[yasr_overall_rating]
Six short stories involving distressed people.
“Wild Tales” is an anthology of six short films which all deal with victimized people finally exploding and then seeking retribution against their persecutors but the films are executed in such a non-Hollywood manner, that just when you think you’ve predicted the finale, each film makes a complete 180 and twirls you all the way around and leaves your head spinning. The movies were all shot in Argentina and it was refreshing to see South American locales instead of the usual North American landmarks we have all become accustomed to seeing in movies of this pedigree.
Each segment and its story and characters are unaffiliated with each other. A conversation on a plane quickly turns into more than just coincidence; a young waitress whose family had been wronged by a loan shark and gangster in the past, can’t believe her luck when years later, he turns up late one night to her empty restaurant and not recognizing her, she tries to decide on what to put in his food; a wealthy man and a down-and-out redneck share more that obscenities on a deserted highway in the mountains; a demolition expert decides to heat things up when a tow-truck company keeps illegally taking his car.
A wealthy family’s young son accidentally hits and kills a young pregnant woman and her unborn child while driving drunk one night but when they try to pay their groundskeeper of 15 years to take the blame, the husband of the dead woman has other plans and as a couple are engaging family and friends at their wedding reception, she finds out that he may have been unfaithful to her and decides on a plan of retribution but the evening, for both parties, does not go according to anybody’s intentions.
I loved this movie, each segment was so far removed from the one that preceded it and the one that followed it that I had a blast just trying to keep up with every character, their intentions and the stories overall. Usually in an anthology of films like this, just like “Creepshow,” “Four Rooms” and “Body Bags,” each segment is directed by a different filmmaker but here, Damián Szifrón is the sole director and for each film, he creates atmospheres of uneasiness, agitation, apprehension and suspicion.
The cast as a whole, are top-notch and there is some strikingly beautiful cinematography by Javier Julia and every single aspect of every story, is presented to us in glorious detail and each story stays with you long after it has ended. I hope that director Damián Szifrón goes on to make a sequel as he has already grabbed my attention and I cannot wait to see what he does next. Highly recommended.
Now playing at select theaters including the Angelika Dallas & Angelika Plano
