Once upon a time, Peru was the Mecca for some international film production companies that wanted to shoot their films in our supposedly “exotic” locations. During the late 80s and early 90s, that honor belonged to legendary schlock producer Roger Corman who, coincidentally, returned to my home country last year to shoot his latest —and probably bloodiest and corniest— Death Race movie. But that’s a story for another time. Ultra Warrior is the movie I’m focusing on this time. Starring awesomely-named Dack Rambo (who sadly passed away from AIDS in 1994), Clare Beresford, and a significant number of well-known Peruvian actors (well, at least they’re famous to us Peruvians) such as Orlando Sacha, Ramon Garcia (fans of Paolo Sorrentino’s The Young Pope might be familiar with him), Diego Bertie, Carlos Cano (a great actor who unfortunately passed away...
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- 5/31/2017
- Screen Anarchy
Film review: 'Bajo la Piel'
Director Francisco J. Lombardi is a favorite at the Miami Film Festival, and his thriller "Bajo La Piel" (Under the Skin), which received its U.S. premiere at this year's 14th edition, is a good illustration why.
A riveting portrait of a serial killer in a small Peruvian village and the devastating psychological transformation of the local police chief investigating the case, the film is probably a bit too exotic in its setting for significant domestic consumption. Change the setting to, say, a sleepy Southern town and cast a top star, and it would be ripe for an American remake.
A series of severed heads, all those of young men and all missing their eyeballs, shows up in the Peruvian town of Palle, and young chief of police Percy Corso (Jose Luis Ruiz Barahona) doesn't even have a suspect. During the investigation, he's distracted by the presence of the extremely beautiful new coroner, Marina (Ana Risueno), who seduces him for a torrid outdoor encounter but promptly drops him afterward.
Since the murders have a ritualistic bent, Percy asks the local archaeology expert for advice. Professor Catalino (Gianfranco Brero) is a specialist in the pre-Inca culture of the region, and when the murder weapon turns out to be in one of his exhibits, he's promptly arrested.
In the meantime, the chief is becoming unhinged with jealousy as Marina takes up with the wastrel son of the town mayor. One evening, he returns to the station house to find the professor an apparent suicide; he cuts the body down and takes advantage of the situation to precipitate some violent mayhem of his own.
Director Lombardi weaves a tight storytelling web and creates a superbly tension-filled psychological thriller that keeps the audience guessing throughout. Augusto Cabada's screenplay attempts to explore the dark impulses that can induce a seemingly normal person to commit horrific acts of violence, and he succeeds in a surprisingly credible and absorbing fashion.
Even though the plot has holes big enough to drive a truck through, the film is so beautifully nuanced that one is willing to overlook the lapses. It has an ambiguity and unwillingness to tie up loose ends that is refreshing in this era of by-the-numbers storytelling. It's a compelling horror film for adults.
Ruiz Barahona is a quietly powerful presence in the lead role, and Risueno sizzles as the sultry coroner.
BAJO LA PIEL (UNDER THE SKIN)
Alta Films
Director Francisco J. Lombardi
Screenplay Augusto Cabada
Producers Gerardo Herrero,
Javier Lopez Blanco
Executive producer Mariela Besuievsky
Director of photography Teo Delgado
Music Beingen Medizabal
Editor Fernando Pardo
Color
Cast:
Marina Ana Risueno
Percy Corso Jose Luis Ruiz Barahona
Gino Leyva Diego Bertie
Catalino Pinto Gianfranco Brero
Fausto Leyva Jorge Rodriguez Paz
Running time -- 110 minutes
No MPAA rating...
A riveting portrait of a serial killer in a small Peruvian village and the devastating psychological transformation of the local police chief investigating the case, the film is probably a bit too exotic in its setting for significant domestic consumption. Change the setting to, say, a sleepy Southern town and cast a top star, and it would be ripe for an American remake.
A series of severed heads, all those of young men and all missing their eyeballs, shows up in the Peruvian town of Palle, and young chief of police Percy Corso (Jose Luis Ruiz Barahona) doesn't even have a suspect. During the investigation, he's distracted by the presence of the extremely beautiful new coroner, Marina (Ana Risueno), who seduces him for a torrid outdoor encounter but promptly drops him afterward.
Since the murders have a ritualistic bent, Percy asks the local archaeology expert for advice. Professor Catalino (Gianfranco Brero) is a specialist in the pre-Inca culture of the region, and when the murder weapon turns out to be in one of his exhibits, he's promptly arrested.
In the meantime, the chief is becoming unhinged with jealousy as Marina takes up with the wastrel son of the town mayor. One evening, he returns to the station house to find the professor an apparent suicide; he cuts the body down and takes advantage of the situation to precipitate some violent mayhem of his own.
Director Lombardi weaves a tight storytelling web and creates a superbly tension-filled psychological thriller that keeps the audience guessing throughout. Augusto Cabada's screenplay attempts to explore the dark impulses that can induce a seemingly normal person to commit horrific acts of violence, and he succeeds in a surprisingly credible and absorbing fashion.
Even though the plot has holes big enough to drive a truck through, the film is so beautifully nuanced that one is willing to overlook the lapses. It has an ambiguity and unwillingness to tie up loose ends that is refreshing in this era of by-the-numbers storytelling. It's a compelling horror film for adults.
Ruiz Barahona is a quietly powerful presence in the lead role, and Risueno sizzles as the sultry coroner.
BAJO LA PIEL (UNDER THE SKIN)
Alta Films
Director Francisco J. Lombardi
Screenplay Augusto Cabada
Producers Gerardo Herrero,
Javier Lopez Blanco
Executive producer Mariela Besuievsky
Director of photography Teo Delgado
Music Beingen Medizabal
Editor Fernando Pardo
Color
Cast:
Marina Ana Risueno
Percy Corso Jose Luis Ruiz Barahona
Gino Leyva Diego Bertie
Catalino Pinto Gianfranco Brero
Fausto Leyva Jorge Rodriguez Paz
Running time -- 110 minutes
No MPAA rating...
- 3/5/1997
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
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