Trauma (2017)

I had a screener sent to me asking if I wanted to do a review for it and of course, I said yes. I’m always up to review a movie. So, when I got my screener and press packet I looked through it to see what I was getting into when this caught my attention. “Trauma, the most controversial horror film made in the last decades in Latin America and considered in several international rankings within the top 10 of the season.” Of course, my curiosity was peaked, but I’ve seen a lot of horror films say that. Now, that I’ve watched it, I can see why it’s controversial. For those of you who have seen these films. It’s like A Siberain Film (2010) meets I Spit on Your Grave (1978). For those of you that haven’t seen those films. Trauma (2017) is a seriously messed up movie that will be hard for a lot of people to watch!

Trauma is an action/drama/horror that was written and directed by Lucio A. Rojas. It’s rated NR (not rated) but has language, violence, and nudity. It’s a subtitled film and has a hundred and six-minute runtime. Here’s what the story is about. Four friends visiting a rural locality of Chile are attacked by a man and his son. Unfortunately, help isn’t coming and it’s up to the four of them if they are going to survive…

First off, some backstory is needed for the one. “Chile, 1973. After the military strike puts a dramatic end to president Allende‘s government, general Augusto Pinochet rules the country with blood and fire. His most brutal forces, however, are not the soldiers, but the fearsome agents of the military intelligence and the cold-blooded civilians who support them. Years after the dictatorship ended and the Valech Commission Report was published, untold horrors surfaced and people were finally able to know about the gruesome crimes against men, women and even children.” Apparently, some of those untold horrors were sexual torture. Now, Trauma uses Chile’s history to fast forward time and ask what impact does something like that have on people later on in life?

The reason I threw that backstory in was if you watch the film, you could perceive it as “just another” torture porn flick like Saw (2004). However, that’s not the case with this one. Knowing the history makes you really see what’s going on in the film and ask is this how a monster is created? Is he really a monster… or another one of the many victims that were born from this atrocity? I have to be honest, between the sexual torture, rape, and gory scenes, Trauma is a seriously hard film to watch. However, it’s still a film that makes you think and shines a light on the horrid past Chile has gone through.

As far as the playthrough goes, it has a fast pace to it and things never really slow down from the start of the film. From the very opening of the film, it challenges your mental strength and makes you question if you’ll be able to finish this one. Truth be told, if you’re struggling through the opening… you’re not gonna make it through the rest of the movie. Something that Rojas did to really make an impact with this film is while most of the film is right in your face violent. There are some subtle scenes that make the monster… not so monstrous and you kind of feel bad for him. The way Rojas went about filming Trauma was actually brilliant.

Some of the cast is Catalina Martin (El Vigilante), Daniel Antivilo (Matar a un hombre), Macarena Carrere (Error 113), Ximena del Solar (Sendero), Felipe Rios (El Club), Dominga Bofill (Roommates), Eduardo Paxeco (Ilusiones Opticas), Claudio Riveros (El Nido del Trauma), Max Torres (Trauma) and Alejandro Trejo (Taxi Para Tres). I thought the whole cast did a great job. Also, I have to give it to them, I can’t imagine a lot of the scenes being easy to film, let alone go through.

The special effects looked great and I really dug the fact that they went with practical effects for a majority of the scenes. Now, this one is very gory and most of the scenes put you front row to the action so you don’t miss a single drop hitting the floor.

Sidenote, if you want to see it or you’ve seen it and want to own it then here’s what you need to know. Trauma will be available October 23rd on Blu-ray, DVD, and Digital HD, including iTunes, Amazon Instant Video, Google Play, Vudu and more.

Summary : If you can make it through this one, then it's worth watching. 

It's rated NR (not rated) but has language, violence, and nudity.


Rating


Average

4