‘The Beasts (aka As Bestas)’ Review
Stars: Denis Ménochet, Marina Foïs, Luis Zahera, Diego Anido, Marie Colomb, Luisa Merelas, José Manuel Fernández y Blanco, Federico Pérez Rey, Javier Varela, David Menéndez, Xavier Estévez, Gonzalo García, Pepo Suevos, Machi Salgado, Emile Duthu | Written by Rodrigo Sorogoyen, Isabel Pena | Directed by Rodrigo Sorogoyen
Denis Menochet stars in this terrific Spanish thriller from director Rodrigo Sorogoyen that plays like an arthouse version of Straw Dogs. Shot through with tension in every frame, it exerts an intense, powerful grip and the result is one of the very best films of the year.
Co-written by Sorogoyen and Isabel Pena and loosely based on a true story from 2014, The Beasts stars Denis Menochet and Marina Fois as Antoine and Olga, an educated French couple who moved to a small Spanish village in Galicia in order to grow and sell organic vegetables. When the story begins, Antoine and Olga have already been in the village for some time – as evidenced by the fact that they’ve angered the locals by refusing to sell the region to Norwegian wind farm developers, a deal that would have given their less well-off neighbours more money than they’ve ever seen in their lives.
Antoine’s main antagonists are his immediate neighbours, brothers Xan (Luis Zahera) and Lorenzo (Diego Anido), who never miss an opportunity to torment him in the local pub, usually while playing their endless games of dominoes. When the police refuse to do anything about their nightly incursions on his property, Antoine secretly carries around a video camera and documents their threatening activities. But has he underestimated his opponents?
Sorogoyen is a master at ratcheting up the suspense, creating an atmosphere more fraught with tension than any recent mainstream thriller you care to mention. Every scene has the potential for violence, and if a fraught encounter in the pub or elsewhere doesn’t actually lead to a punch-up, it only makes the night-time scenes more chilling, as you wonder what the brothers will do next. The fact that Antoine and Olga also have an adorable dog only makes that tension all the more unbearable.
Menochet delivers a typically brilliant performance as Antoine, and Sorogoyen knows exactly how to exploit his imposing physical form, so he’s an intimidating presence, even though his personality and behaviour don’t back that up. Fois is equally good as Olga, exhibiting a quiet strength of her own, while Zahera and Anido are both superb as the brothers, each exuding a constant, palpable air of danger and menace.
The Beasts‘s excellent script keeps you hooked right from the start, as it’s immediately clear that the characters are on a collision course, and the subsequent slow burn is exquisite. Along the way, the film also has something to say about various issues, from class and gentrification to jealousy, anger and the nature of vengeance. Without giving too much away (and you should really go in as cold as possible), the film’s coup de grace comes in the final act of the film, with a bold narrative direction that is incredibly powerful, leaving an impact that will keep you thinking about the story long after you leave the cinema.
The film is further heightened by a pitch-perfect percussive score from Olivier Arson, and by Alejandro de Pablo’s stunning cinematography, which makes the most of the rural landscapes, hiding deep reserves of threat and menace in amongst the natural beauty.
***** 5/5
The Beasts is on limited release in the UK from today.
