Fermat's Room
Fermat's Room is released on May 29th
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Friday, 29, May 2009 03:03
Directed by Luis Piedrahita and Rodrigo Sopena, out May 29th, in cinemas, starring Santi Millan, Lluis Homar, Federico Luppi, Alejo Sauras, Elena Ballesteros, running time 88 mins.
In a nutshell...
An involving mathematical mystery.
What's it all about?
Four geniuses find themselves gathering for a mysterious weekend after solving a numerical problem set by an enigmatic sender known only as Fermat. As the delightfully-furnished room in which they have assembled begins to shrink, the quartet find their wits pushed to the limit as they fight to survive.
Who's in it?
An exclusively Spanish cast, with Alejo Sauras and Lluis Homar among the cast for Pedro Almodovar's Broken Embraces, Federico Luppi having starred in Guillermo del Toro's Pan's Labyrinth, and Elena Ballesteros a mainstay of Spanish TV comedy La Familia Mata.
As an example...
"I know what you're thinking - this is all too weird." - Oliva
What the others say
"Maths boffins + twist of mystery - patchy ending = uneven thriller." - Ian Nathan, Empire
"Math and mystery add up to an unlikely but engrossing solution in Fermat's Room, a locked-room teaser that handles its limited dramatic permutations with flair, skill and a nicely contempo air." - Jonathan Holland, Variety
So is it any good?
"Do you know what prime numbers are? Because if you don't, you should just leave now."
This opening gambit from Alejo Sauras' 'Galois' - or so his name tag later reads at the mysterious gathering - is somewhat of a misnomer for this fiendishly intelligent Spanish effort, with an audience member's talent for solving puzzles an actual detriment to involvement in the story.
Fermat's Room is in fact little more than a high-brow thriller, with its a straightforward horror race-against-time set-up and tone shrouded in intelligence and an admittedly original premise.
Our four principals are witty and likeable throughout while directors Piedrahita and Sopena create an admirable intensity for a set-up that is ostensibly a Spanish take on an extra tough edition of The Krypton Factor.
Sauras especially shows such great star quality and with a devilish twist sending the audience down a blind alley, it's a stimulating mental workout and a slight but thoughtful addition to the growing canon of Spanish gothic.
7.5/10
Lewis Bazley