Language: Spanish.
Director: Nacho Vigalondo
Writer: Nacho Vigalondo
Cast : Karra Elejalde, Candela Fernández, Bárbara Goenaga .
Genre: Horror, Mystery, Sci-Fi.
Streaming on Netflix.
Also known as : Los cronocrímenes (2007)
Hah! So you like time travel movies? And obviously, you pride yourself on having watched all of them? But are you sure that you weren’t coaxed into watching the oh so famous blockbusters Hollywood has you raving about? One of those Infinity war type heist films account as your time travel favourite perhaps…
Granted I might be a tad too judgemental about your movie choices, for there are far few willing to venture outside of traditional movie viewing circles. You know, to catch up on some great works of cinema outside of the ones that feature on every article, review, and telecast alike.
Time travel stories for the major part of the decade have featured in the much-acclaimed genre of Science Fiction. We sure have our favourites from Romedies like About time to more gritty thrillers like predestination. Seriously there’s far too many to even consider naming some of them.
It’s way too hard to pick a favourite…
well, that stands until you encounter Timecrimes.
Shot in the backdrop of an isolated house within the confines of a forest, a series of events erupt to disrupt the intertwined lives of several people involved. A relatively simple time travel story yet unparalleled in deliverance, Timecrimes is a movie that’s thoroughly mystifying without requiring you to do a complex analysis of the timely sequences. In short, It is no Primer (which is perhaps the most sophisticated movie in the genre as far as multiple timelines go).
That doesn’t mean there is less fun to be had. In fact, Timecrimes works on the lines of a thriller rather than pompously identifying itself as a time travel marvel. And therein lies the success of the story, and at a larger aspect, of the movie.
There is nothing terrific about the movie, but there is something very attractive about it. The unknown actors and their sexy accents? The raw and visceral cinematography? Or the subtle chills it provides?
There is a lot to drug your mind over the philosophy of control and chaos. The choices we make, and more importantly so, the choices we are forced to make.
As the movie draws to a close, there’s the intuitive implication on Butterfly Effect – Could things have turned out differently had the protagonist gone about his ways a little differently?
So if you are in for a tautly paced thriller with elements of digestible time travel, give this a watch would ya? (Pondering about its metaphors can be done over stack exchange later).
Verdict: 5/7 stars
Excellent.
Must watch for the Time Travel fans and sci-fi fans.