THE FILM
TITLE: El Conde
RELEASE DATE: 31 Aug 2023
WATCH DATE: 04 Mar 2024
TYPE: live-action feature film (dubbed, originally Spanish)
ACCESS: streaming on Netflix
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THE PEOPLE
DIRECTOR: Pablo Larraín
PRODUCER: Juan de Dios Larraín, Rocío Jadue
ACTORS: Jaime Vadell, Gloria Münchmeyer, Alfredo Castro
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THE STORY
RUNTIME: 1h 50m
STORYLINE: a 250-year-old vampire who ruled Chile gathers his 5 adult children to disperse what remains of his wealth as he hopes to die, but can't
GENRE/THEMES: horror
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THE CRITIQUE
This is one of the very few films that I did not finish. Initially intrigued due to the Oscar nomination for Cinematography (a favorite category), I was disgusted and disturbed by the graphic gore and religious elements. I turned it off after 20 minutes. Not worth finishing. I had seen enough. While I recognize this is reflective of a particular country and its perspective of religion, I did not find it to be entertaining.
The film is entirely in black and white, a concept that a small handful of films have revisited and embraced in recent years - The Artist (2011), Mank, The Lighthouse, the Black & Chrome edition of Mad Max: Fury Road, Malcolm & Marie, Werewolf by Night, and half of Bradley Cooper’s Maestro (read my review for Maestro here!). Black and white is classic. To create a movie echoing the first generations of film, but using modern filmmaking techniques is brilliant. There ought to be more films that intentionally use black and white.
El Conde has a few shots that were honestly striking in this style - landscape views of the Count’s property hung in a heavy, light gray mist. I waited for more creativity and skill in the camera angles, movements, composition, and framing… but that was it. A movie in black and white, and some cool fog. I’m not sure it deserves an Oscar nod for that, but I’ll leave it half a star just for the boldness of choosing black and white for the whole movie.
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THE RECEPTION
NOMINATIONS
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THE IMPRESSION
IN A SINGLE WORD: flat
MOST STRIKING ELEMENT: black & white film
REWATCH: nope, I didn't even finish it
RATING: 0.5 // 5 stars ⭐
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