Film Review: The Last Matinee (2020)

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SYNOPSIS:

The audience attending the last showing of a horror film in a small downtown cinema are terrorized by a murderer who begins to pick them off, one by one. The only person to notice that something strange is going on is the projectionist’s daughter.

REVIEW:

Directed by Maxi Contenti (Muñeco viviente V, Neptunia) from a script by Manuel Facal (High Five, Fiesta Nibiru) and Contenti, the film stars Luciana Grasso (El Secreto de Julia), Ricardo Islas (El Que No Corre Vuela, Bailiwick), Julieta Spinelli, Franco Duran and Pedro Duarte.

Directed and written by Maxi Contenti, The Last Matinee stars Luciana Grasso, Franco Duran, and Ricardo Islas.

The film opens with a beautiful waterfront shot. It slightly, very slightly reminded me of The Lost Boys.

The beautiful aerial shots show the city they filmed in. I was able to interview and speak with director/writer Maxi Contenti, and he said he filmed in the cinema that he went to as a kid.

When you think about going to the movies, you think about having fun, meeting up with friends. Getting snacks and just having a blast. I, myself have had some interesting movie theatre moments in life.

You also think about a lot of other things if you have an imagination. I’m an overly-aware person. I always look for exits, places to sit, who is sitting around me. I know slightly insane but some horrible stuff happened to me so I’m aware.

The movie-goers are filling the theater. You can smell the popcorn, hear the snack crunching, your eyes adjusting to the dimness. The theatres today are slightly brighter now when you arrive, if you arrive on-time. (Some of us never do.) And of course, when you leave, the house lights come back on and if you are watching a scary movie, you check the back seats and walk out in groups.

So, Ana (Luciana Grasso) is in charge now that her father, the projectionist went home. There are a few people in the theatre so far. A group of kids looking for fun, a kid hiding out, a couple, and the man who tells everyone to shut up during the movie.

Ana watches the play, so far everything is up and running. It’s smooth sailing. The theater is dark and it looks like such a nostalgic place. I love horror movies where they are watching a horror movie in a movie.

Well, the creepy, mysterious person arrived with a bag. Lord only knows what it’s in the bag? I imagine it was challenging to shoot a film like yet somehow, it’s still colorful, beautiful and the cinematography is excellent.

There is a killer and this killer is killing off people in the movie theater. It’s dark in the theater and it elevates the scare factor because you can’t see the killer. No one notices anything either. I know it’s a movie but you would think someone would notice something. UGH!

The music adds to the intensity, the film cuts out, the killer is killing more people. Ana is trying to fix the film. Ana notices the dead bodies and Angela (Julieta Spinelli) is sort of helping Ana, and panicking at the same time. Ana winds up helping Angela and the kid Tomas (Franco Duran).

Ana winds up in a bad situation and this killer is just brutal and wild. The effects in this film are great. It is dark throughout the film and you still get a feel for how gruesome the kills are. It’s not gore overload though.

The Last Matinee is a fun movie to watch with friends or to just chill out and watch a good scary movie. I would recommend watching the movie, and find out what happens.