Anguish

R

Released Jan 8, 1988

1 hr. 31 min.

Horror

List

63%

8 Reviews

Tomatometer

63%

500+ Ratings

Audience Score

Teen friends Patty (Talia Paul) and Linda (Clara Pastor) head to a theater to watch the latest slasher movie, "Mommy," featuring a deranged matriarch (Zelda Rubinstein) who hypnotizes her son (Michael Lerner) to steal other people's eyeballs and return them to her. Unfortunately for the girls, while the on-screen killer nabs victims in a movie theater, a deranged "Mommy" fan (Ángel Jovè) creeps through the film's audience, reenacting the movie's murders in real time.

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GM M

I remember watching this when it came out. Memorable.

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

04/11/23

Full Review

Steve D

I am not sure what it is trying to do but I am sure it is failing.

Rated 0.5 out of 5 stars

03/02/23

Full Review

Matthew D

Took the Scream formula to a whole other level and did so even before Scream existed. A strange, unsettling and truly original experience.

Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars

10/30/21

Full Review

Audience Member

Typical 80s cheese that's ok. The acting isn't good, the plot is unique which is great, but the execution feels off a bit. It doesn't scare nearly as much as it tries to. If you're into those 80s style movies then this will work for you.

Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars

01/15/23

Full Review

delysid d

weird as hell film about a movie theatre killer

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

07/01/18

Full Review

Audience Member

When it comes to Spanish filmmakers, the go to director is Pedro Almodóvar but another Spanish director that had a notable career and even launched Javier Bardem and Penelope Cruz´s careers: Bigas Luna. John is an ophthalmologist´s assistant who is quite inept at his job. Back at home his overprotecting mother Alice hypnotizes him and orders him to murder his patients and retrieve their eyes. When it comes to "foreign movies" (aka non USA movies), not only does the language differ but most importantly the style is completely different. Regarding horror movies the aesthetic is quite different from the jump-scare and focused on body count of USA style, so it's no wonder why I enjoyed "Anguish" as much as I did. "Anguish" counts with a fantastically clever storytelling, a peculiar story (any movie that starts with a warning saying that it will subject the audience to mild hypnosis and mild subliminal messages has my attention, even if it turns out to be bullshit) which premise reminds me of "Demons", Luna´s direction is quite clever as he seamlessly confuses the audience by blending the line of fiction and reality, it has some creepy imagery, and overall is quite fun to watch. But even if this is a clever and fun film, it has major pacing issues. By the time the third act starts, the film ran out of ideas. "Anguish" is an intriguing, clever and highly enjoyable horror film that stands out in its genre. While it isn't anything groundbreaking, as I said it is quite similar to "Demons", it is a horror movie worth watching.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

01/17/23

Full Review

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Bigas Luna

Director

Zelda Rubinstein

Mother

Michael Lerner

John Pressman

Talia Paul

Patty

Ángel Jovè

Killer

Clara Pastor

Linda

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Dennis Harvey

48 Hills

A Mobius strip-like narrative that constantly turns in on itself.

Oct 30, 2023

Full Review

Matt Patches

Polygon

Fun? Maybe not. But something to write home about.

Oct 20, 2020

Full Review

Richard Freedman

Newhouse News Service

Anguish is just what we needed to wile the rest of the winter away: a slasher movie with metaphysical pretensions.

Rated: 2/4

Nov 5, 2019

Full Review

Anton Bitel

Projected Figures

horror at its most sophisticated and self-reflexive, using cinema itself - its projections and imaginative impacts - as an arena for anxiety-riddled ideas about what it means to surrender ourselves to someone else's sinister, suggestive vision.

Mar 30, 2015

Full Review

Pablo Villaça

Cinema em Cena

Roteiro, montagem, desenho de som e direo brilhantes em um filme magistralmente insano.

Rated: 5/5

Jun 13, 2014

Full Review

Emanuel Levy

EmanuelLevy.Com

Rated: 3/5

Jun 23, 2005

Full Review

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Synopsis

Teen friends Patty (Talia Paul) and Linda (Clara Pastor) head to a theater to watch the latest slasher movie, "Mommy," featuring a deranged matriarch (Zelda Rubinstein) who hypnotizes her son (Michael Lerner) to steal other people's eyeballs and return them to her. Unfortunately for the girls, while the on-screen killer nabs victims in a movie theater, a deranged "Mommy" fan (Ángel Jovè) creeps through the film's audience, reenacting the movie's murders in real time.

Director: Bigas Luna
Executive Producer: George Ayoub, Andreu Coromina
Distributor: Anchor Bay Entertainment
Rating: R
Genre: Horror
Original Language: Spanish
Release Date (Theaters): Jan 8, 1988, Original
Release Date (DVD): May 27, 2008
Sound Mix: Surround