Director – Nacho Cerda (Aftermath, Genesis)
Starring – Anastasia Hille (Snow White and the Huntsman, The Tunnel), Karel Roden (Hellboy, Orphan), and Valentin Goshev (Children of Wax, The Foreigner)
Release Date – 2006
Rating – 3/5
Blu Release – 4/5
Over the last several weeks I’ve received a couple releases from Unearthed Films that I really needed to watch and review. There were three releases that I needed to watch and while I really needed to get those reviews posted I was a bit bummed that this mini marathon was coming to an end.
I thoroughly enjoyed Deadgirl and Mexico Barbaro II and was really looking forward to tossing in The Abandoned. This was another release from Unearthed that I was unfamiliar with and couldn’t wait to see what it was about. I want to take a moment to thank MVD and Unearthed Films for sending this one over for review.
**Spoiler Alert** The film follows a young woman who travels to the Russian countryside in search of answers about her birth and her parents that put her up for adoption after receiving a strange call. She is able to find her old family home which appears to have been abandoned for several decades. While looking around she is terrified to discover a woman that looks like her but deceased. She then meets a strange young man and after some discussion they suspect they may be twins separated at birth. As they look further into their past they learn some unsettling secrets about their family and they may be trapped in their family home with no escape. **Spoiler Alert**
I knew absolutely nothing about The Abandoned prior to the press release for it which only added to my curiosity. I also love the artwork for this release. It’s simple and somewhat cliched by this point but I absolutely loved it. I didn’t know what to expect when I went into this one but I really enjoyed Deadgirl and Mexico Barbaro II so I had somewhat high expectations. It didn’t disappoint but it was the weakest of the three films that I watched.
The acting in this one is very well done. The cast is very small and it’s because of this that we get some great character interactions, especially between co-stars Anastasia Hille and Karel Roden. Everyone works very well together, and they do a phenomenal job in each and every scene.
The story for this one is fucking wild but does strut the fine line between complex and confusing. I loved the idea of the twins meeting up in an abandoned home meeting their future dead selves. I also loved the location for most of the film and the time traveling aspect. However, the reveal of the killing and who brought them together did enter confusing territory. I had to rewind a few times to make sure I didn’t miss anything. While it’s an amazing story, the editing could have been done a bit better.
Finally, the film has a lot of blood and several amazing practical effects gags but those looking for gore will be a bit disappointed in that regard. While it is light on that front, the effects we get are fantastic and really stand out in the scene. Overall, The Abandoned is another solid release from Unearthed Films. While it’s one of the tamer genre releases it still delivers on the red stuff. I highly recommend checking it out.
Special Features:
Zoë Rose Smith Interviews Nacho Cerdà
Zoë Rose Smith Interviews Richard Stanley
Zoë Rose Smith Interviews Karim Hussain
‘The Making of ‘The Abandoned’ Featurette
‘In the Den of The Abandoned’ Featurette
‘Nacho Cerda: Facing Death’ Featurette
‘The Little Secrets of Nacho Cerda’ Featurette
‘When Buck Meets Cerda: A Dialogue Between Friends’ Featurette
Alternative Sequences
Deleted & Extended Scenes
Outtakes
Photo Gallery
Trailers
BD-ROM: Storyboard Collection
