REVIEW: VIEJOS AKA THE ELDERLY (2022)
by Elena Romea (*)
VIEJOS aka THE ELDERLY is latest Raúl Cerezo and Fernando González Gómez’s movie. It was written together with Javier Trigales and released in 2022 at theaters in Spain. The film had its world premiere at the Montreal-based Fantasia International Film Festival on 16 July 2022 and in Spain at the 55th Sitges Film Festival in October 2022.
Set in Madrid during a heat wave, the plot follows the strange behavior displayed by elderly people, focusing on the deterioration of Manuel, an octogenarian, who enters a state of dementia after the sudden suicide of his wife, sparking a series of paranormal events that will put his family’s lives at risk.
The main stars for this feature are Zorion Eguileor, Gustavo Salmerón, and Paula Gallego. Important for Spanish cult horror aficionados: you may recognize Lone Fleming’s cameo somewhere at the beginning of the movie.
Director Raúl Cerezo first wrote the story as a short film in 2013, but quickly dropped the idea and decided to make it a full-length feature film. Javier Trigales wrote several drafts of the movie, and the screenplay was later revised, until principal photography was about to begin, by Rubén Sánchez Trigos.
Following a similar theme related to elderly people caring as seen in Paco Plaza’s La Abuela or family bonds as in Malasaña 32 I must admit I enjoyed it more than I expected. It shows the difficulties a family can have while dealing with issues such as looking after a grandparent, assuming women as caregivers, or the generation gap between parents and children. In this way, it was quite realistic and credible. Also, it includes a paranormal background that colors the already-terrifying story and gives sense to the whole scenario.
I would like to highlight, apart from color and cinematography, the use of soundtrack. All through the narrative, we are disturbed by awkward noises that will increase the estrangement in the spectator. Something that works better than the sounds and music tracks overused in popular features lately which I found annoying.
Viejos is available on the Spanish platform for VOD Filmin. It was also released on Blu-ray and DVD by EL 79. For more info on this edition watch the unboxing by Fantástico español on their YouTube channel here.
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Elena Romea is the woman in charge of SPANISHFEAR.COM, Horror Rises from Spain and Un Fan de Paul Naschy . A literature and cinema researcher, Ph.D. in Spanish studies with a thesis about the mystic filmmaker José Val del Omar. She has published in different media and books such as Fangoria and 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.
