Review of Painless

Painless (2012)
7/10
Brilliant terror film dealing with two stories : a surgeon who discovers his dark past and an asylum with weird little boys
31 March 2015
Creepy film builds tension by showing virtually astonishing frames , unsettling musical score and appropriate sets . Mystery , terror , and intriguing flick concerns about two alternating stories that end up being the same along with inter-crossed roles filled with internal conflicts and discoveries . In one, in the present time , a neurosurgeon called David Martel (Alex Brendemühl), urgently needs a bone marrow transplant , and he is exhaustively seeking clues about his past . During his quest , he finds strange conclusions , as David will exhume terrifying secrets . As Martel moves to a far-off place lost in the mountains and a series of odd events will shock him when he searches for his biological parents . The only way to heal his illness will be disclosing the terrible secret a sanatorium hides . The second story set at the dawn of the Spanish civil war , a group of children , insensitive to pain , is locked in a sanatorium ruled by Dr. Holzmann (Derek De Lint) and Dr. Carcedo (Ramon Fontserè) in the heart of the Pyrenees . There is an isolated , shadowy asylum located on mountains of Catalonia, starting in 1936 during the Spanish Civil War , and running through to the '60s, and at this place inhabits some children without serious physical reaction . But horrible , violent deeds begin to occur and hideous murders take place.

Spanish horror film set in Catalonia full of thrills , suspense , chills and creepy twists and turns . ¨Painless¨ weaves two stories , the one in current days, in which an expert neurosurgeon , well played by Alex Brendemhul , discovers that he has a tumour and start searching for his biological parents to get a bone marrow transplant necessary for his survival and on the other hand an asylum run by two doctors , finely performed by Derek De Lint and Ramon Fontserè , as they attempt to rehabilitate children who feel no pain, by teaching them physical suffering . This scary , bizarre 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 . A Spanish-French co-production with a timeline that spans decades the film is a thriller that begins in the days of the Spanish Civil War and goes on through until the current day . ¨Painless¨ or ¨Insensibles¨ suffers from some sputtering about a quarter of the way in , the sputtering came from a complete change in story direction, away from the spectacular beginning and toward a very complex story line , one which suffers from some slow-moving scenes . Interesting screenplay by the same director revolving the mental disintegration of a neurosurgeon and the various amazing surprises he finds . The motion picture is pretty well , although sometimes deliberate pacing and packs a lot of turns ; however is entertaining for continuous suspense and unsettling atmosphere . The picture is thrilling and some moment brilliant, and the players are quite reliable . Ghastly movie builds taut by showing virtually well staged set pieces , evocative settings , adequate soundtrack and rousing cinematography . Few disagree that the film is professionally mounted , the performances solid , and that it respectfully carries on the tradition of Spanish "horror" films like The Devil's Backbone , Pan's Labyrinth , Eskalofrio and The Orphanage , borrowing several elements here and there . Colorful cinematography by Alejandro Martinez showing splendidly mountains , sanatorium , and villages from Pyrenees , Montserrat , Catalonia , Spain , Spain . Alejandro Martínez is one of the best Spanish cameramen with international career as he has demonstrated in "Automat¨, ¨Wen¨, ¨Stay alive¨, ¨Hierro¨, ¨First Born¨, ¨Blackout¨, among others . Eerie as well as frightening musical score by Johan Söderqvist who has composed for successful films as ¨Let the right one in¨ , ¨Bron¨, ¨In a better world¨, ¨After the wedding¨, "King of Devil's Island" and ¨Kon-Tiki¨ .

This is a motion picture displaying genuine chills , suspense, mystery and dark atmosphere and twisted finale , being skillfully proceeded by Juan Carlos Medina and turned out to one of the most unusual Spanish thrilling movies of 2010 and certainly one of the most unsettling . Juan Carlos Medina is a good director and writer, known for ¨Painless¨ , his only and most successful film , he previously directed shorts . ¨Insensibles¨ premiered in CinEuphoria Awards : Best Costume , Design , Best Art Direction, Best Special Effects Best Editing and best filmmaker . Furthermore , in Sitges , Catalonian International Film Festival 2012 was Nominated Best Motion Picture . Juan Carlos Medina is set to direct the crime-thriller "Dan Leno and The Limehouse Golem" , the story follows a Jack the Ripper-style serial killer nicknamed the Limehouse Golem.
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