Reviews

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  ★★★★★ review by Naughty aka Juli Norwood on Letterboxd

  Hèctor Hernández Vicens directorial debut is anything but your typical go-to film, the one film you confidently whip out should friends show up unexpectedly at your door but then again it depends upon whether you want them to remain friends or scatter like roaches when the lights are flipped on once the disturbing events start to unfold! I'd opt for the latter.. I mean come on they did show up quite unexpectedly ;-)

  As repulsive as the films subject matter may be you may find yourself being drawn in kicking and screaming into this wicked spectacle for there is this deep need within you to not only stick around to find out what happens next but to find some form of catharsis if you will! Having not only witnessed the unspeakable but your gaze lingered far too long into the dark abyss and it now it's staring right back at you! Having danced with the devil we now seek solace in the form of a hero to root for or a satisfying resolution that will put our primal fears to rest so we can safely enter the realm of sleep once more!

  Alba Ribas's soul crushing performance was absolutely riveting! Mainstreamers beware this film is for the more adventurous souls among us whom seek films that push the boundaries beyond the limit!

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  ★★★½ review by <Todd> on Letterboxd

  "Half of Spain would do Anna Fritz, and here we have her," -Ivan.

  That escalated...quickly.

  The most tense I have felt during a film in a while. Two douchey guys visit a third douchey guy who works in a morgue where famous actress Anna Fritz' body has just been placed. The three douchey guys look at and fondle the actresses body and then things start to get weird and very dark. It's hard to say much more without spoiling.

  The content is graphic but if your dead inside like me, this is one of the most suspenseful and creepy films of the last few years. There are less than ten people in the movie, which is claustrophobic and tense. The performances are solid and film is well-paced. Honestly, the third act could be better but this is different and fun, a recommend to all horror fans.

  <Spanish> <Watched on Shudder>

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  ★★★½ review by Dead Moon Night on Letterboxd

  Beautiful and loved by everyone moviestar Anna Fritz dies and the world is grieving, meanwhile in a morgue the cold, lifeless body of the actress is waiting for an autopsy. Three guys takes their chance to have look at her naked corpse, but it doesn't stop there...

  Spanish cinema does it again! I thought it would be a provocative slice of necrophilia but The Corpse of Anna Fritz twists the taboo subject around in a satisfactory way. It's a dark chamber play that takes place almost exclusively in one room, a morgue and Hèctor Hernández Vicens delivers an impressive first movie, I'm eager to find out what his next feature will be about! The Corpse of Anna Fritz is a perfect companion to Nacho Cerdá's Aftermath and Marcel Sarmiento & Gadi Harel's Deadgirl.

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  ★★★★ review by Waldo on Letterboxd

  A world famous actress dies. She's at the morgue, two party boys go to visit his pal that works at that same morgue. They want to see the body of the famous dead actress. They wonder how she would look naked. The what would you do angle is horrific to me in this tight, suspense shocker from Spain. Goddammit! A few times I wanted to scream like a banshee! Expertly done and the young cast is brave and talented.

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  ★★★★ review by DisposableMiffy on Letterboxd

  Stumbled upon this one because it was mentioned in a review I read on lb, so thanks to whoever wrote it.

  Our titular character is a famous young actress who suddenly died. Her naked body lies in the morgue of a hospital, waiting for the autopsy. The young orderly on duty takes a photo of her and sends it to two of his friends who shortly after show up at the hospital. Some drugs are taken and they go down to the morgue. You don’t have to be a clairvoyant to know that things are in motion that most likely won’t end well for the people involved. What begins as "just" a severe lack of decency soon progresses into a sick joke and only gets worse from there on out. It’s the classic set up of people introduced as protagonists slowly revealing their true nature and ultimately turning against each other. "El cadáver de Anna Fritz" is not one of those films that subverts the viewers expectation entirely. It’s a horror film, of course something bad will happen. About the "what" the film keeps you in the dark for a quite a while. Once we’re past a crucial moment, it’s not the "what" that matters anymore but the "how".

  It may seem slow but I think the movie is well-paced. The story is told very efficiently, there are no unneccessary characters or even entire subplots that add nothing. After all it lasts only 74 minutes. The characters are not given much depths but it is enough to perceive them as human beings the viewer can relate to. The film keeps its tension up and maintains a sense of threat till the credits roll.

  I guess you could read the story as a metaphor for a number of things and it might have been the filmmakers intention that we do, but the movie works just fine if you watch it without a heightened meaning in mind.

  PS: This is one of those films where it is indeed justified to say that it might not be for everyone.

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