Vampire movies are a dime a dozen. Frankly, I just don't look forward to vampire flicks anymore. There is the all-permeating feeling of "been there done that" with each new release, as if the whole vampire concept has been played out a long time ago. Lesbian vampires? Yep...we've seen that. Modern, "Matrix-ish" vampires? We've seen that too. In my mind, there have been only two truly great, innovative, thought provoking, and original vampire movies in the last few decades. One would be George Romero's "Martin" (review coming soon), and the other is "Cronos", the debut feature from hot-shot Mexican director Guillermo Del Toro. Both films, while quite different, explore vampire mythology in equally interesting ways. They also have in common excellent screenplays, touching, delicate performances, the requisite shock-moments, and a deep understanding not only of what vampirism (both literally and figuratively) "is", but also what it "means". "Cronos" came literally out of nowhere to sweep the Mexican Academy Awards in 1994, and has since been largely ignored by much of the genre-filmgoer population...until recently. More and more people are really starting to notice Del Toro's beautifully executed vision, and it's a damned good thing, too!
The synopsis...
The story begins with a brief recounting of how a 15th century alchemist (Mario Iván Martínez) invented a device (the "Cronos" device that gives the film its name) that was said to have slowed his aging process to a crawl. Eventually, after many years, the alchemist and his device slipped into the obscurity of time, and both were forgotten. Flash forward to modern times, when a kind old antique dealer named Jesús Gris (Federico Luppi) comes across an ancient statuette of an archangel, which is damaged in the cleaning and restoration process. When a roach of some kind comes crawling out of the hollow of the statue, Gris knows that something's not quite right, but like all people interested in antiquity, he delves deeper. Inside the statue, he finds an elaborate, gilded, metallic scarab-like object. As he examines it, the device "comes to life" in his hand, much to his suprise, and to the shock of his granddaughter Aurora (Tamara Shanath). The device sprouts six mechanical legs, which proceed to dig into the flesh of his hand, and a scorpion-like "tail" plants itself into the fleshy part of his palm. After several minutes of frantically trying to pull the device off, it simply detatches itself, and quietly "shuts down". Scared but still curious, Gris takes the device home. Meanwhile, terminally ill industrial millionaire Dieter de la Guardia (Claudio Brook) sends his tough-guy nephew Angel (a great Ron Perlman, here beginning his association with Del Toro) to fetch the archangel statue...he suspects that this statue is the one that contains the Cronos device which he has been obsessively seeking since falling ill. Angel visits Gris' shop and buys the statue, sans Cronos device, and upon returning it to his uncle, is instructed to pay another little visit to Gris' shop...after hours, so to speak. The following morning, Gris sees that his shop has been ransacked, and pays a visit to de la Guardia's palatial factory/home. De la Guardia explains the history of the device, something that Gris has partially discovered on his own due to some experimentation the night before. You see, Gris somehow innately understands the meaning and purpose of the device...and slowly becomes "addicted" to the symbiotic relationship that the device offers. It contains, it seems, an ancient insect-like creature that feeds on the blood of its user, but in return, it passes along an anti-aging drug of some sort, giving Gris a veritable new lease on life. He starts to become more "interested", shall we say, in his wife Mercedes (Margarita Isabel), and he finds that he has a new zest...a spring in his step that has been sorely missing from his life for quite some time. As an unpleasant side-effect of using the Cronos device, Gris develops a sort of bloodlust. You see, while the device will keep you young and fresh indefinitely, its demands of your blood make it necessary to seek out surrogate blood...as in "the consumption of"...and there's the direct connection to vampirism. Gris becomes more and more addicted to the device, and to the youth it bestows upon him. His marriage becomes, on the surface, happier than it's been in years, and he has the energy and will to do things only a much younger man could (or should) do. Only the wise-beyond-her-years Aurora suspects that anything is amiss with Gris, but she loves her grandfather, and wants to help him out as much as she can. What follows is essentially the story of two struggling addicts vying for control of the de facto "drug" that they both crave. It's the story of two old men having varying degrees of difficulty coming to terms with their own mortality, as well as their frailty and slow, inevitable aging. But it's so much more complicated and interesting than it seems...
"Cronos" is such a wonderful movie...so rich in symbolism and subtlety...that it would be wrong of me to overanalyze it (as I am wont to do) for the sake of telling you how great it is. It's a movie about relationships. It's about fear...fear of death, fear of growing old, fear of losing loved-ones, fear of becoming a "monster", fear of being out of control. All of these fears are so real and poignant, that "Cronos" qualifies as a true horror film. It deftly shifts from scenes of gentle beauty to sequences of outright disgustingness. The effects (executed by del Toro himself), are astounding for this kind of low-budget production. The camerawork is fluid and sweeping. The lighting is sublime. The set-design is simple but effective. The screenplay is delicate, touching, and horrifiying. The performances are absolutely perfect. Ron Perlman is particularly good here...his "Angel" is both brutal and scary, and all too human (his two main character motivations are to get a nose job, and to inherit...one way or another...his rich uncle's vast wealth). Federico Luppi is likewise excellent as the aptly named "Jesús Gris"...which means "grey Jesus"...a fittingly prophetic character name if ever this reviewer has heard one. The real prize of the acting troupe is Tamara Shanath as Aurora. Though she's only about 8 years old or so, this girl just exudes strength and wisdom. It is to del Toro's credit that he knows how to handle a young actress so well. There are several moments in "Cronos" that could have been, if handled even slightly improperly, truly sappy, overemotional sobfests. Another director might have let this happen (Spielberg, for example), but del Toro handles it all so well that all we're left with is the core emotions of the moment. Here is a little girl that truly loves her grandpa...and who is prepared to go to great lengths to protect and assist him in his time of need. Why is this little girl living with her grandparents? Well, that's never truly explained. It doesn't need to be explained. It's enough (just through the implications) that she's there. She needs her grandfather's love, and she doesn't want to lose it. So, she helps him out. When she finds herself in danger, Gris is riled to the only true violence he commits in the whole story. Their relationship is truly the core of the film.
Now, to the DVD...
This 10th Anniversary Special Edition from Lion's Gate is certainly a fitting tribute to the staying power and popularity of this great film. The film itself is presented in a beautiful 16x9 Widescreen format; the transfer is mostly free of blemishes and dust, and the gorgeous color scheme so carefully crafted by Del Toro is preserved quite well. The sound options are fine, including a 5.1 Dolby Digital track presented in the original Spanish language. There are some lovely extras to be had here as well, including two commentary tracks (one from Del Toro...his commentaries are always a pleasure to hear...and the other from the producer), a "making of" documentary, a "director's perspective" piece, and photo/conceptual art galleries. Overall, a really great disc for a really great movie. I have only two teensy little gripes about Lion's Gate's presentation here. First of all, the cover art...it depicts the Cronos device crawling on the neck/shoulder region of a beautiful, apparently naked woman, whose head appears to be thrown back in something approaching ecstacy. Don't be fooled: this art is clearly a marketing gimmick designed to mislead the unknowing masses, as no such scene or implication appears in the film in any way. Second, the English subtitles that appear over the Spanish audio track seem to be "closed captioning for the hearing impaired" as opposed to true subtitles; instead of merely capturing the dialogue, the "subtitles" also include such information as "Tango music playing", "telephone rings", "car horn blares", and the like. It's obviously a very small thing, but it can be a bit distracting for the non-hearing impaired majority who only need the dialogue (some of which is in English anyway) translated. This is not to sound insensitive, of course...I'm all for closed captioning...however, Lion's Gate really ought to have done the few extra minutes of work required to differentiate between the two options. At any rate, these are incredibly minor gripes that in no way detract from the overall value and excellence of this presentation of "Cronos".
"Cronos" is a wonderful film...furthermore, it's the best "vampire" film I've seen in a long, long time. Lion's Gate has released what may be the definitive edition of Guillermo Del Toro's freshman effort, and while I have a small issue with two tiny problems, it's still totally worthy of the Atrocities Cinema.com Essential Award! Go buy it, now...it's a great flick, and it'll make you think...
Highly recommended!
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