DVD Review: Shiver
Shiver (Eskalofrio) (2008)
Studio: Dark Sky Films
DVD Release Date: October 28, 2008
Directed By: Isidro Ortiz
Cast: Junio Valverde, Mar Sodupe, Blanca Suarez, Francesc Orella & Berta Ros
Brutal As Hell Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
Review By: Annie Riordan
Teenage Santi is afflicted with a severe case of photophobia, restricting him to a life lived in shadows and darkness.. The least amount of sunlight can prove fatal for the boy, and his condition is not improving. Following the advice of his doctor, Santi and his mom Julia relocate from Barcelona to a remote village deep in a shadowy valley where the sunshine is less intense. Santi welcomes the change, hoping for a normal life attending daytime classes and maybe even finding a girlfriend. But soon, an ugly local legend rears its head. There’s something living in the deep, dark woods, something that’s been tearing the local livestock to shreds and which soon moves on to the human population. When a classmate of Santi’s turns up butchered, all eyes turn to the new boy, whose preference for darkness and elongated canines stir suspicion amongst the villagers.
Santi always seems to be in the wrong place at the wrong time, until even the local Sheriff can’t believe that anyone other than Santi is responsible for the gruesome deaths. But Santi is determined to prove his innocence and – with the help of his mom, his new girlfriend and a good friend from Barcelona – he sets out to prove that there’s a wild child living in the woods, a savage creature left behind in the aftermath of a covered up crime.
Shiver, as a horror movie, really isn’t all that horrifying. Rather, it works as a teenage fairy tale and plays out like an episode of Scooby Doo. Its simplistic, straightforward plot contains no twists or surprises and is predictable to the point of being eye-rolling irritating at times. However, both the scenery and the cast are wonders of natural beauty, and the tale the film has to tell is sweet without being too overtly saccharine. The ending is a tad on the ridiculous side, but all in all, it’s just likable enough to be worthy of recommendation.
Just don’t go into it expecting Pan’s Labyrinth or The Devil’s Backbone. Shiver seems to be aimed at an exclusive audience: the endangered breed of teenage foreign film fans that don’t mind reading subtitles.
