Post by waterdweller on Jul 11, 2006 12:56:22 GMT -6
Just had to pass this along, for the benefit of those who have access to HBO On Demand.
A series called "Epitafios" (Epitaphs in English) is now viewable on demand (and also, apparently, on Wednesdays at 9:00 pm on HBO Signature) It was produced by HBO Latin America, and is a well-crafted Argentine crime thriller, involving a deeply twisted serial killer and his pursuit by Buenos Aires cops. The main protagonist, Renzo Marquez (Julio Chavez), is a classic film noir anti-hero, complete with crippling neuroses and an addiction to some unspecified prescription medication. His counterpart, Dr Laura Santini (played by Paola Krum) brings a new chill to post-modern frostiness.
Equally memorable is the character of Marina Segal (Cecilia Roth), the deeply suicidal, deeply flawed homicide detective who appears halfway through the episodes. She manages to maintain dignity with a face covered with snot and blood, and sitting in a puddle of her own urine. No mean feat.
The series is set and filmed in Buenos Aires, which somehow seems to come off as more dark and evil than any city has the right to be. Even the daytime scenes seem to be shot at dusk.
The killer (played with cold precision by Antonio Birabent) is genuinely macabre, and the treatment of his gruesome murders is frank and direct. This series is definitely not for the squeamish: victims' severed heads, limbs, fingers and assorted other body parts turn up in unexpected places, including a tasty stroganoff. He slices and dices his victims to operatic arias (Carmen and La Bohème, among others) with obsessive - yet artfully sadistic - cruelty . In spite of its graphic treatment, though, the violence in the series never descends into unnecessary gore.
The series is in Spanish, with English sub-titles. Even if you speak Spanish, it may take a while to adapt your ear to the peculiar Buenos Aires accent, which makes the sub-titles doubly useful at times.
It's an unusually intelligent, gritty crime drama that's well worth the time.
Enjoy!
A series called "Epitafios" (Epitaphs in English) is now viewable on demand (and also, apparently, on Wednesdays at 9:00 pm on HBO Signature) It was produced by HBO Latin America, and is a well-crafted Argentine crime thriller, involving a deeply twisted serial killer and his pursuit by Buenos Aires cops. The main protagonist, Renzo Marquez (Julio Chavez), is a classic film noir anti-hero, complete with crippling neuroses and an addiction to some unspecified prescription medication. His counterpart, Dr Laura Santini (played by Paola Krum) brings a new chill to post-modern frostiness.
Equally memorable is the character of Marina Segal (Cecilia Roth), the deeply suicidal, deeply flawed homicide detective who appears halfway through the episodes. She manages to maintain dignity with a face covered with snot and blood, and sitting in a puddle of her own urine. No mean feat.
The series is set and filmed in Buenos Aires, which somehow seems to come off as more dark and evil than any city has the right to be. Even the daytime scenes seem to be shot at dusk.
The killer (played with cold precision by Antonio Birabent) is genuinely macabre, and the treatment of his gruesome murders is frank and direct. This series is definitely not for the squeamish: victims' severed heads, limbs, fingers and assorted other body parts turn up in unexpected places, including a tasty stroganoff. He slices and dices his victims to operatic arias (Carmen and La Bohème, among others) with obsessive - yet artfully sadistic - cruelty . In spite of its graphic treatment, though, the violence in the series never descends into unnecessary gore.
The series is in Spanish, with English sub-titles. Even if you speak Spanish, it may take a while to adapt your ear to the peculiar Buenos Aires accent, which makes the sub-titles doubly useful at times.
It's an unusually intelligent, gritty crime drama that's well worth the time.
Enjoy!