Terrorizzati

Ahh, a breath of fresh air! Can you feel it too? You the one about to read some movie info in order to make the best decision: see it or not? Of course you have to see it! Even its name is on point, as it seriously delivers a massive quantity of fear and panic.

I can't go into too many details with this one as I fear i might ruin it for you, so just understand that it is a big step up from your average horror/supernatural, with lovely elements from both worlds, combined into a small gem.

Aterrados is proof that Latin countries are starting to develop better horror than our casual Hollywood productions, because if you put this next to Silent House (Uruguay) and a big list of Mexico and Spanish movies, well, the future looks bright and world wide.

Cheers!

This is a really enjoyable, strange, low-key horror film from Argentina. Many scenes are filmed in a sickly yellow light, and the horrific prosthetics are often *just* out of focus. When they are dwelt upon, they look truly horrific.

The story, as has been said elsewhere, comes second to the scares - which is acceptable for the most part, because the film *is* scary, both in terms of jump scares and the overriding feeling of unease, which is beautifully conveyed.

The narrative sometimes descends into a tumble, with it being made unclear which moments are being told in flashback, and which characters to invest in. Truth be told though, this might even be deliberate to enhance the delirium.

A terrific film; happily, both a remake and an Argentinean sequel appear to be in the works. My core is 8 out of 10.

First off, I like the film. It is creepy, part 'The Conjuring', part 'The Beyond'. What I didn't care for (more of an 'irritant' than anything else), is that it lacks character development...it doesn't 'focus' on any one person and build a story around them, but 'jumps' around, and just leaves us wondering what happened to character 'A'. That, and some idiotic inconsistencies, such as when a character keeps telling others that they need to leave... it's like, 'leave already, no one is stopping you'...but inevitably sticks around...with predictable results. And then, someone miraculously 'recovers' after a major health episode, one that has him begging to go to the hospital...and what does he do ? He goes off by himself... and has a smoke ! But, if you don't analyze it too much, and just go in to have fun and get some scares, it's a good film.

Jam-packed with genuinely effective & downright terrifying jump scares, Terrified (also called Aterrados) doesn't waste any time in bringing the horror element into play and is unsettling from its opening moments. The plot & characters are barely serviceable and yet when it comes to scaring the audience, it is a relentless assault on the senses.

Written & directed by Demián Rugna, the film is far more interested in leaving its viewers a startled mess instead of refining its story or fleshing out the characters. The set-up is simple, pacing is brisk, and instead of steadily escalating the tension by gradually intensifying the paranormal activities, Rugna introduces it on screen in full measure from the beginning.

Much of the explanation regarding ghost encounters rarely makes sense but one is less inclined to be bothered by it when it keeps throwing an endless barrage of frights with zero respite. Still, the middle & final acts fail to enrich the experience further and it is never clear about who is supposed to be the main character here. As for its atmosphere & sound, both aspects are praiseworthy.

Overall, Terrified manages to leave most of its audience in the titular state, and is a fast, frenetic & frightening chiller that unleashes absolute terror with its spooky imagery and leaves a lasting mark in the scary department. A stronger narrative & compelling characters would've benefitted it some more but what it set out to do, it delivers that in terrifying doses. In short, this Argentinian horror is worth a shot.

'Terrified (2017)' is a film that focuses wholly on its scares, to the point that it actually sort of shoots itself in the foot a little. What I mean is that everything other than its horror is so barebones that it's actually difficult to care about, or even remember, anything that's going on. Though the scary sequences are truly well achieved, they don't have nearly as much impact as they could have if the flick's other elements weren't neglected as much as they are. The picture has a protagonist problem that sees the audience bounce about from person to person for far too long before settling on someone who finally feels like (at least in retrospect) a 'main character'. This is just one of the factors that adds up to that 'narrative neglect' I mentioned earlier. The others include a general lack of structure, a pace that's almost too fast (if there is such a thing) and a few story points that don't quite line up with the otherworldly explanation offered towards the end. It probably sounds like I don't like the picture, but that isn't true. It's entertaining enough in the moment and it has a strong atmosphere. Plus, (as I've mentioned already) it has more than a handful of genuinely high-calibre scares and it never takes the easy, 'cattle prod' approach even though there are more than enough jump scares throughout (including one of the best, most earned shocks I've recently seen). Despite its issues, the film isn't bad at all. The trouble is that it's really, really forgettable. Still, it's arguable that good experiences are worth having even if you don't remember them. If you want some top-notch horror, that's certainly the case here. 6/10.