Review by
Eric Hillis
Directed by: Armando Fonseca, Kapel Furman
Starring: Natallia Rodrigues, Wilton Andrade, Ricardo Gelli, Guta Ruiz, Ivo Müller, Tristan Aronovich
One of the lessons we've learned from horror movies is that if you live in
a colonial nation you don’t want to go messing around with indigenous
cultures. Countless American horror movies have dealt with White people
coming a cropper for failing to respect the people they displaced, from
the Amityville home being built on an Indian burial ground to the
distraught Dad of Pet Sematary turning to Native rites in an
attempt to bring his dead kid back from beyond the grave.
Down in Brazil it's no different. In writer/directors
Armando Fonseca and Kapel Furman's
Skull: The Mask, an ancient pre-Colombian mask falls into the wrong hands, leading to a
killing spree as various parties attempt to harness or suppress its power.
The movie opens with a prologue in 1944, when the mask is obtained by
fascists, leading to a Raiders of the Lost Ark inspired
sequence as the artifact attacks its new owners. Cut to present day Sao
Paulo, where the mask is once again found, this time during an
archaeological dig. Immediately two forces attempt to gain control of the
mask - Manco (Wilton Adrade) wants to ensure it doesn't cause any
harm, while sinister businessman Tack Walder (Ivo Muller) wants to
use its powers for nefarious means.
Caught between both sides is police officer Beatriz (Natallia Rodrigues), who comes across the mask while investigating the disappearance of
three young immigrant children. Meanwhile, said mask has attached itself
to the hulking physique of a crime scene cleaner, and sets off on a bloody
rampage through the streets of Sao Paulo.
If the opening Grindhouse style prologue suggests we're in for a knowing
pastiche of horror movies, the movie that follows proves surprisingly
deadpan. Despite the ridiculousness of its concept,
Skull: The Mask insists on playing it with a poker face.
More so than a slasher movie, the film plays like a dull police
procedural, spending most of its time in the company of Beatriz, a clichéd
cop with a pained history. When the details of what exactly is haunting
her from the past are revealed, it's difficult to continue to take her
side, so awful were her actions.
On a purely visual level, Skull: The Mask has a pretty great
villain. The mask itself looks like the skull of one of those bull-men who
guard Jabba the Hutt in Return of the Jedi, and when the overalls of its host body become drenched in blood it
makes for a striking image. Sadly nothing much is done with this potential
new horror icon. The gore sequences rely too much on CG FX, which lack the
gooeyness that makes this sort of thing fun. More often than not, we only
witness the aftermath of Skull's killings. The bulk of the movie consists
of awkwardly blocked conversations in which stiff actors stand directly in
front of one another and dish out plot details. Brazil's Native Tupi tribe
might want to exact revenge on all involved here for involving their
folklore in such a boring movie.
Skull: The Mask is on Shudder from
May 27th.
