David O'ConnellKing of the Hill
November 7th 2008 02:17
This tension-filled thriller from Spain, directed by Gonzalo Lopez-Gallego, calls to mind the dense rural setting of Deliverance, but with an updated sociological commentary attached.
The premise is deceptively simple: a lone man, Quim (Leonardo Sbaraglia) traveling through the Spanish countryside, to possibly make reparations with his ex-girlfriend, has a sexual encounter with an attractive young woman, Bea (Maria Valverde), in a gas station bathroom.
Not long afterwards he realizes that he was pickpocked by Bea, and resumes his journey on the road, but with his frustration close to boiling point. When he sees a car he suspects may be Bea’s he’s lured off the main roadway and down a series of remote stretches where a gunshot sounds, aimed at his car and piercing a front fender.
Before long he’s stranded with his disabled car, an ill-defined gunman emerging from nowhere has shot him in the leg and he’s running into dangerously unfamiliar woods in fear of his life. He soon encounters the mysterious Bea again, and together they become moving targets in what seems a senseless, incomprehensible game of cat and mouse.
He’s suspicious of her and her motives at first, but plunged into the horror of dodging the random hail of bullets rained down upon them, they learn more about one another and especially the strength of their will to live.
Before the mystery of their attackers is finally and horrifyingly revealed, the only other souls they encounter are two suspicious local policemen, who take them into custody but soon become fodder for the merciless unseen killer or killers.
Sheathed in autumnal bleakness with barely a hint of sunlight in any scene, the changing perspectives of the camera give the claustrophobic impression of strange eyes constantly watching from various vantage points, the terror of the unknown most baffling and frustrating.
How many gunmen are really out there? And why are they trying to kill them both?
You can’t help but participate in the duo’s mounting sense of paranoid confusion as they hunt for safety through the maze of an alien, harsh environment which might as well be on the other side of the moon, so little in the way of protection or comfort does it provide.
The director’s visual approach aids in ratcheting up the tension with in-your-face handheld camera work; the brutal close-ups in moments of intense psychological pressure and mortal danger breathe extra life into the drama, especially in a scene where the pair are trapped in the back of the police car, Quim handcuffed, and bullets pinging all around them.
The film ends brilliantly but is a devastating commentary on the callous and careless inhumanity of our race. With sweaty palms and heartbeat calming, I was almost relieved when this superb thriller reached its riveting, unknowable resolution!
The King of the Hill is a classy suspense thriller, and ultimately a very haunting one too, filled with chilling images that I guarantee you’ll struggle to shake from your mind.
El Rey de la montana, literally translated as The King of the Mountain, is now available on DVD.
A Spanish trailer without subtitles:
The premise is deceptively simple: a lone man, Quim (Leonardo Sbaraglia) traveling through the Spanish countryside, to possibly make reparations with his ex-girlfriend, has a sexual encounter with an attractive young woman, Bea (Maria Valverde), in a gas station bathroom.
Not long afterwards he realizes that he was pickpocked by Bea, and resumes his journey on the road, but with his frustration close to boiling point. When he sees a car he suspects may be Bea’s he’s lured off the main roadway and down a series of remote stretches where a gunshot sounds, aimed at his car and piercing a front fender.
Before long he’s stranded with his disabled car, an ill-defined gunman emerging from nowhere has shot him in the leg and he’s running into dangerously unfamiliar woods in fear of his life. He soon encounters the mysterious Bea again, and together they become moving targets in what seems a senseless, incomprehensible game of cat and mouse.
He’s suspicious of her and her motives at first, but plunged into the horror of dodging the random hail of bullets rained down upon them, they learn more about one another and especially the strength of their will to live.
The first encounter between Quim and Bea
Before the mystery of their attackers is finally and horrifyingly revealed, the only other souls they encounter are two suspicious local policemen, who take them into custody but soon become fodder for the merciless unseen killer or killers.
Sheathed in autumnal bleakness with barely a hint of sunlight in any scene, the changing perspectives of the camera give the claustrophobic impression of strange eyes constantly watching from various vantage points, the terror of the unknown most baffling and frustrating.
How many gunmen are really out there? And why are they trying to kill them both?
The pair with a suspicious policeman in tow..........for a while!
You can’t help but participate in the duo’s mounting sense of paranoid confusion as they hunt for safety through the maze of an alien, harsh environment which might as well be on the other side of the moon, so little in the way of protection or comfort does it provide.
The director’s visual approach aids in ratcheting up the tension with in-your-face handheld camera work; the brutal close-ups in moments of intense psychological pressure and mortal danger breathe extra life into the drama, especially in a scene where the pair are trapped in the back of the police car, Quim handcuffed, and bullets pinging all around them.
Bea and Quim at wit's end - frightened, alone and searching for solutions.
The film ends brilliantly but is a devastating commentary on the callous and careless inhumanity of our race. With sweaty palms and heartbeat calming, I was almost relieved when this superb thriller reached its riveting, unknowable resolution!
The King of the Hill is a classy suspense thriller, and ultimately a very haunting one too, filled with chilling images that I guarantee you’ll struggle to shake from your mind.
El Rey de la montana, literally translated as The King of the Mountain, is now available on DVD.
A Spanish trailer without subtitles:
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