Tigers Are Not Afraid

This is a great and necessary addition to the horror genre, and is very much worth a viewing for those who think horror genre can't blend with realism and fantasy to create a metaphor of beauty.

Gangster. Children. Horror. All in one. Interesting film, it literally plays like a modern dark fairytale. I loved how theu brought the fantasy and the horror elements into a what could've been a regular crime/drama. Well done.

Taking heavy inspiration from the work of Guillermo Del Toro (particularly 'Pan's Labyrinth (2006)' and 'The Devil's Backbone (2001)'), 'Tigers Are Not Afraid (2017)' mixes harsh reality with dark fantasy. It's a little uneven in its blending of its two core elements; nevertheless, it's an engaging and palpable experience throughout. Even when it's at its most fantastical, it always retains a level of sobering realism. It isn't afraid to get heavy. The affair is sometimes a bit inconsistent when it comes to tone, as it attempts to blend the inherent innocence of childhood with the vicious circumstances of its setting, but it hits the right notes when it needs to. A large part of why it's so successful is that its lead actors are remarkably good, especially considering their young age and lack of experience. They ground the already grounded experience and make caring for the characters actually rather effortless. Ultimately, this is a well-made and compelling drama. 7/10

The most impressive thing from Vuelven is the acting of the very young cast. They all gave very mature performances, it looked all very believable, and concidering their age that's not a given fact. Since the whole movie is mostly about them, it's a positive thing they found such talented youngsters. The story itself is something between a drama and a fantasy with a pinch of horror. It's entertaining enough to watch. Tigers Are Not Afraid isn't a joyful movie, but it's worth a watch.

In the slums of Mexico five young children try to survive the horrors of cartels, drug trafficking and outright kidnappings. Their most recent member, young Estrella (Paola Lara), has managed to gain three wishes, but like in many fairy tales, especially the darker ones, you have to be careful what you wish for.

I saw Tigers Are Not Afraid on a film festival. It was marketed as "The best Guillermo del Toro film he never happened to direct", which has some truth to it. The film has a lot of similarities with Pan's Labyrinth. The realms of fantasy mixing with the horrors of the real world, a young girl trying to survive and even thrive in such an environment and the overall mood being quite not as depressing as one would assume, given the subject matter.

First of all, I have to praise the child actors. All of them are terrific and more than manage to sell the horror, desperation and determination needed of them. Paola Lara as Estrella is of course excellent, but the best performance was without a doubt given by Juan Ramón López as Shine, the leader of the children. Especially the way he managed to sell the combination of toughness and vulnerability he can only show to Estrella and even then only under duress.

Unfortunately I was not so impressed by the fantasy elements. They didn't seem to have any reason or rhythm to them. The actual three wishes were just about perfectly handled, but everything else fell flat. For example, the children have this phone with a dragon on it. At one point the dragon takes flight and flies out to explore. Then, a few scenes later it comes back. And it's not on the background, either. The camera follows the dragon and the story is briefly paused for it to do so. But for what? Nothing it gained, it doesn't connect to anything and even the children's reaction is pretty blase. The whole film is full of little moments like that. Those things that stay on the background or are just there to be window dressing are perfectly fine, just world building, but quite often the film focuses our attention on them. And usually for nothing.

Tigers Are Not Afraid needs a bit polish and thought given to its elements to be a truly great film. As it is, it's worth a watch if you're a diehard del Toro fan and want something in his particular style.