Madness. The Onetti brothers have masterfully conjured a film that plunges into the depths of human depravity, intertwining political and supernatural horrors in a way that is as disturbing as it is captivating.

In 1978, directors Luciano and Nicolás Onetti conjure a nightmarish world that echoes the horrors of Lucio Fulci's apocalyptic cinema while weaving in the real-life political unrest of Argentina's "Dirty War." It effectively generates discomfort, fear and genuine horror.

The Onetti brothers unleash their full imagination to transform this inhumane torture center into a literal hell.

Excellent narrative structure that surprises from beginning to end. An impeccable aesthetic.

The Onetti Brothers' 2024 film "1978" delivers a punch straight to the gut of Argentina's darkest decade, mixing perfectly real political trauma with extreme-horror aesthetics.

This is not a comfort film that holds your hand-It's one that opens your eyes and forces you to look.

It's set against the 1978 World Cup final game between the Netherlands and Argentina-when the world cheered unaware that people were being kidnapped in secret.

The film starts straight into its nightmare: a group of military torturers storm a quiet suburban home, dragging people into a clandestine detention center.

There are no long-winded expositions or character monologues. There's barely time to breathe before the torture begins, and yet, somehow, "1978" still feels like a slow descent into madness.

Because what begins as another state-sanctioned interrogation quickly unravels into something far more unsettling.

The kidnappers, symbols of dictatorship brutality, have chosen the wrong victims-but don't expect a revenge-horror with clean plot or moral sympathy.

This isn't catharsis-it's rotten, decay, a surreal horror of a corrupted system fed by its ghosts.

The ambiguity creates an eerie atmosphere-a constant sense that something isn't quite right-with the captors, the prisoners, and the space itself.

The detention center becomes a character itself, pulping with shadows, religious iconography, and folklore, creating something far more disturbing-and grotesquely spiritual.

Luciano and Nicolás Onetti tap directly into Latin America's new wave of horror-where corruption, faith, and folklore intertwine until each devours the other.

In this case, history eats folklore, and folklore pukes back the truth. The prison resonates with ancient languages and figures, turning it into liminal purgatory.

Visually, "1978" is a masterstroke. With cinematographers Kasty Castillo and Luciano Montes de Oca, the Onettis' style whispers like Italian-giallo but screams in its own brutal tongue.

The cinematography is dark and claustrophobic, while the camera follows the story, lingers where it probably shouldn't, creating an unwavering gaze into the pit of institutional evil.

The gore is well balanced and never gratuitous, reflecting both physical suffering and systemic brutality.

It asks questions the regime never allowed: What does justice look like when evil is legal? Who decides who's innocent when the media spins myths?

And what if the real horror isn't the monsters we summon, but the uniforms we obey?

What begins as a torture chamber of captivity suddenly becomes something far more outrageous: a reckoning.

This isn't just a horror film-it's a historical reckoning of blood, dirt, and spiritual vengeance. And it will stay with you like a bruise that won't heal.

"1978" isn't just horror. It's history refusing to stay buried.

Never having heard about this 2024 Argentinean horror movie titled "1978", prior to stumbling upon it here in 2025 by random chance. And given my love of all things horror, of course I opted to check it out.

And talk about a swing and a miss of a storyline from writers Luciano Onetti, Nicolás Onetti and Camilo Zaffora. I found absolutely nothing entertaining or enjoyable in the movie, and I ended up looking at my phone, as the dull and sluggish narrative dragged on and on without anything interesting happening. You have to wait 51 minutes of the movie dragging on and on before anything even remotely interesting happening, and by then it was just simply too little, too late.

With my limited exposure to the Argentinean cinema, of course I was not familiar with the cast ensemble in the movie. And not being familiar with the actors and actresses in the movie was actually the best thing about the ordeal that is "1978", as I enjoy watching unfamiliar talents on the screen. While the storyline was sheer rubbish, the acting performances in the movie were fair.

Visually then the movie was okay. Nothing noteworthy or outstanding though, so don't get your hopes up.

This movie will never grace my screen a second time. Nor is it a movie that I would recommend you to squander 80 minutes on watching. Some of us suffered through this ordeal, so you don't have to; you're quite welcome.

My rating of directors Luciano Onetti and Nicolás Onetti's 2024 movie "1978" lands on a generous three out of ten stars.

The film's strongest point was its premise, but it was completely ruined by mediocre acting, poor special effects (even by horror standards), and a script that didn't know when or how to end. It constantly falls into clichés and senseless scenes, offering nothing new to the genre. It's a disappointment even for a low-budget film. Without a doubt, it's the worst horror movie I've seen in recent years. For a movie streaming on Max, it should have gone through at least some kind of quality control. The scene with the devil is one of the cringiest moments of the year. Without a doubt, it's the worst horror movie I've seen in recent years.

Great and compelling forty first minutes: the acting, the photography and even the script build up a unique and captivating atmosphere set in a true dark and infamous period of the Argentinian history.

Unfortunately, the plot crumbles in the second half of the flix due to a fragile storytelling, a complete lack of dialogues, a not so convincing suspense with corny cliffhangers, and a confusing ending that leaves a void of unexplained scattered events. :( :( :( :( :( :( :(

Such a waste of a magnificent idea and, therefore, quite disappointing. A really nice try though. Aim higher next time!!!