In 1988, two bizarre films that included sci-fi elements were released in Argentina: _Lo que vendrá_ and _Alguien te está mirando_. Neither of them is a masterpiece, but there's a big difference between them. _Lo que vendrá_ takes itself seriously, and as a result it seems pretentious, it fails miserably. _Alguien te está mirando_, on the other hand, seeks only to entertain, thus avoiding total failure.
Like the classic 80s horror film, this one follows a group of young adults who just want to have fun. Before they head to the typical weekend house, however, these youngsters participate in an experiment run by three American scientists. The experiment involves dreams and a drug, CP1, which produces, as one of the scientists puts it, "maximum stimulation of the oneiric potential." The connection between the experiment and the events in the lives of the young adults becomes clear as the film progresses. All I can say without giving much away is that this movie anticipates a major sci-fi film of the late 90s. (The movie's poster will tell you as much.) By extension, there is also a Borgesian/Phildickian element to the film.
The acting, though not dreadful, is bad enough. The "American" accent of the scientists is awful. Only one of the English-speaking actors (James Murray) speaks good English, but his accent is nowhere near American. The soundtrack seeks to cover all bases: it is a mixture of hard rock, punk, and pop. The inclusion of the Soda Stereo song "No existes" is particularly noteworthy. Music legends Michel Peyronel (drummer for Riff and Tarzen) and Stuka (guitar player for Los Violadores) have brief appearances in the film. In short, the movie has "80s" written all over it. I almost cried when I saw, in one of the scenes, a bag of "chizitos" (the Argentinean equivalent of Cheetos) that looked just like the ones I used to get when I was a kid.
Like _Blade Runner_ (Ridley Scott, 1982), _Alguien te está mirando_ is a postmodern pastiche, though its sources are altogether different: the film's aesthetic is a combination of sci-fi, horror (_Halloween_, _Friday the 13th_), softcore, and music videos. In other words, David Cronenberg is another major influence, which makes sense, when one considers the year of production. One of the film's directors, Maldonado, went on to make _El desvío_ (1998), another film that begins with young people looking for entertainment, so there is continuity there.
It's been exactly 30 years since the release of this film. I guess that makes this review a kind of tribute. The "kids" in the film are probably in their fifties now. I wonder whether they watch their own film every now and then, and what they think. If I were in their place, I'd be proud of myself, in spite of everything. There may be a considerable amount of corn involved here, but in the immortal words of Alf, "one man's corn is another man's pot roast." Different yet unpretentious, _Alguien te está mirando_ is good, silly fun with metaphysical implications.
