Al final del espectro (2006) User Reviews

Scary, but somewhat missing in story

[christian94 · 7/10 · 22 July 2007]

This horror movie is a sort of agoraphobic psychological thriller. The story is simple, but has an interesting "big" twist and some good elements. It is however not quite enough to have you riveted the whole way through, as even with its short running time, the movie is quite slow-paced and some story elements are less interesting although they are mostly necessary as one understands once the twist is revealed... On the other hand, it does allow for good acting by the two female leads, good camera-work and genuine scary moments.

A neat, sly, little story that could have benefited from a little be more complexity, but that still works as a brainteaser and for the atmosphere and scare factor.

good attempt, but...

[caste78 · 5/10 · 11 March 2007]

When I heard that Colombia would make a horror movie, at last, I felt like a little boy waiting for a candy, I'd seen how some countries from the distant east have increased their interesting for horror films, for instance, the grudge or the eye filled my expectations, they were really scary movies, but this one failed at the time of supporting the plot alive during the whole movie, sometimes I fell asleep, thought it had some scaring-peaks. I liked Noelle acting, she was one of the good things that had this movie.

I think that "al final del espectro" was a good attempt, but it couldn't let the typical slowness that it has characterized the Colombian cinema.

Colombian remake of Asian horror movies

[arkangel1983 · 5/10 · 18 February 2007]

I went to see this movie with high expectations, mainly because a Horror movie made in Colombia is something you can't watch everyday. What i've found was a very good color quality, good use of sound but a quite poor story, a Colombian remake of "A tale of two sisters".

I really enjoy Colombian films, mostly because they're original, and our filmmakers don't use to repeat a story... every story has a different spark. But honestly and sincerely, this movie sounded like "Hey, we're Colombian filmmakers, we also know how to make a long-black-haired lady coming out wet from a bath tube and with an erratic way of moving" ... so commercial, so American-remake ... in other words: "Roy Lee, this is your movie, we've made this for you" I'm sure Kidman could be nuts if she really wants to participate in a remake of this movie... this is not gonna work, i'm sure.

Respect

[marcap6 · 6/10 · 11 August 2009]

If you have another guerrilla, narc-traffic, "sicario" script ready to shoot, way to go, man!!! Those are the kind of movies Colombia needs to change our reality.

I didn't know every writer, singer, painter, sculptor, reporter or filmmaker in Colombia had to write, sing, paint, sculpt, report or shoot only our problems not to be called infamous or indifferent.

Good luck with your movies about our "hurt nation" and good luck to those whose movies distract us and entertain us to avoid that reality just for a couple of hours. I'm not indifferent or infamous just because of that, I love my country and it hurts like hell everything that happens here, whether a movie shows me or not how overwhelming our reality can be.

You are another one of that disrespectful Colombian pseudo-artist who don't allow our reality to change by not showing just a little bit of respect for somebody else's expression of art.

Awful mixture of other suspense/terror movies

[alejandroaj · 4/10 · 25 December 2006]

I went to see this movie with high hopes of finding an interesting and original plot and was nothing but disappointed. Edition and sound effects are OK, but the plot loses momentum after the first 30 minutes and then the story goes downhill, with a really bad twist. In sum, the movie blends The Grudge, The Ring and The Others in a dreadful way that leaves some of the characters' roles hanging without conclusion. It is, nonetheless, a good attempt of presenting a film proposal other than the typical drug-related story in Colombia. The director was very resourceful and took good care of color grading and light. Noelle Schonwald is a promising actress and Kepa Amuchastegui proved why he is so respected in Colombia.

Suitably spooky Colombian horror.

[HumanoidOfFlesh · 7/10 · 17 August 2007]

After a highly traumatic event,due to which she becomes the victim of extreme agoraphobia Vega is forced to spend some time far away from work.By her father's recommendation, she decides to move to a new apartment,where she begins living as a hermit,abruptly changing her lifestyle.She begins having strange visions with no explanations and hearing voices she can't ignore."Al Final del Espectro" was released on DVD in Poland few days ago,so I had to pick it up.It's surely influenced by Japanese modern ghost movies like "Ringu" or "Dark Water"-on the other hand there is plenty of claustrophobic atmosphere as Vega is terrified to leave her home,yet equally scared to stay and face her unknown tormentor.The acting is great,the camera work is splendid and the climax offers a nice twist.Nicole Kidman will be co-producing and acting as Vega in the American remake that will be directed by Juan Felipe Orozco himself.

I can't believe the ministry of culture from Colombia supported this film

[moralesduarte28 · 1/10 · 28 December 2006]

I'm a student of film-making in Colombia. This movie really makes me sad in the way that there are so many projects of films that are more interesting, but they are not supported, because the infamous people of Colombia and many of their filmmakers believe that telling stories of Colombia's problems is something boring and "typical". It only pronounces more the sense of indifference that is overwhelming this hurt nation. Now, talking about the movie, it stinks. The story is too entangled, showing us the problems in its screenplay. The acting of Julieth (Tulipan), is pathetic, too cliché. This character is the same thing as the typical misunderstood teen (oh what a surprise, a wannabe Gothic girl) The movie itself is big cliché of American horror movies, in which the horror is done through the typical terrifying noise, but not from the image itself. In the technical aspect I think that the movie is good, although there are many out of focus, that you can tell that are not intentional. The audio of the movie is well done, and the lightning is pretty descent. I also admire that the movie has got a big response in the public, so be free to watch it and drop your own conclusions.

An incredible movie!

[alejandroangel · 10/10 · 13 September 2006]

It's incredible the level of art of this picture, including photography, art design, direction and VFX.

This is one of the first films in Spanish which brings together all these fabulous value - added items, as a great art concept, really good VFX and a great score.

Aditionally, it has a tremendous script, which turns around sinister and usual fears of humans, specially in our modern times.

It's also one of the first movies in Latinamerica and Spain which is going to be produced as remake.

The actors are at a top level, specially the performances of Noëlle Schonwald and Julieth Restrepo.

I want my CCTV

[JohnSeal · 7/10 · 21 June 2008]

This Colombian-made thriller may not win any prizes for originality, but what it does, it does well. Effectively blending elements lifted from Repulsion and countless J-horror films, Al Final del Espectro stars the marvelous Noelle Schonwald as Vega, a filmmaker trying to recover from the shock of seeing her boyfriend almost killed on the job. Her father sets her up in a dank apartment, where she installs several closed circuit cameras to bring order and safety to her world. Of course, the effect of the cameras is the exact opposite of what she intends, and strange and spooky events begin to unfold on the grainy VCR footage. Schonwald's performance reminded me of early Christina Ricci; physically, she looks like an adult version of little Kyra Schon, the terrifying child zombie from the original Night of the Living Dead. This is an extremely claustrophobic thriller that works magnificently until the third act revelations, which unfortunately leech much of the mystery and horror out of the film--a mistake not made by Polanski in Repulsion. Still and all, this is an above average chiller from a country not usually associated with the genre.

Amazing and entertaining.

[septimoarte-1 · 9/10 · 19 December 2006]

Very very good. It's cinematography will surely win the Colombian Film Award next year. The editing and the direction were superb, giving us very well-done tension moments. I liked the story in general and it looked to me extremely claustrophobic.

Such a cool ending. Very scary.

Noelle was very good here, and also the beautiful Julieth Restrepo, in her movie debut. Correct me if I'm wrong, but was Tulipán a lesbian? Cause there are facts that can prove it...

Congratulations, cast and crew, I hope the American remake don't destroy this amazing amazing amazing Colombian movie. Keep working.

Is worth watching

[jrangel94 · 10/10 · 6 September 2014]

Is nice to watch a Colombian movie that is not about drug dealers, the paramilitary conflict or hit men. Even though the movie is not scary as many other i've watched it's really entertained and it keeps you wondering what's going on all the time.

This movie also shows that there's no need to have a lot of character to make a great film.

I haven't watched the Mexican version of this movie yet, but I heard that is not as good as the Colombian one. Can't wait to watch the Hollywood version, which by the way was announce a long time ago but we still don't have it.