El rey de la montaña

Man traveling alone through the country stops at a gas station/rest stop, has an almost encounter with young lady before heading off again. Not long after that he finds he's the target of a sniper who seems intent on hunting him and anyone he comes in contact with. (There's more but its best you find out yourself)

Good, but not great thriller that has a great look, some nice twists, especially in the later part of the film. This is a film I admire more than "love". It's well made, it's well acted, it keeps you attention but it ever completely creates enough tension to truly engage you. The problem is rooted in the premise of the film, namely there is no way that the sniper could move around as fast or be able to engage our hero as quickly as he does. Our hero is in a motor vehicle (or vehicles) and the sniper isn't. Its not a glaring flaw, and it wasn't instantly apparent what it was that was bothering me. Only when events shifted in the second half did I have an "ah ha" moment. Once I realized what was bothering me I settled down and enjoyed the film more. Its still not a great film but it is a good one, and as I said I like the twists towards the end. Worth a look (and in my case second viewing since I think I may have missed a couple of things).

It's always fun to watch unsuspecting travellers encounter the horrors of the back-roads, so I was rather looking forward to King of The Hill. We follow Quim, on a mission to get back together with his girlfriend but put a little off track when an impromptu gas station tryst with a mysterious lady ends in her stealing his wallet. They meet again, but not before both have come under fire from a sniper, and the movie proceeds with the two of them trying to evade their unseen antagonists. Director Gonzalo Lopez Galego keeps things tight and mysterious for much of the time, concentrating on pace over character and attractive visuals and periodically jolting the viewers with short sharp bursts of action, skilfully turning the heat up moment by moment. The mountainous setting, trees, slopes and blue sky are well captured by the gorgeous cinematography of Jose David Montero, a picturesque setting at interesting odds with the impersonal menace that lurks within. Happily, the setting isn't just used for prettiness but excitement too, with rivers, trees, pitfalls and bushes all obstacles to navigate, there's an adventurous spirit to goings on that takes the film closer to classics like Deliverance than the more clichéd back-woods nastiness that tend to dominate films of this type. Stars Leonardo Sbaraglia and Maria Valverde make for a sympathetic pairing, wisely the film doesn't stop to long to give them a relationship but they have a certain mild chemistry that makes their bond under adversity a compelling one. For around two thirds or so of its length King of The Hill is rather great, hardly earth shattering in its events or approach but sufficiently well handled that it really stands out, unfortunately it doesn't end the same way. Like most films of its mysterious ilk, there's a "big reveal" here, and it's deeply ill-advised, an attempt at sombre significance that flops hard. A turn in events that would be unlikely and fairly tricky to pull off even if it were a significant part of the film from the start, here the film expects us to just buy the plot turn and then continues in the same uncompromising vein as before. To say much about why it doesn't work would be going into spoiler territory and since other have enjoyed this much more than I and not been troubled by the finale I won't divulge events, but for me it was daft verging on laughable, it not only took all the wind out of the film's sails but also rather tainted what had gone before. A saddening turn of events, as I wanted to dig this one and it came close to being a winner, but I can only go by my final impression, which was one of disappointment. A 5/10 then, even though for a fair amount of the runtime this is more like a high 7.

And I'm not talking about the movie, but about the main character. I'm not sure if that was the intention. Of course he is portrayed as a coward. But all his actions and of course his back story lead to the fact that you most likely will hate his guts. Or at least I did, I heard from others that they didn't mind that much or didn't really bother to think about it.

The theme (and a bit of a surprise if you will), is the big selling point of the movie. But it only works the first time you watch it. I "had" to watch it a second time, when they showed it at the Fright Fest in London (I had watched it earlier on DVD). I have to admit, that I only realized how much I hated the main guy, when I watched the movie the second time. So maybe you should only watch this movie once and be done with it. It's more than good enough for one watch :o)

And his day got off to such a promising start. After stopping at a petrol station, a man finds himself propositioned to have a quick bit of nookie in the ladies toilet by a sexy young brunette. RESULT!! Unfortunately, he later discovers she's nicked his wallet and lighter. Oops. Still, on the road again, he sees her turn off and decides to pursue her vehicle... and before long, in circumstances too convoluted to explain, both are forced to team up as they find themselves stranded in the wilderness, being shot at by unseen snipers. Quite a turn-up for the books, eh?

Known as 'King Of The Hill' here in the UK (But with no connection to the TV show of the same name) this is a nail biting thriller with a very small cast, but an abundance of tension and realism. The aspect I most enjoyed was the way the participants were fleshed out, as despite being on the run for the most of length we discover a lot about them through their words and actions alone. Even the main 'villains', who we don't meet until late on, and their own unique perspectives. This is crucial to the movie's success as if it was a simple chase between two sets of caricatures with no discernible personalities, it wouldn't be half as absorbing as it clearly is.

People get hurt, tired and frustrated. Their very lives are on the line. They never know where the gunmen will crop up next. The terrain they have to trek through is inhospitable too, to say the least. It's all done with miraculous skill by the director, as the stakes are raised with every scene. Make sure you go to the bathroom beforehand... you're not gonna want to tear yourself away for a minute. A great thrill ride, and a smart one as well. 7/10

Until I saw this film I read good comments, but was pretty much disappointed thereafter. What I expected is to see a decent movie of the genre underlined. What I saw is something similar to cinema-verite feature film. Camera tries to follow the action as it is for real while director is pretty much ignoring everything else. The plot, character development and even action itself. Feature film should bring you the recreation of the fiction or event, not the event itself as unlike watching documentary we don't know previously mentioned things: the participants, the action and what is going on between (them). Film looks like amateurish director debut to me and what is nice to be mentioned about this film are some really nice shots, and only that. 3 out of 10, if you ask me.