Dripping with Lynchian style, The Dollmaker (Encantador; Argentina, 2025) is part charming, funny, decidedly weird and enjoyably bloody. Things are not all they seem to be in a cheerfully idyllic town that soon becomes a hotbed of female kidnappings. No one seems to care much about the missing women, including nerdy video store clerk and amateur dollmaker Tomás (Rodrigo Noya.) But when a new inspector comes to town determined to solve the disappearances, Tomás soon becomes the unlikely prime suspect. A horror film that becomes increasingly dark, gruesome, and unpredictable.
I was invited to watch a screener of The Dollmaker.
This is one of those what in the hell did I just watch kind of movies. The town is described as "cheerfully idyllic" but to me it was just plain bizarre. The "Diner" that serves hamburgers and typical American fare also seems to serve as the local dive bar, the video store is manned by workers dressed as boy scouts who tell you to always be prepared; there are counseling sessions in a multi-purpose building, and the police force is odd.
The description on IMDB says "In a quiet village, a charming young man named Tomás leads a simple life: caring for his mother, working at the video store and town clinic, and collecting dolls. As women start disappearing, newly arrived Inspector Porter investigates." But I disagree. Tomás was not charming. He was not the kind of person that people would claim to be shocked if they found out he was a killer. He was gawky and awkward, your basic loner lacking social skills. To me he seemed to be Argentina's version of Norman Bates. I'm not sure who was crazier, Tomás or his love interest who found him "charming."
Can anyone stop him before he adds to his doll collection? Does anyone not notice how weird he is? Is someone keeping his secrets for him? I guess you'll have to watch to find out, if you are in the mood for a surreal, slightly gory, trippy, gross-out horror.
Directed by: José María Cicala
Written by: José María Cicala, Griselda Sanchez
I rated this a 7 out of 10 on IMDB
Produced by: Abril Cicala
Cinematography by: Martin Nico
Edited by: Cecilia Calarota
Music by: Nahuel Maeso
Starring: Rodrigo Noya, Griselda Sanchez, Lejo Garcia Pintos, Alejandro Baldoni, Santiago Domongues, Eduardo Calvo, Guillermo Zapata, Silvia Petri, Mario Alarcon, Arturo Puig
No comments:
Post a Comment