REVIEW: QUE DIOS NOS PERDONE (MAY GOD SAVE US)
May God Save Us is a 2016 movie directed by the Oscar nominee (Madre – short movie) and Best Director Goya award winner Rodrigo Sorogoyen (El Reino). This filmmaker had surprised us before in 2013 with Stockholm- co-directed with Borja Soler-, his first feature film, in which he masterly told the story of a failed one-night stand. In May God Save US – co-written with Isabel Peña (Winners of San Sebastian International Film Festival Best Screenplay award)- he portraits a difficult police case and the life of all people around it, including the chaotic lives of the main officers in charge of the investigation.
First, we are introduced to Antonio de la Torre character called Velarde, a brilliant and methodic investigator whose personal life is pissed by his inability to have healthy relationships with women. And second, we have his partner Alfaro, played by Roberto Álamo – winner of Feroz Award in Best Actor in a leading role, José María Forqué Best Actor award and Goya Award Best Lead Actor- an old school policeman whose marriage is about to come to an end due to his continuous cheating and bad mood.
The starting point of this story is the real case of El Mataviejas, José Antonio Rodríguez Vega, a serial killer who was responsible of the death of 16 old women in 1987 and 1988 in Santander. He is only the inspirations because none of real facts of his life are shown in the film.
The movie is set in Madrid in 2011 when the city is full of pilgrims who are following the Pope in his visit to Spain. The police forces are focused on avoiding riots between these and the people against them. It is the perfect time for the killer to start his work.
A body is found, an old woman has been killed and Velarde looks at the crime scene, he soon realizes this may be related to others… and we soon know others are about to come.
From this point we witness Velarde’s battle against the set-in-stone ideas and proceedings of the Spanish police and his inner struggle to overcome his weird approach to women and sexual intercourse, Alfaro’s desperate move to save his family life, etc.
A very interesting feature which goes deeper into the characters’ thoughts, feelings and actions, which shows that nobody is a perfect as expected and that none of us will be saved.
The movie can be watched on Netfilx España (https://www.netflix.com/title/80204617) and it is also available on DVD and Blu-Ray in Spanish
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Elena Anele is the woman in charge of SPANISHFEAR.COM, Horror Rises from Spain / El podcast surge de la tumba and Un Fan de Paul Naschy . A literature and cinema researcher, finishing her postgraduate studies with a thesis about the mystic filmmaker José Val del Omar. She has published in different media and books as Fangoria or Hidden Horror. She has also been in charge of several translations including Javier Trujillo’s complete works, La Mano Film Fest, The Man who Saw Frankenstein Cry and many more.
