CRONOS (1994) FULL DVD
Actors: Federico Luppi, Ron Perlman, Claudio Brook, Margarita Isabel, Tamara Shanath
Directors: Guillermo del Toro
Format: Color, Dolby, DVD-Video, Subtitled, Widescreen, NTSC
Language: Spanish
Subtitles: English, Spanish
Region: FREE
Number of discs: 1
Studio: Lions Gate
DVD Release Date: October 14, 2003
Run Time: 92 minutes
Imagine, if you will that a European alchemist fled Europe to Mexico in the 16th Century. Gaining appointment as the Governor's clockmaker he set about making a machine that would prolong his life. He succeeds and lives until a building collapses on him in modern times. His estate is broken up and sold and the real story begins when an antique dealer, Jesus Gris (Federico Luppi), acquires a statue of an angel. In it he finds a golden scarab-like machine. One with horrific powers that Jesus inadvertently activates. Seeking the scarab for his own purposes is Dieter de la Guardia (Claudio Brook) and his last remaining relative Angel (Ron Perlman). They will stop at nothing, but a repeatedly foiled by the scarab's power over Jesus. Another key player is Aurora Gris (Tamara Shanath) who has no lines but seems to preside over the life and death drama that plays out before her. There are a few grim and violent moments, but, for the most part, Cronos gains its momentum from its atmospherics. Imagine a screenplay written by Poe and directed by Fellini with echoes of Don't Look Now and you will have a sense of the film's feeling. Colors are dark, sets are detailed, and the minimal special effects are telling. Especially the insides and operation of the clockwork scarab. The film is as much about the value of life as it is a horror or suspense story. Clumsy at some times and subtle at others, the message gets through with an ending which leaves just enough in question to haunt the viewer. The approach is novel, a very different twist on the vampire genre, and I found myself liking it more the longer I watched it. Definitely worth viewing.
PANDOS
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