Magic Magic

Subversive.

Interesting and unsettling psychological thriller. It's perhaps a little slow, but cutting it down might disrupt its carefully crafted tension. If you legitimately can't do subtitles, just be aware a good portion of this is in Spanish.

When I first came across this film I thought it would be mediocre but I was actually pleasantly surprised! The film is creepy and unsettling through out and it leaves you wondering how much of all the characters actions are truthful and how much of it is in Alicia's head. It does a really good job at playing with this aspect in a really effective way. They portrayed Alicia's worsening mental illness really well and the acting was very good from all of the cast. Juno Temple's and Michael Cera's performances were particularly good and it was great to see them play characters that differ from their usual roles. Micheal Cera says it wasn't compulsory for him to learn Spanish for the film but he decided he wanted to learn the language for himself. He uses Spanish so well in the movie and it comes across very truthfully. I like how they used the language barrier to separate Alicia from the other characters, furthering her isolation. (The film has subtitles embedded into the picture when they speak Spanish, but for those who needs subtitles throughout the whole film, when they speak Spanish the subtitles over lap with the embedded ones making them impossible to read, so you may have to turn your subtitles on and off accordingly which is a little frustrating but somewhat manageable). I feel the film does a great job at gradually building up Alicia's mental illness until she hits breaking point but the ending feels a little random and takes the film in a direction that feels less realistic. I think maybe they were thinking about the genre of horror too much and if they had an ending that was a lot more realistic then that would have ended the film in a more chilling and disturbing way, naturally resulting in a more scary, psychological and horrific outcome. This film would have been 5 skulls in my opinion if the ending wasn't what it is, but still a good film so its 4 skulls. Worth the watch for sure.

Not horror, but a tragic story about serious mental illness, done in a very relatable way. A chilling reminder about how quickly things can spiral out of control, when people don't pick up on the signs. Bleak but definitely worth watching.

bizzare. i just felt very uncomfortable the whole way, and not in a good way. i just wanted this bizzare , ridiculous crap to end