Desierto

Desierto stars Gael Garcia Bernal, and Jefrey Dean Morgan, and its the story of some immigrants (including Gael Garcia Bernal) going to the U.S, but in order to go there, they need to cross the border. Then an American sees them and starts hunting them. First thing, the camera-work is pretty good. I was constantly impressed with the work of the camera man. Thats probably the only great thing about this movie. Desierto has absolutely no substance, it is just a simple cat and mouse movie. But it doesn't give you that feel of tension, because you simply don't care about the characters. The movie does not take the time to develop the characters, so we don't care about them, making the film feel bland and boring. The acting overall was alright, not awful, not excellent, just in the middle. As i previously stated, the cinematography is great, there are a lot of wide and long shots, so no problems there. The villain has absolutely no motivation, we don't know why he wants to kill them, so we don't identify with the villain. The blood and gore looked really cheap, there is rarely any logic in this film, characters do things without explanation and understanding and overall, just a boring movie with absolutely no character depth. 4.5/10

This movie is truly awful. Its not the acting or the cinematography, its the story or distinct lack of it. There is no effort to develop a back story so we feel any connection to the hunter or the hunted, its all just assumed. So without back story its just a bunch of slaughter (including a dog) that's not sensationalised (like Hostel) which actually makes it worse. I see the rating and I'm thinking...what's to like, have you all watched the same movie? Its also incredibly boring, excluding the last 10 minutes or so, but its not enough at the end to save the film or make it worthwhile. Give me violence...but give me a proper story.

It's quite incredible that a movie as short as 90 minutes could be so dull and ineffective. But alas, 'Desierto, directed by Jonás Cuarón, does just that. The movie is extremely simplistic to the point where the audience never really knows why any of the events in the movie even happen. There is no discussion of motivation almost all of the characters, and the plot is simply just one long game of cat and mouse with absolutely no twists or surprises along the way. The mice, in this case, are some of the most uninteresting characters that I have ever had the misfortune of seeing. There was only one moment in the movie which I thought was genuinely an interesting character moment. Perhaps if the cast was larger, and plot more complex, this would not have been such an issue, but unfortunately we have the opposite - the plot literally could not be more basic, and for most of the movie there are only three characters. But these characters are completely unable to carry the movie or make it faintly watchable as they are, simply put, horrendously uninteresting and unimaginative. There is a raccoon who appears for around three seconds in the movie that I swear was more interesting and potent than anyone else in the movie. The performances, just to add to the shameful mess that is this movie, are fairly poor, save Jeffrey Dean Morgan as the unmotivated, psychotic murderer that randomly comes across a group of survivors and decides to start killing them. So basically his character in The Walking Dead. But even Jeffrey Dean Morgan, with his reliable charm and strong performance, cannot save this one. There are a few moments of genuine tension, which did have me guessing what would happen next, but that is the only other positive I can squeeze out of this one. This movie is like Catch Me If You Can, but instead of a great story and thoroughly enjoyable characters and performances, you are fed the most repetitive, dull and forgettable excuse for a story and characters that is this movie. Even though 90 minutes may not seem long for a movie, trust me, this will feel like a lifetime. 4/10