Imagine, you’ve waited months to see a film at the cinema just to have it spoiled by inconsiderate people during the screening. Audience members talking, playing with their phones or getting up and down all the time. To have an experience ruined and be frequently ‘pulled out’ of the moment. Understandably, it might well make you incredibly angry. Murderous even. If you’ve had the misfortune to endure this, Red Screening might be therapeutic for you.
Whilst admittedly Cine Opera has seen better days, the old movie theatre has wowed and amazed the citizens of Montevideo for decades. Studying for her exams, Ana (Luciana Grasso) finds herself in the projection booth, covering for her ailing father. Attendance at tonight’s classic horror screening is sparse, so it should be a quiet night. The audience is a mixed bunch, but one man is determined to have a bloody good time.
Taking its cues from Italian giallo, Red Screening is a slick and stylish horror where the screams are not just onscreen. Maximiliano Contenti’s film delves deep into the sub-genre’s tropes and cliches, acknowledging without being bound by them. It’s nicely done and cutely realised. There’s nothing particularly groundbreaking here, but it’s entertaining fare. Red Screening is a superior celluloid slasher.
Red Screening features as part of Xmas Horror Nights on 11 & 12 December.
