Like most teenagers, Andrea resents her parents. She also resents Marie Montand, the woman who gave birth to her, mostly for dying before she could find her. Awkwardly, her parents only revealed her origin recently, which turned out to be way too late. Yet, rather ominously, Montand did not just surrender her daughter. She also committed suicide, after doing time for murdering a teenaged girl roughly her age. That is a lot for Andrea to unpack.
Her exchange student boyfriend Pau suggests she take time off, so she can visit him in Australia. By the way, he also asks, who is the person standing behind you in the video she sent? What person? Yes, indeed, there is a strange old man standing behind her, off to the side and in the shadows, hidden in just about all her recent videos and selfies. Slowly, Andrea starts to suspect the mystery involves an eerie old building in Madrid that looks exactly like the one Montand once inhabited in Buenos Aires.
Rewinding twenty years, Martin-Calero switches his focus to Camile, a film student, who develops a borderline obsession with Montand, an expat party girl. Briefly, she manages to bridge the gap between stalker and potential lover (don’t try this in real-life kids). However, in the process, she generates a lot of film and photos, all of which reveal a sinister figure observing Montand in the background.
By horror standards, there is very little blood and gore in The Wailing. However, it is rich in foreboding and dread. Martin-Calero builds the tension slowly but steadily. While the bifurcated structure is initially jarring, it is ultimately quite effective.
Martin-Calero shrewdly takes a less-is-more approach, using the power of suggestion. Cinematographer Constanza Sandoval’s lighting and framing further reinforces the eerie vibe the director clearly intended. This really represents skillful genre filmmaking. Highly recommended for horror fans, The Wailing releases today (12/5) on VOD.
