I wrapped up my TIFF experience last
weekend with Paco Plaza's newest horror, Verónica.
After messing with a Ouija board to
contact her dead father, Verónica (Sandra Escacena) senses that she
may have brought forth something else much more sinister.
This was another entertaining yarn from Plaza.
Carrying over the sensibilities employed on his solo installment of
the [REC] series, he was again able to deftly mix horror with light
comedy. And while it's true the plot seemed very familiar, it was
very well executed. Opening with a setup that echoed that of [REC],
Plaza utilized visual flourish and calculated technique to give this piece some real depth.
Verónica had some decent set pieces
that thankfully didn't overly rely on sound design, as Plaza knew how
to let his visuals guide our response.
However, I've found over the years that the Spaniards tend to
over explain their climaxes and unfortunately Verónica was no
different. I found it only a mild annoyance in this case, though.
I thought the performances were another
large reason this piece was a success. Escacena was very good as the
title character, but it was the entire supporting cast that really
anchored the project. Her younger siblings were quite charming and
the bickering between them made up the bulk of the comic relief. And
I have to say that Consuelo Trujillo really made the most of her
clichéd role as the blind and wizened nun Sister Death.
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| Sandra Escacena (left) and Consuelo Trujillo in Verónica. |
Plaza is a journeyman of his craft and
continually shows that through sheer creativity and personality he
can make even the most oft-travelled material interesting. Verónica doesn't reinvent the wheel, but it sure makes you have fun riding on
it.
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