Shiver (2008/Dark Sky Films DVD)

 

Picture: C+     Sound: C+     Extras: D     Film: B-

 

 

Shiver (2008) is one of those interesting viewing experiences – it comes from one of the producer of the incredible Spanish films Pan’s Labyrinth and The Orphanage, but it’s not one of the ones you’d ever heard of, so I didn’t know what to expect.  The director, Isidoro Ortiz, is someone I’d never heard of, so I didn’t know what to expect.  I’ve heard of, but never seen The Devil’s Backbone (I know, I know – working on it) which star Junio Valverde made somewhat of a name of himself, so I didn’t know what to expect.  And that basically sums up my viewing of this movie – I didn’t know what to expect, but everything looked appealing.

 

However, in my post-viewing experience, I’ve sat on the film a few days and if I went back to watch it again, I wouldn’t know what to expect.  That doesn’t mean that I didn’t pay attention, which I did, but instead it means that a film like this one left me thinking, “Well that was interesting, but what did I just watch?”

 

This film is cool – right off the bat, it’s got style going for it.  The film’s opening, depicting the main character Santi (Valverde) running through the streets, desperate to escape the sunlight that’s chasing him, is visually stunning.  What follows descends into your basic horror film, but not one that’s uninteresting.  Santi and his mother move to a town that remains in darkness, but there’s a creature hiding within the forest ready to kill.  Like I said, basic?  Yes, but the “what you can’t see is trying to kill you” thing isn’t entirely old yet.  Yet.

 

Sadly, there are no features on this disc.  Some insight into the film’s creative process would have been real interesting.  Additionally, exploring the shift in storytelling from the film’s opening scene to the remainder of the film would be something I’d like to see explored.  If the former storyline had continued, it could have made for an excellent science fiction or horror film.

 

The film’s presented in its original 1.85:1 anamorphic widescreen presentation, featuring Spanish and English audio tracks in either Dolby 5.1 or 2.0, as well as subtitles in Spanish, English, and French.

 

Check this out, at least for a rental.  It’s an interesting viewing experience.  I’m not sure if I’d call it a spectacular one, but it’s definitely something I’ll be returning to for another viewing, if only to see what I actually think of it.

 

 

-   Jordan Paley