Devoured

Okay so this film may not be everyone's cup of tea but I would have thought there were enough intelligent people on IMDb to see past the (few) shortcomings and appreciate a breath of fresh air in the horror genre. Yeah its loosely art-house but don't be put off. From the beautiful cinematography to the brilliant performance of the lead actress this really is something a bit different.

I have watched countless horror/thrillers and this one really stuck with me. I really enjoy the less fantastical type of movie where you can actually believe the film could take place in the day to day world and this film does that in spades.

The deterioration of the main character initially appears a bit clichéd until the reveal when we see the full extent of her mental breakdown and understand how and why.

Do yourself a favour, rent or buy it, sit back with a nice bottle and engage your brain, you'll find an entertaining and ultimately satisfying descent into madness that could happen to any one of us.

Devoured is indeed a good movie, I know the title may be a little harsh, but there are 2 kinds of truth here:

1) Is where you just watch the movie, go with the flow, discover what's happening, observe the beautiful and fantastic acting by Marta Milans, the director's choice in every move, overall, the story, you discover the story. And you'll love it, all the little details, and trust me there are many, all the pieces that come on by one, you'll start to feel the movie, connect with the main actor and maybe, even feel a strange symbiose between you and her. The minutes will past, you'll enjoy each and every one of them, hoping to find out some more, waiting to see the destination, the final stop and of course, eventually you will. At that point, you'll add another gem to your collection, for Devoured is a great little indie horror.

2) Now you'll have a different approach, a more realistic one, you won't go head first into the movie, you will stay your ground, and simply enjoy a movie. But then again, what is there to enjoy that much? The acting is brilliant, the story quite slow, the mood is kinda depressing, and the direction is very obvious kinda from the start. Just those new people into horror will be surprised by what will happen, the rest will simply call it "you've seen it once, you've seen it a million times". And most of you did!

Overall, a borefest may be the perfect word to sum up a bigger description. I could recommend it, or I could not, I guess it will come down to how the viewer will feel at that specific moment when the movie starts to play. But be careful what you look for, cause you ain't gonna find much thrill, much horror, much originality here, you'll just find a movie made with love, but maybe, not for you!

This movie is for the most part contained within a restaurant where Lourdes works as a cleaning woman to make money for her sick son's operation. We see the restaurant filled with patrons only once (early in the movie) and some close-ups of the chef's gloveless, grubby hands preparing food in the kitchen while people at the other end obliviously lap it up. For the most part though, it's after hours or before hours with Lourdes who is usually alone but sometimes with 2 other people who work at the restaurant. One is her boss, a real bitch who enjoys giving her a hard time. The other, a guy, is a first-class jerk who is always coming on to her and whose function at the restaurant beyond boffing the boss seems to be prepping meat (Don't laugh).

Lourdes is seeing and hearing things and believes the restaurant is haunted. We don't know if she is cracking up or actually experiencing certain things. But since we, the viewers, see things that she does not see because she --for example-- has her back turned, this would seem to be independent (of her) corroboration by us, the viewing audience that the restaurant is indeed haunted. Now when not mopping up, having strange experiences, and run-ins with her boss, Lourdes is (1) On the phone begging her mother to speak with her son. (2) Having personal fantasies --no, not that kind. (3) Talking to some guy she bumped into early in the movie when something spooked her and she ran out of the restaurant. (4) Desperately giving blow jobs and who knows what else to patrons for money (so we inferred anyway).

At the beginning of the movie I was captivated by it's style and anticipatory and intrigued by what was starting to happen with this woman; the things she was experiencing. What was behind them? But then the movie seemed to settle into a routine; her going to work, cleaning up, calling her mother, fantasizing about seeing her son and her friend, run-ins with her boss, and some curious unnatural experiences. I say "routine" because things didn't escalate as quickly as I would have liked. BUT THAT'S JUST ME, READER. You may have a different sense of pace should you choose to see the movie --AND YOU SHOULD, since it acquitted itself very well with a very interesting twist and explanation at the end. Well worth the wait. Love, Boloxxxi.

I watched this movie yesterday. When I saw this movie's rating on IMDb, I was suspicious about it. After watching this movie, I came to the conclusion: first, the movie is slow paced & second, this movie is not scary enough. However the acting by actress Marta in lead role is pretty good but sadly it alone is not enough to make the film enjoyable. All the side characters in movie have been given negligible role to play. Movie just focuses on Marta but after a certain time, it loses grip over the plot & pace. The only thing, I can say is if you really have some free time then watch this movie & expect very limited horror only from this movie. It seems the director is trying his hands first time at horror genre.

6.6 of 10. It's rare that you get horror combined with a finely structured mystery and an Irreversible shout-out. That's what you get here. Great relative to most horror, pretty good as a film overall. Had more thought gone into the film's title, it would get another bump up.

There's an unspoken subplot in this film involving what crosses protect you from. But telling you how that turns out will spoil the ending.

The film as a whole could be discussed thoroughly about what other allusions and metaphors the film serves up on modern American society, immigrants, employment, and boss-worker relationships. Horror worthy of showing in a film school.