Terry's Reviews
Page
|
||
| Movies | Music | Books |
Movie Reviews: |
||
|
The Devil’s Backbone – Special
Edition Columbia Tri-Star Home Video - 2001 Directed by Guillermo Del Toro Starring |
|
| Columbia Tri-Star
Home Video has done the right thing by re-releasing THE DEVIL’S BACKBONE as a Special
Edition. THE DEVIL’S BACKBONE is a masterpiece and deserves to be rolled out on the
red carpet. Overshadowed by Guillermo Del Toro’s other large-scale films like BLADE 2
and HELLBOY, this is the best film he’s ever made. It’s not surprising to learn
in the Audio Commentary that THE DEVIL’S BACKBONE is semi-autobiographical because
Del Toro makes it such a personal film that it could not have entirely come from
someone’s imagination. THE DEVIL’S BACKBONE is set in the Spanish Civil War era, with almost all the action taking place in a boy’s orphanage called Santa Lucia School. This School is located in a desert, has high ceiling hallways, a large cave-like basement and a bomb partially buried in the school’s courtyard. Though the first image we see in the film is a bomb (the one in the schoolyard I presume) dropped from a plane, the war is not the film’s focus. Del Toro centers in on the conflicting interaction between the boys who live at an orphanage, the older married couple who run the orphanage; Dr. Casares (Federico Luppi) & Carmen (Marisa Paredes), a maid named Conchita (Irene Visedo) and a nasty handyman man named Jacinto (Eduardo Noriega). It’s amazing how all these characters have connection and purpose. Nobody is thrown in for the heck of it. Everyone matters and is important to the story. Because of this, I don’t want to give away any payoff or storyline surprises because this film deserves to give you that pleasure. What I will say that like most ghost stories, revenge plays a huge part as well as greed and love. Guillermo Del Toro does an incredible job of making the film look lush and painstakingly artistic, yet never allows the beautiful style overtake the storyline. He does things in a way that will tug on your heartstrings. Del Toro should receive notice for helping coax the extraordinary performances from the actors, especially the children. THE DEVIL’S BACKBONE is a creepy little ghost story that becomes a deeply moving film with an ending that is simply beautiful. Cinematography by Guillermo Navarro is startling. Navarro is able to bring Del Toro’s vision to the screen with a special touch of color and subdued movement. The music composed by Javier Navarrete with additional music by Pedro Navarrete is as classy as the rest of this production. I’d be hard pressed to name a film with a better cast of child actors. The performances by these young boys are honestly adult level. Fernando Tielve (as Carlos) and Iqigo Garcis (as Jaime) are sensational and touching. You can see why Federico Luppi is one of Del Toro’s favorite actors to work with. Luppi was memorable in Del Toro’s first film CRONOS and here he pulls off a difficult character that is impotent, knows his wife is cheating on him but loves her anyway. Marisa Paredes is pretty much a powerhouse as the headmistress and is multi-dimensional because she despises her husband in the beginning but then she changes when she finds out what Jacinto is after. It’s hard to believe that Eduardo Noriega is pretty much considered a pretty boy in his native country because he is anything put pretty as the vile and wicked Jacinto. Guillermo Del Toro’s Audio Commentary is very personal and he isn’t afraid to share his thoughts about anything. Del Toro doesn’t always talk specifically about the film but things in a more general way, which gives you a more overall view of the talented filmmaker. You may be disappointed to find a lack of specifics about the film but you can’t help but admire his candidness and passion about life. You can see why Deleted Scenes were cut but they were cool to watch never the less. I really like the camera movement in the scene "Encounter in the Plaza." Del Toro and Navarro make the most out of using the space in the courtyard location with a Steadicam. Del Toro provides optional Audio Commentary. You can also watch the movie with Director’s Thumbnail Track, which means you will see drawings Del Toro drew that pertain to certain scenes or characters and when the drawings come on, they replace the subtitles for those moments. Pretty cool idea and something I haven’t see anyone else do. Storyboard Thumbnail Comparison gives you drawings to measure against the actual film. Conceptual Art is along the same line. There are three excerpts from Del Toro’s Director Notebook, which I’ll admit I saw in person and couldn't help but be impressed with his artwork and his creative mind. |
||
