Magical Girl (2014)

Magical Girl is a very well shot movie. The cinematography is brilliant and overall nothing of the visuals is a problem.The biggest problem with this movie is how convenient everything is. I get that Louis as a father would actually fulfill the wish of his daughter, Its not that dis-believable. But the lengths he goes to achieve it. can be questionable. But that's not really the problem I have with this movie.Barbara's illness for which she takes medications for was never explored. While you can try to make the excuse that "It's left for interpretation" (which YMS did on youtube), Its not really an excuse because you are literally implying that I should guess what's wrong with her. This is not how you make me care for a character. Why does she have these scars on her body? Never explained. While I find it convincing that she would help Luise once, I find it hard to believe that she will go to such lengths, in his second "favour" with the 20k euros (which I honestly find It too convenient that just an accessory would be that much more than the costume itself). It doesn't make sense. Like she's literally risking her life and screwing it up as a whole, just so she can remain with her husband. It just doesn't make sense to me. It seems like a complete convenience for this edgy plot that this movie Is going with. Not to mention "THE DOOR" ritual thing (which just literally came out of no where.). Now for the 3d act. After Barbara is completely screwed up and her life destroyed, due to her own ridiculous decisions (lets remember that she decided to sleep with Luis. Lets not pretend that didn't happen.). She all of a sudden wants revenge now.OK, the part that really made me mad and just seriously made me hate this movie is the scene in the cafe with Damian and Luis. So you are telling me, that when Damian threatened Luis with the gun, Luis will just decide to respond with "Bitch"? Are you serious? Like, they literally had the whole time in the world in that cafe to discuss what exactly happened. This is what really made me really angry. He presented that whole phone blackmailing, in really the most conveniently horrible way possible. It doesn't make sense for me, that this would happen, when the guy is clearly smart enough to not throw his life like this.So, this is how I feel about this movie. For me Its a really "edgy" and It hides its convenient plot in its "deepness".

Horrible girl, ill-advised girl, disturbing girl... Anything but magical."Magical girl" has an easily understood plot, which still makes not much sense, because everything is symbolic and with various layers. Which makes the story, quite disturbing to start with, think of itself in a too highly way.It all goes about a young girl, who is sick, and who would like to have a dress from an anime, a Japanese animation series. Her father, decides to do whatever, but whatever, to get her the dress.That everyone in this movie has some kind of mental problem, or is in mental pain, is quite obvious. The young girl is probably the sanest in all the story. Too bad we are all the time with the creepy father, a young woman with a dark past, who has a very controlling and creepy husband, and a creepy old teacher of her who has just been released from prison. All characters are quite creepy. And this without taking into account the constant hammering of symbols, which also have a strange patriotic tinge to it (bullfighting to justify that Spaniards are not like the Nordic people but neither like Italians or Latinos?; the very Spanish music or the TV playing a Spanish selection match...).So, the movie seems to say that people in pain or who see people in pain may do crazy things. It could also be about the sick girl and everything be about her illness. Or about the young woman and the very sick life she has had till that moment (and all the "nice" men that surround her). In the end, magic is conspicuous by its absence, but creepiness overstays its welcome, as the movie is two hours long.

This film begins as a fairly common story, a story that in times of crisis anyone can feel absolutely identified. Luis is an unemployed literature professor who is barely able to make his end meet. He wants to fulfill the last wish of his 12-year-old daughter Alicia, patient of terminal cancer. Alicia wants an expensive dress of Japanese cartoon series "Magical Girl Yukiko". On the other hand, the film introduces us to Barbara, a young woman who suffers from mental disorders and Damian a retired teacher doing time in jail. Three people in extreme conditions seem to move in a parallel universe where violence and pain dominate, but in a poetic way. In the universe of Vermouth, everyone is guilty and everyone is innocent. Magical Girl talks about violence and sadness using the rules of a film noir, with many subtle references of Japanese cinema.It would be easy to fill pages and pages about the virtues of "Magical Girl", but it is a little complicated to do without uncovering some of the many surprises of the film. Because in reality, it is much more than a story where lives intersect and the storm broke. It is a framework where the details are taken care to detail. The music appears only when it is needed.Jose Sacristan, Barbara Lennie and Luis Bermejo not need more than one scene to explain the most accurate descriptions of screenplay. Lucia Pollan, a revelation, it is amazing to see her purity and innocence overshadowed by the situation.What is bad, however, is that all these mixed ingredients in the same bowl can roll back to a kind of niche audience more accustomed to these kinds of films. As for the end, it is open to many interpretations, which can leave the viewer confused, but will give us the opportunity to look, to find our own explanation to what is happening.Magical Girl talks about violence and sadness using the rules of a film noir, with many subtle references of Japanese cinema.

(No spoilers in this review, but a couple of ideas who try to illustrate why I've liked this film) Well, despite the fact that many scenes on this film are quite disturbing, viewers could enjoy a demanding and appealing work from Carlos Vermut.And this is the kind of movie who would let you quite astonished for many reasons. One of these is revealed when you check how violent a scene could be not showing any graphic violence at all, thanks to a wonderful script who works very, very well throughout all the film: this is, indeed, a basic part in Magical Girl, a script designed as a precise swiss machinery. It even works great on many parts who requires a little suspension of disbelief from the part of the viewer. But once you're inside, you remain there.Magical Girl's power reside on the high complex (but also extremely fluid) multi-layered and interconnected scenes. Quite similar as in Pulp Fiction film (by the way... it would be great to know Tarantino's opinion about Magical Girl).Also, as it happens on real life, you could witness the huge impact that a "butterfly effect" could provoke. This is very well shown on the film, and it would remain long time on many viewers thoughts.I really want to know what would be next director's projects, I'm sure that he's going to tune his skills, offering us an interesting filmography.Go watch it, Magical girl is a well crafted artifact. But beware, as it's NOT intended for young audiences, but adult ones.