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A great collection of Spanish horror films makes it to the States courtesy of Lion’s Gate

A collection of films produced for Spanish television, (ala our own Showtime series Masters Of Horror), 6 Films To Keep You Awake actually has more of a return on the viewer’s investment than the Showtime series ever did.  Out of the 6 films, four of them are very interesting, with only two being slightly below par, a much better ratio than I can recall from either season of the American series.

The collection opens with Spectre, directed by Mateo Gil which tells the story of an older man named Tomás (Jordi Dauder) who is drawn back to the village which spawned him, cursed by an older woman (Natalia Millán) who he had a torrid affair with in his teen years.  Thought to be an adulterer and a witch, she came to a horrible end and now her ghostly visage haunts Tomás at every turn.  This was one of the weaker entries in the set to me, as it takes awhile to really get anywhere with the story, and the spookiness factor is slim to none.

Blame is directed by Narciso Ibáñez Serrador and tells the story of Gloria (Montse Mostaza), a struggling nurse and single mother who moves in with her friend Ana (Nieve De Medina), a gynecologist who runs a private practice out of her home.  Gloria learns that Ana is performing abortions in the house, and also finds herself pregnant by her on again, off again boyfriend.  Couple this with a house full of strange noises and unwanted lesbian advances by Ana and you’ve got more of a hum-drum haunted house story than anything that will keep you awake.

A Real Friend is directed by Enrique Urbizu and stars Nerea Inchausti as Estrella, a young girl who lives with her mother Angela (Goya Toledo) and spends all of her time engrossed in horror movies and books.  She has befriended the monsters in her stories and is followed around her building by Leatherface (or a very good facsimile) and keeps running into a vampire when she’s alone in public.  The lines of fantasy and reality blur easily in this film, and in spite of an ending that I didn’t really care for, this one is a lot of fun, playing out like a love letter to horror fans.

A Christmas Tale is director Paco Plaza’s exploration of the casual cruelty children can easily fall into if left to their own devices.  A group of friends discover a woman (Maru Valdivielso) dressed as Santa in a pit in the woods a few days before Christmas.  The at first try to free her, but learn that she robbed a bank and instead choose to extort the money from her in exchange for her freedom, starving her out.  Factor in superstitions and voodoo rituals and this one races towards a crazy conclusion that may seem familiar to fans of EC Comics but is still very enjoyable.

The Baby’s Room, directed by Álex de la Iglesia is the only film in this collection that made me jump, even when I knew something was coming, so I give it high praise for pulling that off.  Juan (Javier Gutiérrez) and Sonia (Leonor Watling) move into an old house with their infant son.  They begin to hear strange things through the baby monitor, and when they purchase an infrared camera, Juan is horrified to awake and see a shadowy figure standing over his child’s crib.  The house begins to drive Juan mad as he chases this shadow figure and tries to figure out how to save his family from something they can’t see.

Finally, To Let is directed by Jaume Balagueró and sees another young couple looking for their dream home.  Clara (Macarena Gómez) and Mario (Adrià Collado) go to check out an apartment that sounds too good to be true.  It turns out to be in a largely abandoned neighborhood, but they ignore their instincts and head into the deserted building with the real estate woman (Núria González), only to find themselves fighting for their lives when she reveals her true identity and purpose.  This was a very tense entry in the series, though the camera does have a habit of shaking around to indicate stress a bit too much; it becomes distracting at times.  Otherwise, the violence and tension is very gritty and enough to put your teeth on edge.

Each film in the 6 Films To Keep You Awake runs just over an hour, the average running time is 75 minutes, and the three disc set builds nicely if viewed in the order they are presented.  The first two films are alright, nothing special, but have a few spooky moments here or there.  The second disc, featuring A Real Friend and A Christmas Tale amp up the horror aspects, and ACT is actually the most stylish of the bunch as it introduces its characters.  The third and final disc then knocks it out of the park with two very tense and creepy films that actually grabbed me and didn’t let go.

The 6 Films To Keep You Awake set is presented on three discs, each containing two films, and each film also receives a 15 minute making-of featurette as the only bonus material on the disc besides a trailer for Beneath Still Waters, which repeats before all six films

This is a great set of films, even the lesser ones are an okay watch, and there are several here that will bear up to repeated viewings.  I’d highly recommend picking this set up.

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