Spanish filmmaker Alex de la Iglesia made his directorial debut with 1994’s Mutant Action. He introduced Spain’s moviegoing audience to a stylised form of filmmaking and storytelling that was new to them. With his next releases, Day Of The Beast (1995), Dancing With The Devil (1997) and Common Wealth (2000), De la Iglesia soon established himself as a master in the art of genre bending and controlled chaos.
Comedy meets horror once again
His 2013 movie, a horror comedy called Las Brujas De Zugarramurdi, is no different. It expertly weaves together elements of what audiences have come to love about Sam Raimi and Quentin Tarantino movies. It features blood-soaked, violent, surreal, and frenzied, all wrapped up in a nice bow of absurd comedy.
The first 15 minutes of the movie showcase, perhaps, the most high-octane robbery ever seen in a motion picture. It involves a gang of armed robbers posing as street performers. They’re dressed as characters ranging from Jesus Christ to SpongeBob, who go into a jewelry store in central Madrid to rob it. When things get out of control, as is the case with a lot of robberies, they hijack a taxi and begin to make their way towards France. However, they soon find themselves in a quaint village with odd characters, called ‘Zugarramurdi’.
What makes Alex de la Iglesia so successful at combining genres is his ability to find a meeting point for them in peculiar situations. Like within the opening minutes of this movie, for example. The viewer is faced with the absurdity of a divorced dad bringing his young son to assist in the robbery. Juxtaposed with that is the child’s concerned mother trying to find him and save him. Later on, the main characters hilariously navigate a love triangle while simultaneously trying to stay alive in what is later revealed to be a witch’s coven.
The art of keeping one’s interest
Las Brujas De Zugarramurdi promises a lot. It has jump scares, thrills, car chases, bloody rituals, and hilarity. Above all, it is a decent satire of religion and religious practices. It’s an entertaining way to spend 114 minutes.
Las Brujas De Zugarramurdi is available to stream or rent on Prime Video.
