Making its world premiere at Fantastic Fest, Satanic Hispanics is a great way to celebrate Hispanic Heritage Month. The horror anthology includes stories from five Latino filmmakers. They are a great mix of grindhouse, comedy, and straight up horror. Each tale delivers the scares that horror fans are expecting while highlighting some of the customs and culture that cinema often overlooks.
A horror anthology is about more than putting together a bunch of random stories. The overarching story does not have to be the highlight of the movie, but it should tie everything together in some way. The Traveler from Mike Mendez (Tales of Halloween) does an excellent job of doing this. Played by Efren Ramirez (Napoleon Dynamite), the titular character introduces each segment and even provides a little backstory. He also brings some tension to the overall movie.
Satanic Hispanics does a great job of brining comedy in the most unexpected places. This is seen most in ‘The Hammer of Zanzibar’ from Alejandro Brugues (Juan of the Dead) which brings visual comedies, crude jokes, and a kick ass soundtrack with some fantastic use of misdirection. Ed Sanchez’s ‘El Vampiro’ is more straightforward with its humor and just as effective.
These stories serve as a good change of pace between the more graphic portions of Satanic Hispanics. Gigi Saul Guerrero’s (Bingo Hell) ‘Nahuales’ is the most brutal part of the film. Guerrero’s love of violent genre films is on full display here. Every anthology needs that one installment that grosses everyone out and ‘Nahuales’ will be the one for most. Meanwhile, ‘Tambien Lo Vi’ by Demian Rugna is more of a classic horror story that has some very effective jump scares.
This may be what stands out most about the film. It never tries to reinvent the wheel; it just brings more value to an already familiar and loved sub genre. The settings are not normally seen, but are still recognizable. The characters are twists on fan favorites like vampires and witches. Satanic Hispanics has something all horror fans will enjoy.
Satanic Hispanics is screening at Fantastic Fest
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