Julia's Eyes (2010) User Reviews

Walking in the dark

[DogFilmCritic · 7/10 · 4 May 2015]

The Spanish horror cinema is one of the big surprises of recent years. The orphanage, and less-in measure-REC REC 2 showed signs of the vitality of a genre that scares when it comes forward with a Spanish accent.

Julia's Eyes is a psychological thriller where a woman who is going blind in the middle of her job has the sensation that she is being strangled after that she shortly receives news that her sister who is already blind due to both having a genetic illness they both share, committed suicide (the myth that twins,can feel when something happens to his/her sibling at the same time)which is never brought again in the film,Julia who knew her sister pretty well knows that it wasn't a suicide but murder instead.

This is an excellent hook for a thriller that, relatively speaking, could be related more with old mysteries of Alfred Hitchcock or the early films of Dario Argento.In fact it would not be unusual for Alone in the Dark (1967), Terrence Young film with Audrey Hepburn would have represented some influence in this story, as they have some points in common.

The tension in the film is produced by great acting specially from Belen Rueda, the strong band and effectiveness of the sound effects,angle shots framing( there's a brilliant technique in the middle of the film that gives an idea on how a blind person interacts with someone that they can not see), photography, and the locations. it has some minor flaws in the plot but above all its a terrific film to enjoy

Surprisingly good!

[rowiko · 8/10 · 12 February 2011]

I watched this movie on the plane the other day, trying to find something to keep me awake (as sleep on an airplane never leaves you rested, but merely with a stiff body).

What I saw was, however - to my positive surprise - much more than just something to pass time, as I actually enjoyed it a lot.

I find the plot quite fascinating and very original, and it has, with its unpredictability, more than just a few surprises in store. Granted, there are a few inconsistencies with the storyline, but I didn't see them as a big problem, as the movie, as a whole, works.

All in all, a really good horror thriller, which keeps you guessing till the very end.

Good, but could have been great

[Corpus_Vile · 7/10 · 5 May 2011]

Julia, (Belen Rueda) like her twin sister Sara suffers from a degenerative nerve disease which is slowly but surely turning her blind, with her twin having succumbed to total blindness earlier. When her sister dies, apparently of a suicide, Julia feels there's something not quite right. Her sister wasn't depressed, and in fact had been looking forward to a potentially curable operation. Plus, there's rumours of Sara having had a mysterious boyfriend. But why didn't he go the funeral? Doubted by her Psychologist husband Isaacs (Lluis Homar) Julia resolves to investigate. But her disease is getting worse, and she keeps feeling that somebody is watching her every move. Is she cracking up? Or is something more sinister at play here?

Julia's Eyes starts off very promising indeed, with a gripping first hour, as director Guillem Morales ratchets up the tension with some clever visual tricks and an increasingly dark and creepy tone, as well as some entertaining red herrings.

However, by the third act, it unfortunately gets kinda... silly. It also unfortunately has a rather ludicrous revelation, as well as some clichéd bad decision making on the part of the protagonist. It also could have been a leaner affair, being rather needlessly overlong.

As well as this, the film doesn't really cover all the elements of its rather layered plot as well as it could have, with one or two loose ends that will very probably have the viewer raising a suspicious eyebrow.

That having said, it has some decent performances, is pretty absorbing and again, has a nigh on excellent first half.

Any horror or chiller fan should find much to like here, but ultimately it comes across as rather dissatisfying, considering its ambition.

7/10- A solid enough film, that's worth checking out overall, but potentially could have been excellent.

Original idea with conventional pitfalls.

[rhill-27 · 7/10 · 12 September 2010]

I watched the Julia's Eyes world premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival a couple of days ago, and I have to say that although I was entertained, it did fall short of my expectations. Seeing how the film was produced by Guillermo del Toro, I was really hoping for a horror/thriller on par with Pans Labyrinth or The Orphanage.

Julia's Eyes does have an original idea at its core and that's what keeps you guessing and entertained through the duration of the film. Unfortunately the film does fall into some cliché horror jump scares and the plot does not completely come together. It feels as though the filmmaker started with a great idea but wasn't fully able to pull it all together cohesively in the end. I want to keep this review spoiler free so I'm not going to get into any plot details, but suffice to say that the antagonist's plot line does not come to a rewarding conclusion.

That said, I think there is a lot to like here, the acting is great, some wholly original ideas are explored and there is enough tense and truly scary scenes to keep most horror/thriller fans happy.

Julia's Eyes is a film I enjoyed on the whole and I think people should seek out.

Julia's Eyes a very sophisticated thriller

[daffy201004 · 7/10 · 17 July 2011]

This was actually a pleasant surprise. I liked the beginning because it could of went the supernatural way or the other. The first half kinda toys with you about the death of Julia's sister and keeps you guessing where this is going to go. The setting and the good of this film is very good because it is very scary and tense. There is this great scene where Julia was in the bathroom with the other blinds and they "sensed" something which I won't reveal. I loved that this film was not predictable like the other mindless horror/thriller films. This film has believable twists, not just something out the blue or for shock. I believe that this film works because of the actress. She carried the movie very well. I actually liked her character which is hard to do in horror films. I actually liked the chemistry between Julia and her husband..it wasn't cheesy or over the top...it was very endearing. I loved the ending....She was actually smart and very real. Go check this out and you won't regret it!

just ignore strange comments !!

[mohsengolchehre · 9/10 · 17 August 2021]

I really can not understand how some people have written about this film: boring, long without suspension, and many more of these baseless comments. A lot of energy has been put into this film. The directing and acting were really great. The music was also very good. I remembered Hitchcock's psychological film. Both of these characters killed people due to mental problems. I just didn't like the overly romantic ending. It is very easy to write a review on a movie. We can easily say that it is a bad movie and say bad things about it. But making a movie is very hard work and it is different from writing with a mobile phone which is a bad or boring movie. We have to be a little fair.

An enjoyable, highly unpredictable thriller

[d_in_chi · 7/10 · 6 April 2014]

A respectable blend of drama and horror, using strengths of both but also succumbing occasionally to the weaknesses.

Suspense is present from the very beginning, building to an exciting and unexpected climax, unfortunately falling a bit flat afterward. In fact, the last 30 seconds of the film somewhat blemish the drama of the story as a whole, mostly because the ending touches on a relationship that was hardly explored and not at all significant through the rest of the film, partly because of the focus on the very thing that makes this movie good: the constant twists and turns in the story. This also leads to some ideas that are passable but don't make nearly as much sense as they're supposed to; particularly the whole "people who aren't seen"/"There was no man with her (Sara)"/"Don't look at me!" motif. I still don't get it, but it has little impact on the story anyway.

I believe the entirety of the story could have used some fine tuning, and run time could have been trimmed by 10 to 15 minutes... But overall it's engaging, well acted, and sets an excellent and fitting mood visually. Thrillers that can't project the protagonist's experience to the viewer fail horribly... this movie does an outstanding job providing a sense of confinement that fits the title character's world, and this is where its greatest strength lies.

Although character relationships are a bit thin and suspense doesn't hit many high notes, this is a fairly exciting thrill ride and a good effort all around. One last thing, I would recommend watching it without distraction... the mood is more visual and in the flow of the story than it is intellectual or suspenseful, and it's easy to lose interest if you step away for a few minutes.

Bellavista Blindness.

[hitchcockthelegend · 8/10 · 1 November 2013]

Los ojos de Julia (Julia's Eyes) is directed by Guillem Morales who also co-writes the screenplay with Oriol Paulo. It stars Belen Rueda, Lluis Homar and Julia Gutierrez Caba. Music is by Fernando Velazquez and cinematography by Oscar Faura.

After her blind twin sister mysteriously hangs, Julia (Rueda) refuses to accept it as suicide and begins to investigate the events herself. Unfortunately she is also becoming afflicted by the same degenerative eyesight that affected her sister. Can she solve the case before here eyesight completely fails? Can she stay alive, even, especially as dark forces appear to be closing in on her.

There has been some rather nifty horror movies come out of Spain in the last ten years or so, Julia's Eyes is another welcome addition off of the production line. The blind/eyes afflicted girl in peril formula is hardly new, with very good formula spookers already existing having come out of Asia and America, how nice to find that this Spanish entry is as good as any of them.

Guillermo Del Toro is once again on producing duty, continuing his crusade to give upcoming Spanish horror directors their chance in movie world. OK! So it's not unfair to say that many a horror fan would like to see Del Toro directing such material himself, but his presence is felt here, where much like El Orfanato (The Orphanage) the atmosphere that pervades the picture is Del Toroesque.

Julia's Eyes is very much a blending of thriller conventions, where it deals in psychological discord, slasher traits and whodunit mystery shenanigans. Mix them up with dashes of Gothic and Giallo and you are good to go for edge of your seat/breath holding entertainment. Thematic thrust comes by way of viewer voyeurism, and some scenes are macabre in construction, with one involving blind girls in a locker room really tingling the gooseflesh.

The colour scheme ranges from misty tinted coldness to tech-noir starkness, and the sound work is terrific, especially once Julia is handicapped by her bandaged eyes and we the audience need to buy into her dangerously dark world. Camera techniques, also are smart, with Morales cleverly not showing us the faces of those interacting with Julia once her eyes fail her, again this puts us in her world.

At nearly two hours in length, film is a touch too long, which when you consider there is no real great character development to speak of, is a bit annoying. However, this is about atmosphere and a genuine chill factors, a picture that gnaws away at the senses throughout and leads us to a poignant finale. Rueda, just as she was in The Orphanage, is terrific, and Julia's Eyes, much like The Orphanage, is also terrific. 8.5/10

Atmospheric but Flawed and Misguider Film

[claudio_carvalho · 6/10 · 26 November 2011]

After the death of the blind Sara (Belén Rueda), who hung herself in the basement of he house, her twin sister Julia (Belén Rueda) suspects that she was actually murdered. Julia has a degenerative problem in her eyes and is losing her sight and she temporarily moves with her husband Isaac (Lluís Homar) to Sara's house to arrange her funeral. Julia goes to the Centro Baumann for blinds where Sara frequented and she learns from the others blind users that Sara had a boyfriend.

Julia is chased by a mysterious man but the police inspector Dimas (Francesc Orella) does not believe on her. Julia follows the last steps of Sara trying to find the identity of her secret lover. Julia is surrounded by deaths and weird events while she loses her sight. Is she also delusional?

"Los Ojos de Julia" is an atmospheric film but flawed and misguider. The director gives the sensation of a supernatural story and ends like a "giallo" blended with "Blind Terror". The name of Guillermo del Toro, who is the producer, is also used to mislead the viewers. Belén Rueda has a magnificent performance; the cinematography and the camera work are excellent; the plot is intriguing; but the resolution is very disappointing. My vote is six.

Title (Brazil): "Os Olhos de Júlia" ("The Eyes of Julia")

Mystery , terror , intrigue about a woman losing the sight and her mysterious blind twin sister

[ma-cortes · 6/10 · 13 October 2011]

The same team - actress (Belen Rueda),producer (Guillermo Del Toro) , musician (Fernando Velazquez) , cameraman (Oscar Faura)- who made ¨The orphanage¨ bring us another terror film , ¨The Julia's eyes¨ or ¨Los Ojos de Julia¨ . And again a wonderful Belen Rueda as semi-blind woman in a movie with intense sequences of horror and suspense . The story deals with a mature woman named Julia (Belen Rueda in a double role) married a psychologist (Luis Homar) , she is slowly losing her vision by a degenerative ill whilst attempting to investigate the mysterious death of her twin sister named Sara (Belen Rueda) , also blind , who supposedly committed suicide . An old woman (Julia Gutierrez Caba) leads her to Baumann Center where Sara had relations to other blind women . Later on , finding alone in a house is terrorized by strange events . She is pursued by a psycho but can't hide in the dark . This is a highly suspenseful and cerebral mystery that tells about a woman losing his sight and being helped by his husband . It's a battle of wits between an intelligent almost blind woman and an evil villain and winds up pitting two rival, the obstinate blind woman and the brutal psycho against each other in order to save herself and destroy them both.

The film contains tension , thriller, drama , mystery , plot twists and shocks , including decent scares with tense terror sequences especially in its final part , in a creepy denouement , near of the end with a crazy killer trying to murder her . The picture is thrilling and some moment brilliant, and the actors are quite reliable as Belen Rueda , Luis Homar and special appearance by veteran Julia Gutierrez Caba . Although is sometimes slow moving and stagy , however is entertaining for continuous suspense . Belen Rueda is sensational in one of her best films along with ¨El Orfanato¨ . Sinister and mysterious atmosphere is finely photographed by cameraman Oscar Faura . Suspenseful and stirring musical score by Fernando Velazquez who previously composed for successful terror films as ¨The orphanage¨ , ¨For the God of others¨ and ¨Devil¨ . The film is well produced by the great producer/director Guillermo Del Toro . The motion picture is professionally written and directed by Guillen Morales who formerly realized ¨The uninvited guest¨ also dealing with violent confrontation among two characters . The movie will appeal to suspense enthusiasts and Belen Rueda fans. Rating : acceptable and passable . It's well worth watching and contains some really eerie scares and disturbing images .

Another Welcome Spanish Import...

[the_rattlesnake25 · 7/10 · 24 May 2011]

Guillem Morales's film 'Los ojos de Julia' (English translation: 'Julia's Eyes') is another recent Spanish import from the production desk of Guillermo Del Toro which manages to adequately combine an engaging plot with many well-orchestrated visual sequences.

Julia (Belen Rueda) is devastated when she finds out that her sister twin Sara (also played by Rueda) has committed suicide, apparently due to her inability to cope with her recent blindness which is part of a genetic disease that will effect both sisters throughout their lifetimes. Sensing something is wrong and with her sight slowly fading, Julia alongside her husband Isaac (Lluis Homar) sets out to investigate her lingering suspicions surrounding her sister's death. Including an apparent boyfriend that nobody can ever recall seeing nor can they describe him and the myriad of characters which she encounteres throughout her existence. As Julia's sight begins to slowly fade, she must attempt to unravel the mystery behind her sister's death.

Where Morales makes 'Julia's Eyes' work is in the combination of subtle close-up shots, atmospheric lighting and the alternating use of diegetic and non-diegetic sound, he and cinematographer Oscar Faura literally place the viewer within the confines of central protagonist. Instead of simply utilizing the age-old, and overcooked mainstream cinematic method of providing a false scare, followed by heightened non-diegetic sound, they as an alternative, allow the emphasis of the situation to be drawn from Julia's surroundings. Close-up, and medium-close-up shots of insignificant objects, and segments of wall, become ever more important as Julia's eyesight begins to slowly fade. While the avoidance of recording any distinguishing facial features of many male characters, especially during the second and third acts of the film, not only instils a sense of mystery in the title, but also again represents Julia's impending loss of sight. By primarily using the visual aesthetics to communicate to the audience the tone and atmosphere of the piece, Morales extends the engagement of the picture to further audiences by not necessarily providing a scare with every scene, but by consistently keeping the tension up at a high level.

The film isn't without flaw however; the story is cluttered with many sequences essentially repeating aspects of the story that have already been stated for the viewer and this unfortunately adds a further ten minutes to the running time of the picture. While the actors Belen Rueda and Lluis Homar provide strong emotional performances throughout, the majority of the remaining cast members attempt nothing to step outside of their stereotypical roles, nor is any screen-time provided for them with any depth beyond their scope as a one-time narrative pusher. Everybody else becomes somewhat of a pawn in Julia's mystery and while there are some potentially interesting characters around her, they are never fully developed to the extent where they can make an impact on the film's overall narrative. 'Julia's Eyes' is yet another above-average addition to the Spanish horror/thriller genre, which despite being slightly overlong, contains a solid story with many convoluted and inter-connected twists keeping the third act engrossing until the end credit sequence begins.

Fairly original and creepy thriller.

[diexmydarling · 9/10 · 12 February 2012]

I watched this not knowing exactly what to expect, due to the mixed reviews. While it is slow ISH to burn (at about 2 hrs length), I felt like it offered enough twists and turns along the way to keep you very engaged and on the edge of your seat. I felt like the storyline was quite original, and the movie does a great job of showing how Julia loses her sight over time, with certain scenes done from her point of view. All the actors play their parts very well (rare among most thrillers I feel). I watch a lot of horror/thriller movies, and while this isn't a horror movie, it definitely scared me! Contrary to other reviewers, I actually really enjoyed the ending. It's quite moving and goes very well with the story. Overall, a recommended view for anyone into a good thriller with 2 hrs on their hands.

An inconsistent horror/thriller with an interesting premise.

[lewiskendell · 6/10 · 28 February 2012]

A woman suffering from progressive blindness and her husband come to investigate the apparent suicide of her sister, who had the same affliction. There turns out to be much more to the death than it seems on the surface, and more people may end up finding a similar fate unless the mystery can be unraveled. 

Julia's Eyes gets off to a good start, with an interesting premise and a captivating opening scene. But, most of what follows is not equal to the introduction. Frustrating characters and annoying plot contrivances keep Julia's Eyes from being anything more than an average mystery/thriller that had me almost disinterested during the middle portion. The ending, fortunately, is strong and helped restore some of the good feelings I had about the movie during its beginning. 

Don't get me wrong, it's a tense movie throughout, thanks to the natural fear of not being able to see the danger around you. And there are plenty of story twists and turns, and not all of them are predictable. But watching characters make dumb, illogical decisions just for the sake of plot progression draws me right out of the atmosphere that's so necessary for an effective thriller. When Julia's Eyes is good, it's very good. It's just unfortunate that parts of it are exercises in pure frustration.

Now she sees you, now she don't

[Coventry · 8/10 · 25 April 2011]

I'm usually very cautious with my expectations towards Spanish horror/thrillers, especially if they look a little supernatural-themed and receive a lot of praise from beforehand. "Julia's Eyes" showed these characteristics, what with being produced by golden boy Guillermo Del Toro and all, but since it played at the Belgian Festival of Fantastic Films I still definitely wanted to see it. I'm glad to say "Julia's Eyes" is a tense and well-scripted thriller that is rather straightforward in its shocks and horror, rather than exaggeratedly suggestive and ghostly. It has been proved in the past that thrillers with blind female protagonists can scare quite effectively. The ravishing Belén Rueda joins the good company of Mia Farrow in "See No Evil" and Audrey Hepburn in "Wait Until Dark"; blind or narrowly blind damsels in distress who nevertheless fight back courageously. Julia suffers from a rare hereditary ailment which slowly but surely causes her to go blind. In order not to accelerate the forthcoming blindness, Julia must avoid all sorts of emotional stress. That's easier said than done, of course, especially when she discovers that her twin sister Sarah – who struggled with the same disease – committed suicide in the basement of her house. Julia refuses to accept that her sister solely killed herself because the eye operation failed and begins to dig into her private life, much against the will of her devoted husband Isaac. Julia discovers the existence of a mysterious and invisible man in Sarah's life, someone who may have drove her to commit suicide or even killed her. But then Julia collapses and loses her vision. The operation to save her sight is performed, but the first few weeks she'll have to live in darkness though with the help of a private nurse. It is during this period that Julia experiences exactly what her sister went through during her final moments…

The plot of "Julia's Eyes" is quite convoluted, with many characters that each have their own peculiarities and secrets. Nevertheless, director & co-writer Guillem Morales knows to maintain the suspense at a continuously high level and – even more importantly – the fear remains realistic and almost sensible. Especially the sequences taking place in the first few days after Julia's operation, when the audience is supposed to be as blind as the heroine herself, are extremely tense and unsettling. It's also during this period that the script contains a few harsh and totally unexpected shock moments that will surprise even the most experienced horror fanatics. During the last half hour, "Julia's Eyes" drops all allures of being a superior & sophisticated thinking man's thriller and literally turns into an old-fashioned bona-fide horror flick with nasty images and grotesque plot twists. I thought it was fantastic! The acting performances are terrific, with Belén Rueda basically deserving an Oscar for her role and Lluis Homar and Pablo Derqui providing excellent support. Highly recommended

Blinded by the poor script

[valleyjohn · 7/10 · 1 June 2011]

There have been some exceptional Spanish horrors made in recent years such as The Orphanage and Rec. and the Spaniards seem to be head and shoulders above the Americans at the moment when it comes to this genre.

Julia's Eyes is not really in the same ball park as the above films but it is still looks great never the less. This is a film about a sister who's blind twin dies unexpectedly and because she has inherited the same disease that makes her blind she begins to find out the hard way what exactly happened to her sibling.

There are some really good things about this movie and there are some really bad things. Firstly the way we see things happen on screen depending on the sight of Julia is very clever. I like how we don't see the characters faces when Julia cant either. Secondly , Belén Rueda is superb as Julia and is totally convincing and she has to be because the script is all over the place . There are so many things going on in this film that don't make sense or that people wouldn't do in real life , it spoils it a little. Yet i still liked it despite it's obvious flaws.

Only The Blind Can See...

[azathothpwiggins · 28 November 2021]

JULIA'S EYES stars Belen Rueda in the title role, trying to uncover the secrets behind her identical twin sister's death. Julia's sleuthing leads her ever deeper into a dark world of madness and murder.

Ms. Rueda is outstanding in her role as a woman trying to solve this mystery before a degenerative condition robs her of her sight. This all adds to the overall tension and terror.

For lovers of suspenseful thrillers like REAR WINDOW, WAIT UNTIL DARK, or SEE NO EVIL...

A very good film

[AwaixJvd · 7/10 · 11 December 2011]

Well I have seen so many horror films, and I am a big fan of them. I see them mostly at night, with lights turned off and my home theater turned on. That's the real sense of horror to be enjoyed in my view.

Well coming to the point, yes this was a good attempt. I see the horror films of 80s; they are also good, because they have the sense of classic without any SFX. In the new era added SFX creates more spine chills and throat soaked. I agree with it but even then some directors make useless things, like I saw a movie "the ward" and I was totally taken back, not by horror but by the logics and acts that was being performed. Every girl was a hot girl and they had nothing else to do except to be maniac.

In my view, this was a very good attempt, apart from adding SFX, director did a very good effort and to my view it was quite met the hopes.

Not so scary or thrilling Spanish thriller

[joebloggscity · 6/10 · 13 June 2011]

Following a recent spate of successful Spanish horror movies, Julia's Eyes has been released as a new addition to bolster their stable. We follow a woman who is unconvinced that her blind sister has died as all else see it. We follow her on her trail, noting that she herself is suffering from ailing eyesight, and we watch the plot twist and turn to try to keep us going.

First question is whether this is a horror film? The viewer has to suss out if this is a supernatural or a slasher movie (or both). Personally, I did not find it frightening or jumpy, so I prefer to see it rather as a thriller, although despite the scares being weak the film is gruesome at points.

The film is tagging along on the coat tails of the more masterly Spanish horror films like The Orphanage and REC, but it's not in the same league. However as it begins by being presented by the much lauded Del Tero, then it has not helped itself and comparisons are inevitable (and it suffers as a consequence).

Some great acting by our lead actress doesn't mask an otherwise mixed story. Some interesting twists but nothing ground breaking. Good camera work and shooting marks it higher than otherwise it deserves(usual late night movie) but for me it's not enough. There is a wonderfully directed scene in the denouement but you won't be remembering much else.

Not one to rush to watch, a thriller with some good points but little else.

Mindblowing Thriller

[pradiptadas1982 · 8/10 · 3 June 2013]

Watched "Julia's Eyes" Original Title-(Los Ojos de Julia)-

I got this movie in my collection from one of my Friend's collection. It's a ? Spanish Movie which I got with English subtitles. When yesterday I selected this movie to watch I had no idea what kind of movie it was and so I also had no expectations from it. Just knew that it's a movie of different language, different genre so may be there would be something new but when the Movie started I just jumped out from my chair. It was really a spine chilling moment which grabbed my whole attention towards the movie and this attention remained as such throughout the movie. Every Scene, short dialogues, murder clues, every drama I was just enjoying by watching repeatedly with the help of the rewind button of my laptop.

The movie started with the mysterious death of Sara. She was found hanging in the basement of her own house where she lived alone. She was blind due to a degenerative disease of her eyes. Police tried to loosening the case thinking that she was committed suicide because of loneliness and depression but her twin sister Julia, who was also suffering from the same degenerative disease in her eyes and rapidly deteriorating her sights didn't believe that it was a suicide. While doing her own way of searching the mystery of her sister's death Julia came to know that Sara was undergone a surgery on her eyes with the hope of regaining her sight. Also she found some clues of a mysterious boyfriend of Sara. Simultaneously with the run someone always tried to swipe away all the data, clues and even murdered the persons who knew anything about the case.

The first one hour was so intense, so twists n turns that one could not made an idea in which way the movie was going. Last 30 mins there was also a brilliant Cat- Mouse duel between Julia and the murderer.

After watching the movie I read from the internet that it was the same team- actress (Belen Rueda), producer (Guillermo Del Toro), musician (Fernando Velazquez), cameraman (Oscar Faura) - who made "Orphanage" previously. The same team again delivered an Intelligent, Tight gripped, spine chilling thriller which is original in its nature. Regarding acting everyone was brilliant. Belen Rueda was in a dual role in this movie (Sara n Julia). She was just terrifying throughout the movie. You can just watch this movie only for her acting if you keep every other things apart. Cinematography was brilliant in every part. Script writing, direction, technique with playing light n shadow just compel you to tighten your sit belt throughout the movie.

On a whole Guillermo Del Toro was again delivered a movie which was surprisingly good and taught everyone what the definition of a thriller is.

A MUST SEE for every thriller movie lovers.

This is not a mystery movie but a low quality horror movie

[auser-21183 · 1/10 · 31 May 2020]

This movie is a typical low budget, low quality horror movie. The heroes and heroines were behaving completely irrationally most of the time, so ridiculous so often that I don't want to spoil/repeat those plot details.

I came to this movie because one of the screenplay writers was the director/writer for The Body and The Invisible Guest, both of which are great mystery movies. Unfortunately his contribution here is probably purely technical and restricted to screenplay. The story and directing were both abysmal.

nice one

[krs_sn · 8/10 · 22 May 2011]

The leading lady Belen Rueda is gorgeous....this is what captured my attention to begin with. She is a pretty good actress, very expressive and convincing and the supporting cast is very good too. The movie is set in a small village in Spain and the visuals are very believable and the lighting decor etc is natural and free of gaudy colours as usually seeing in Hollywood flicks. The first half of the movie has palpable tension,there are many scary moments in the movie. Alas the last 20 minutes were not up to the mark...it was as if the rest was so majestic that there was no good way to end it all. In short a Spanish original film(subtitled),not the typical puerile slasher type Hollywood teen nonsense. Either watch and enjoy the original or wait for Hollywood to bring out a dumbed out version in a year.

Cool thriller

[Bored_Dragon · 7/10 · 7 June 2018]

Cool thriller

Maybe it is a little slower, on the border with the boring, in the first part, but it makes up for it in the second half. I do not know why they count it into the horror genre, although it is a little tense and sometimes bloody, but only for moments. It's more dramatic than it's scary.

7/10

Neither one thing nor another

[Ged59 · 4/10 · 22 May 2011]

Starting off with odd horror moments (like at the cemetery) there was no further horror in this, just a straightforward thriller, with plenty of formulaic events, and very predictable. A few clear flaws and mistakes too. Oh and I don't know why the director/makers had to have an attractive woman half-dressed half the time which was gratuitous distraction. Oh hang on, they do that in most movies. But I expected more from del Toro. After one hour I knew what the final hour held in store, but just wanted them to get on with it. Almost a walk-out situation, but not quite. Overall a very forgettable film, but I can imagine some will love it.

JULIA'S EYES

[0U · 11 February 2020]

A beautifully crafted mystery with chills and suspense in the vein of Hitchcock. A throwback, to thrillers of old, that has more style and sophistication than any your bound to ever set eyes on.

Intense and enjoyable...

[cat_ranchero · 7/10 · 28 April 2013]

Really well shot with some very creepy lighting effects used in places; I liked the look of this one very much. A very intense drama that builds very nicely towards the end and the final showdown. There are plenty of plot twists to keep the audience guessing; a little old lady that lives around the corner and a creepy neighbour and his daughter. Great performances all round with Belén Rueda getting the nod from me as the most notable. I did find it a little overcomplicated in places, but it did all pan out in the end. Over all, a nicely put together tense drama with elements that the Slasher and Horror genre fans will lap up; worth a look.

SteelMonster's verdict: RECOMMENDED

My score: 6.7/10

You can find an expanded version of this review on my blog: Thoughts of a SteelMonster.