Chimères (2013, Switzerland, director: Olivier Beguin)
Figure it out: a Swiss horror! You don’t expect a film drenched in blood, gore and the miserable stuff coming from the land of Heidi. Fear and terror in the most well organized country, in the middle of beauteous scenery, side by side with the healthy financial system?
Well, the movie has a Swiss director alright. But the action plays out in Romania. A misfortunate Westerner needs a blood transfusion in a Romanian hospital. That would be problematic in the real world, for the Romanian health system is a shameful ruin. For our main character it’s not an issue. He receives the blood and survives. But (surprise, surprise, the unexpected lurks in the dark) he gets a virus from the transfusion. Which virus turns him (pinnacle of the unexpected) into a vampire. “After all, isn’t Romania the legendary land of bloodsuckers?”, intelligently the presentation asks.
Well, as a person with some knowledge on the subject, I could say a word or two. The taxmen certainly fall into the above description. The film, on the other hand, was shot partially in Sighișoara/ Schäßburg/ Segesvár, a picturesque medieval town in Transylvania, Romania. It prides itself for having a foggy conection with vampires, since Vlad the Impaler lived shortly there etc. etc.
The photography (Florian Gintenreiter) is good. The actors are Jasna Kohoutova, Jannick Rosset, Catriona MacCooll. The film strives to compensate through visuals for the dullness of the subject. And partly succeeds.
Besides Chimères I have reviewed 2 other horror movies released in 2013. Check out my reviews of Horns and Carrie also.
