Los Parecidos

Eight people trapped in a railway station by a strange rainstorm find themselves undergoing terrifying transformations. There's no doubt Isaac Ezban came up with an original idea and made good use of his limited resources, but the fate of these perpetually bickering, mistrustful travellers always borders on the unintentionally comical. And I'd be highly offended if I was Zach Galifianakis...

"Los Parecidos/The Similars" the second film by Mexican director Issac Ezban really is "A love letter to the science fiction movies of the 60s".

The mysterious plot of the film is bizarrely addressed by the style that the young director is creating, mixing photography and really amazing soundtrack transports you to another era.

The film reminds us the classic episodes of the "Twilight Zone" and the music of the film remind us the musicalization of the works of Alfred Hitchcock.

No doubt Ezban Issac and his team are doing a great work resurrecting the science fiction genre in México.

I really liked this movie! There will be zero spoilers here; I'll be getting straight to the point.

Where horror films are concerned, I'm beyond weary of the seemingly endless stream of remakes and reboots coming out of Hollywood. For years I've been waiting for someone — ANYONE — to start thinking out of the box and create something original. Finally, the writer/director/producer of "The Similars" did just that. His name is Isaac Ezban. Remember it... because I have a strong feeling that Guillermo Del Toro will be getting a bit of home-grown competition on 'the horror front' before too long.

'The Similars' is sort of a 'period piece' that's set in 1968, with the Tlatelolco Massacre hovering over it like a dark, ominous cloud from start to finish. (If you're unfamiliar with the incident, Google it.) This movie is also a tribute to the horror classics of the 1960s. Interesting and attention-grabbing from the start, it straddles the fence between 'bizarre' and 'comically absurd' before then veering straight into 'old-school horror' territory with a rather unexpected sci-fi twist. If you want or need to know more? Track it down and watch it. Seriously. The less you look into this movie ahead of time, the better. Allow yourself to be pleasantly surprised.

This movie will mess with your mind. What you see isn't what you get. Outstanding cinematography, compelling plot and convincing characters - you can tell that this movie is off to a great start. But this was ruined by a silly twist and a comedic third act. Man, I was so underwhelmed.

"Os Parecidos" set out to be a thriller and went beyond that. It's a thriller from the start, set very well in 1968. That decade was a promising one in the development of suspense by the Alfred Hitchcock school and it seems that the Director wanted to use those elements of the time in his work "The Similars", which turned out very well.

The soundtrack is reminiscent of the thrillers of the decade in which the film is set (1968). But "Os Parecidos" also has mystery, delirium and a hint of the "fantastic" or supernatural. In short, a very well-produced Mexican movie that keeps the suspense and mystery until the 'supernatural' or fantastic begins.

The 'four' stars (and not five) is because, for me, the mystery of the story, the author of the work, gave it away early in the course of the movie, ending the mystery, but this does not detract from the recommendation for those who like classic suspense in the style of Alfred Hitchcock.

Congratulations on the whole piece!