El club de los suicidas

"The Suicide Club" is a feeble attempt by its creators to present a group of desperate people that only can think of suicide as a way out of the lives they lead. Roberto Santiago, its director, doesn't bring anything new to the genre. The result is a film that relies heavily on a silly plot that maybe to the writers appeared to be funny when they conceived it.

Laughter which is essential in comedies of this type, is sadly missing from it. One can't blame the performers because for them it meant probably a job. Highly recommended when insomnia strikes you. Guaranteed to put any serious viewer to sleep.

Comical as well as romantic comedy is loaded with emotion , humor with tongue-in-cheek , jokes and fun . Cool and funny Spanish comedy starred by good actors , including ridiculous situations , bewildering scenes , and with a distinctly Spanish sense of style . Being well directed by Roberto Santiago , including an attractive score by Lucio Godoy and well made cinematography by Juan José Castaño . It deals with an unlucky man called Manuel (Luis Callejo) who throws himself in front of a highway but without success . Manuel , then , joins a bunch of desperate , unfortunate people (Clara Lago , Lucia Jimenez , Alberto Jo Lee , the veteran Joan Dalmau , among others) led by Antonio (Fernando Tejero) . All of them only think to commit suicide as a way out of their sad existences and to avoid personal distresses . It is the beginning of a string of suicides and killings around them . Meanwhile , there ensue intertwined loves , confusion and mayhem .

Spanish comedy with humor , fun , entertaining situations and ordinary actors . Enjoyable comedy with romantic touches here and there ; being full of entertainment , giggles and sheer amusement . The main premise is the following : our protagonists get mixed up in all kinds of absurd , hilarious and even romantic incidents to commit themselves suicides and murders . The principal issue about the continuous meetings and on-goings disagreements between the protagonists and their successive attempts to commit suicide and killings result to be so repetitive and that makes it a little boring . Based freely on Robert Louis Stevenson short story : "The Suicide Club" whose book has been adapted several times , such as : ¨Trouble for Two¨ (1936) by Walter Ruben , El ¨Club de Los Suicidas¨ (1970) by Rogelio Gonzalez , ¨Suicide Club¨ (2001) by Sono and in TV was remade as ¨Los Libros¨ series by Fernando Mendez Leite . The film explores the relationship among a motley quintet of suicide people and their twisted love stories , being well played by known actors . However , it moves in fits and starts most of which would be desirable , with more traps the viewer resists any kind, and some moments of enjoyment and others quite a few embarrassing ; so , the tone of the film is light-hearted and the most part results to be rich in implausibilities and absurdities . This is a 2007 typical Spanish comedy with the customary ingredients such as agreeable humor topped with a little bit of original touches here and there ; including mayhem , laughter , antics , romances and a lot of fun . The roles in this film are all lovable despite being rather pathetic , weird and quirky . The picture benefits a likable main cast , such as : Fernando Tejero , Luis Callejo , Lucia Jimenez and Clara Lago . Along with a charming support cast , such as : Fernando Gil , Juanma Cifuentes , Cristina Alcázar , Alberto Jo Lee , Manuela Velasco of ¨Rec¨ series , and recently deceased Joan Dalmau .

The cinematography is glimmer as well as colorful , being shot in Madrid . This evocative photography was well made by a good cameraman called Juan Antonio Castaño who has photographed various films of filmmaker Roberto Santiago . Atmospheric musical score by Lucio Godoy , adding catching songs by Joaquin Sabina and Sergio Dalma . Godoy is a prestigious composer who has composed lively soundtracks for successful films such as : ¨The Education of Fairies¨, ¨Lunes Al sol¨ , ¨Amador¨ , Triage¨, ¨Melsa P¨, ¨Heroina¨, among others . The motion picture was professionally written and directed by Roberto Santiago . He is an expert comedy director , such as : ¨Hombres Felices¨, ¨Al final del Camino¨ , ¨El Penalti Mas Largo Del Mundo¨, ¨El Sueño De Ivan¨ , ¨Solo Para Dos¨ , and this ¨Club De Suicidas¨ ; many of them starred by his fetish actor , Fernando Tejero .

This movie is not up to the level of standard Spanish cinema. Technically poor, the script is weak and the movie doesn't manage to settle or switch from one genre to another, drama or black comedy. You never get to believe or empathize with the characters, and the humor doesn't work for the most part. Sex clichés from this kind of movies don't work here either and just don't fit for the age of the characters. The situations on this movie don't work and the interest is lost before the finale which sounds cheesy. You don't enter in the game of this movie. Cinematography is low level and doesn't seem much effort has been put into it, you get tired of close-ups, and dark scenes. It seems like a past 80s movie and the acting is conveyed with a naive, good willing but unconvincing way. A missed chance, Spanish cinema can deliver a much better feature and production value.