Errementari: O Ferreiro e o Diabo

Currently out on Netflix, Errementari is a Basque film, a dark fairy tale kind of like the Brothers Grimm based on a European fable. In it, a young girl comes across a blacksmith who has trapped a demon.

The whole thing is well done. It captures the roughness of original fairy tales without trying to make this a straight-out horror movie.

The best part is the whole look of the thing. The demon design is based on medieval drawings of Hell. The demons have this retro look that is both fun, but also a little unsettling.

I have never reviewed a movie on IMDB before but I was moved to since someone gave this a 1 rating then only copied the plot verbatim. I found this to be immensely enjoyable. Even with the dubbed dialogue and the captioning that didn't quite agree, it had a wonderful feel of old midevil Europe. The make up on the demons was so 1950s I felt I was enjoying an old Lon Chaney movie. Great direction and great special effects. Pop some corn and grab a Coke and a blanket and kick back for an hour and a half of running with the devil!

Another reviewer labeled this as a "Dark Fantasy", and that is simply spot on! It's not really a true horror movie; almost more a morality play based on Basque folklore, and is scary in a proper "Grimm's Fairy Tales" sort of way. If you're familiar with the movie "Legend"(1985 w/Tom Cruise), this movie should be next to it on your shelf... or I guess these days in the same folder on your computer/tablet.

As to viewing options, and some of the complaints about the acting, I'll say this: the English dub is pretty bad(for both dialogue and overall audio), which often over or under sells the actor's delivery. If you are one who can handle subtitles, you're best experience will be listening to the original Basque audio, and the subtitles of your native language.

An intriguing visualization of a classic Basque folklore tale representing the hubris of humankind and the question of what is good and evil. Oddly rewarding and disappointing at the same time; rewarding in the sense of a well designed period piece and visualization of a region-specific folktale, but disappointing in the casting choices and acting methods of some of the roles.

I was impressed with the boldness of the religious hypocrisy portrayed in this film as well as the representation of Hell as seen from the 19th century Christian church. I find it interesting how different cultures find similarities in Hell while completely changing other facets of its representation.

Although I would not recommend multiple viewings of this film, and in the end it left me a bit underwhelmed, I would recommend a single watch simply to see a film version of this folktale and how the director and writers viewed their version of Hell.

A few days ago I stumbled across this film, I expected nothing but it looked interesting and so I gave it a watch. What I got was a well told Basque folktale, that whilst not impressive acting or some visuals (although for such a small budget, even though goofy, the practical effects are really well done) but impressed me is how unique the story is. You get a sense of morality vs religion, which was especially important In the 19th Century of where this film is set. All in all, its a very entertaining movie, you get an interesting story that gives some damn good Horror Fantasy elements that were often gripping.

The thing is, the movie is interesting, especially if you're interested in mythology or movies like the Witch (2016) or Pan's Labyrinth. Whilst not as good as those two, especially in the acting at points, I was definitely entertained. Good movie to watch during the lead up to Halloween. It may not be a film that needs in-depth analysis, I'm not going to spoil anything because that would ruin the experience for you but give it a watch. I was personally mixed on the film, I enjoyed it a lot but some elements were underwhelming. Looking for a foreign folk tale, this movie is probably for you, it'd recommend it, there's some great vision here, come in with an open mind and you won't be disappointed.