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Cronicas

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`Crónicas' (2004) written and directed by Sebastián Cordero has authentic look of the countryside of Ecuador, and very strong performances from the three leading actors. The content of the film itself, part thriller about a serial killer, and part social satire about the media, looks more American than you might expect from the Ecuadorian-born director, who went to France at the age of 9, and studied filmmaking at university in California. But his semi-documentary touch proves he has originality, with realistic atmosphere that sometimes bring to us the smell of the places like seedy prison or humid swamps.

John Leguizamo plays a Miami-based TV-reporter who stumbles upon a big story about the heinous serial killer "the Monster of Babahoyo." Manolo, star reporter of Tabloid TV show (host played cameo Alfred Molina), believes that this timid middle-aged man Vinicio, who is now in prison because of one fatal hit-and-run accident, knows something about the killer that scares the local people.

While Vinicio offers a deal, there is another question - is he telling Manolo the truth? Or is he himself the Monster?

`Crónicas' has suspenseful moments, but it is not a murder mystery. If you're an avid reader of crime novels, you can predict the story fairly well, and the main characters - fame-hungry TV reporter, his female assistant (Leonor Watling, `Talk to Her'), and the portrait of the killer itself - are pretty stereotyped ones. Its oversimplified statement about the media, as is shown in its tagline (`If it's on TV, it must be the truth') looks old to me, having been repeated again and again in the films like `Mad City.' Today people don't believe the `story' so easily as the film thinks.

But the sinister, brooding mood of the places director Sebastián Cordero shoots with keen eyes, and the riveting acting from underrated Leguizamo, and creepy but convincing acting from Damián Alcázar is another thing. The director did a fantastic job of capturing the air of the small community.

Perhaps the film gets most chilling when it shows the darker (or I should say complicated) side of the people in this small town. Actually, the most impressive moment does not involve the serial killer, nor the media circus. I am talking about one long sequence, in which one dies and another is nearly killed after being brutally treated. Here Cordero shows his undeniable talent as director. The film is well worth watching for these terrific moments, not for the simplified commentary on the media that you might have already heard before.

The cover of this DVD says the movie is in "Spanish and English." However, at least on the DVD version I got, the "English" consists of just a couple of sentences John Leguizamo inexplicably throws into his conversation, and then a few of the bonus interviews. Other than that, you will have to rely on the English subtitles, unless you are fluent in Spanish. And since some of the characters play reporters who speak rapidly, with a Ben Hecht "Front Page" urgency - that means you will have to quickly read a fair amount of material. But believe me, this movie is worth the effort.

Like me, you might find yourself watching the movie twice - once to get the gist by reading the subtitles - then again to concentrate more on the actors and to fill in some details.

John Leguizamo does a good job playing the cocky, ambitious reporter intent on developing and breaking the story of the child killer himself, without tipping off the police. But the really memorable performance is turned in by Damian Alcazar. He plays his part with a brilliant mix of meek supplication and soft, compelling manipulative guile. Whatever equivalent of the Academy Award the South American movie industry may present - should go to him.

This movie also gives us a look into settings most of us will (thankfully) never experience in person. We are taken into the center of mob violence. We see what the interior of a South American jail is like, with its peeling paint and exposed, dripping water pipes and its encouragement of inmate violence. We see the resourceful, stilted shantytowns people in those small towns build with whatever materials they find at hand.

This movie may also provoke deep debate among you and your friends about who the real villain of the story is. Of course there is the child killer himself. But many have found the reporters equally culpable in their eagerness to take credit for unmasking the killer. I have an additional candidate to nominate for villain. It's not so much Damian's wife, who urged her husband to keep silent about his presumed knowledge of the killer's identity. But it is her desperate spirit of "let's not get involved" that I blame. Even for someone who is poor and struggling, that attitude should not be given a pass. It is the root of so much evil.

Whichever characters you end up convicting of the horror though, you will probably be haunted by the dark places this movie takes you to - long after you finish watching it.

At first, this film is difficult to watch, given the subject matter of violence against children. Soon it becomes obvious that there is more to it than that, and that is where the hook comes in. `Crónicas' is a movie that begins with a terrific concept but sort of dwindles along the way.

It's a good move with a very good performances, especially on the part of John Leguizamo, as a popular and ambitious reporter Manolo Bonilla doing a story about a notorious serial killer, and Damián Alcázar as Vinicio Cepeda, a man that by accident runs over and kills a local kid (whose brother was killed by the serial killer), and is saved by Manolo Bonilla from a lynching mob. Vinicio Cepeda wants the reporter to do a favorable story about him, and possibly, by doing so, help him get out of jail, where his life might be in danger. In exchange he offers him some information on "Monster of Babahoyo", the pedophile serial killer.

Damián Alcázar gives an incredible performance as a kind, humble, god-loving man with some uneasy, disturbing quality. The only real shortcoming of this movie, in my opinion, is that it is undeveloped. The movie could use another half an hour of plot towards the end and it felt bleak and was a bit slow in some areas.

Even though I was a bit disappointed `Crónicas' is a powerful film that certainly puts a brutal spin on the issue of a reporter protecting his sources and ethics, even when the worst of the implications happens off camera.

First of all, watching this movie, you have to remember that it's based on true events.

Alright. Now, this movie was great. John Leguizamo, as always, played his character flawlessly.

This moview was about a serial killer in Latin America that killed more than 150 children - boys and girls - and the reporters that follow this story. I don't know if I can review this without spoiling the movie.

Alright, here goes. The movie was great. The beginning shows a little boy whose twin brother was killed by the "Monster" - the name that was given to the serial killer / rapist who has been taking young children and doing horrible - HORRIBLE - things to them. The little boy gets run over by a man who was picking up his son from school after taking a bath in a river (???). Then it cuts to a reporter who is quite famous in that country, who is covering the story of the "Monster."

He does interviews with the man who accidentally runs over the little boy. Turns out that the man who ran over the little boy has information about the Monster that no one but the Monster would have. As it turns out, the information is completely true, and this movie chronicles what the reporter chooses to do with the information given.

It is about what's important and what you are willing to sacrifice for fame.

I loved it, it pissed my friend off with the ending, but I would recommend watching it. It will give you something to think about and talk about, and debate about because this movie will have you walking away with conflicting feelings. On one hand, you know what's right, but what's more important, you or other people?

My advice? Watch it. It will make you think. Hard.

When I went to see Cronicas I was actually dragged to it at a Film Festival not to long ago. I hadn't had an interest in seeing it, but a friend talked me in to it. It was one of the best films I've seen all year. Not only is the film beautiful, but the acting is fantastic. It's about time that John Leguizamo gets a role worthy of the actor that he is! The movie was incredibly suspensful and touching, and I recommend it to anyone who likes psychological thrillers, it's really one of the best ones to come along in a while.

I really enjoyed Crónicas. It is a great psychological thriller that relies on storyline and the performances of the actors. If you liked Silence of the Lambs and Mindhunter, you will like this film as well. It delivers a chilling suspenseful and haunting film without any gore.
The whole cast gave a superb performance, led by John Leguizamo and Damián Alcázar. Leonor Watling (as Marisa) and José María Yazpik (as Ivan), also gave incredible supportive performances.

I am grateful that other reviewers have already given the synopsis of the film so I won't reiterate. The film unravels the characters of Bonilla and Cepeda at the same time, showing curious similarities. This is one of the keys to the film I think, introducing evil in its many shapes and shades. Through the whole film I kept waiting and expecting for Bonilla to do the "right thing" because he is constantly referred to as the "hero". Every where he goes, he signs autographs and smiles back at adoring fans. Cepeda is described as a hero also, by his family, friends and neighbors - God fearing bible salesman that everyone knows and adores, prior to accidentally running a child over (accidents happen, could happen to anyone, right?), thus becoming the tragic hero and victim of circumstance.

Even though I started figuring out the question of who the killer was, I never expected the ending; I sat up and gasped "What???" I was stunned! I kept waiting for someone to do the right thing because of the hero references and asking myself "well, what would you do?" to me it is a no brainer, but the director gives hints that Bonillo is as much as a sociopath as the killer. I gaged my frustration with the outcome to the well done set up by the director and the stellar performance of the actors. I don't want to compromise my ethics here by saying that I liked the ending (given the gruesome crimes) -but I did and I thought that it was realistic given the set up and the movement to the film. Long after the movie ends, questions will still gnaw in the back of your mind; one of them being if Bonillo was just as evil as the serial killer? Is knowledge and in-action just as evil as having committed the crime?

I am not to familiar with Sebastián Cordero work but I plan to get acquainted with it in the near future. Cordero wrote and directed this film and I think that there is a good partnership between him and Guillermo del Toro. I have not been let down with del Toro's work, especially his work as a director. Final thought it is great to see the range of John Leguizamo' work. He is an exceptional actor who has been under rated, I hope he gets more work of this caliber.

I was very excited about seeing this film. It was shown as part of the Milwaukee International Film Festival and this was my chance to see a movie about which I had heard so much. There was a lot of suspense and the storyline was great but it just "ended". I felt a bit robbed; there should have been more loose ends tied up. Still, it was a real thriller and forces the viewer to connect the dots. It also showed the chilling effects of a pop culture generation thinking that everything said on television (and the internet) is true.

This film shows people on the edge with violence exploding in a village. There's a serial killer at large and kids are the target. The people of the area are uneasy and upset. A big city TV reporter covering the story succumbs to a horrible dilemma. The actors carry off their roles well and the feel of the film is very realistic.

John Leguizamo (Land of the Dead, Summer of Sam) plays Manolo Bonilla, a Miami news reporter who is down in Ecuador with his crew Marisa, played by Leonor Watling (Talk To Her, My Life Without Me) and Ivan, played by Jose Maria Yazpik. A family is having a funeral when suddenly their other son falls in front of a car and suddenly dies. The owner of the vehicle, Vinicio Cepeda, played by Damian Alcazar, is dragged out of his car, burnt and beaten. While Cepeda is locked up, he tells Leguizamo that he has met the "Monster", a killer who strikes against children, and he has told him of "The Monster" crimes and what he had done with all his victims. His makes Leguizamo suspicious of Cepeda because he thinks that he is the "Monster" and he's just giving him a croc story. Cepeda also tells him that he knows that there is another body at the gravesite where the cops found the rest of the bodies, so Leguizamo goes and it is actually true. Leguizamo then builds a story for the news that makes Cepeda look like an innocent man and he did not kill the child, which boosts Leguizamo's star power in the News place. A powerful thriller/drama, this movie gives Leguizamo to speak in his tongue and he's the only one who speaks English in this movie and he also gives a superb performance. Also starring Alfred Molina (Coffee and Cigarettes, Spider-Man 2) as Victor, the news anchor of the TV News show and he only is in this very little.

Crónicas is a terse, highly atmospheric movie that begins with a terrific idea but then doesn't seem to now where to go with it. The director Sebastián Cordero himself admits that the ending was nebulous until one of the actors (Leonor Watling) suggested a way to make the film work. The notes for the alternative ending demonstrate how flimsy this screenplay was, even into the final edit. So it is a film that begins well then loses its way in the mud of Ecuador.

Manolo Bonilla (John Leguizamo), a upwardly mobile TV journalist seeking stardom, has traveled to Ecuador with his assistant Marisa Iturralde (Leonor Watling) and cameraman Ivan Suarez (José María Yazpik) to cover the story of the 'Monster of Babahoyo', a serial rapist and murderer of small children. As they are filming a strange man Vinicio Cepeda (Damián Alcázar) has wandered into town and during the paparazzi effect of Bonilla's crew filming the mass funeral of the latest victims of the 'Monster'. Vinicio inadvertently runs over the twin of one of the victims resulting in an outrage by the father of the twins and a beating of Vinicio. Both are jailed and Manolo learns from the incarcerated Vinicio that he has secrets about the Monster. Seeing the chance for a 'Big Story' that will assure his stardom Manolo pursues the fragments of evidence about the Monster until little by little he 'uncovers' the truth. And the truth is terrifying.

Along the bumpy script road there is a love affair between Marisa (Ivan's girl!) and Manolo, communications with the Miami TV show Victor Hugo Puente (Albert Molina, whom we only see on a TV screen), and distractions from the townspeople and police. At times the storyline feels so jumbled that it is difficult to keep characters and motivations straight. But in the end this is a rather powerful indictment about the TV/media aggressive insertion into global reporting and the questionable ethics involved. The cast is strong, making the best of a mediocre script. The camera work seems to enjoy the endless preoccupation with poverty and inclement weather and the bleak atmosphere becomes wearing. This is a film with a good idea that just becomes a bit crippled in production. Grady Harp, November 05