Los Parecidos (2015) Online

"Los Parecidos/The Similars" the second film by Mexican director Issac Ezban really is "A love letter to the science fiction movies of the 60s".

The mysterious plot of the film is bizarrely addressed by the style that the young director is creating, mixing photography and really amazing soundtrack transports you to another era.

The film reminds us the classic episodes of the "Twilight Zone" and the music of the film remind us the musicalization of the works of Alfred Hitchcock.

No doubt Ezban Issac and his team are doing a great work resurrecting the science fiction genre in México.

In case you're a huge fan of nostalgic Sci-Fi/horror movies from the fifties and sixties, or an admirer of landmark and genre-determining TV-series like "The Twilight Zone" or "Alfred Hitchcock Presents", then "The Similars" is undoubtedly the best motion picture you'll see this year (and probably in the next few years to come). I'm a tremendous fan of the aforementioned decades and titles and I instantly knew I wanted to see this one as soon as I laid my eyes on the fantastic old- school film poster, what with its lovely use of green shades and its illustration of a hysterical face covered in bandages. The poster seems to come straight out of the sixties, and so does the entire movie, in fact. Writer/director Isaac Ezban was present at the Brussels' International Festival of Fantastic Films, where I watched it, and openly declared his love and devotion for the genre as well as his fascination for all the external influences, political and social, that were processed into the screenplays of the movies back then. Ezban tried to do the same with "The Similars" and I can easily confirm that he succeeded, since the story he invented here is easily one of the most original and imaginatively refreshing ones I've seen in a long time. In the fall of 1968, in a little village that is located in five hours driving distance from Mexico City, a handful of people are stranded in an old bus station. They are desperately waiting for the next bus, but it won't come since all public transport is disrupted due to the unusually heavy rainfall. Some more people strand at the station and via the radio they learn that the rain showers apparently form a worldwide issue and the drops might even be acid. Inside the station the tension mounts between the stranded passengers and inexplicable phenomena start to occur. The people's faces gradually begin to alter and look exactly like the face of Ulises, the man who arrived at the bus stop first. Álvaro, a fanatic med student on his way to the protest mars in the city, is convinced that Ulises is part of a secret governmental experiment, but given strange nature of the events, it's far more likely that paranormal forces are at work. Isaac Ezban, with the help of his wonderful ensemble cast of course, truly brings to life some essential aspects of sixties' cinema, most notably the Cold War paranoia, the ominous atmosphere as well as the consecutive series of inexplicably supernatural occurrences. To give just one example, the scene where the baffled characters discover that not only their own faces but also those in magazines and on wall posters is a masterful slice of cinematic craftsmanship. Of course, and inevitably, "The Similars" isn't entirely without flaws. Sci-Fi flicks from the old days as well episodes from "The Twilight Zone" were particularly effective just because they only had running times of around 60 minutes or even less. Although not exaggeratedly lengthy, "The Similars" occasionally feels a bit tedious and, especially when reaching the finale, overlong. Ezban also has a few issues to properly explain all the mysterious events near the end and all too easily ends his film with a stern voice-over reciting a kind of text like "some things in this universe simply can't be clarified". On the other hand, that's typically old school Sci-Fi as well! "The Similars" is a very good and joyful movie to watch, preferably amidst a large crowd (for example a festival) where you can share your amazement at some of the plot twists with fellow genre admirers.

I don't have much experience with Mexican cinema, looking over my ratings I see I haven't had much luck either. With just a 3/10 this is still the highest rated Mexican movie I've seen!

It tells the story of a group of strangers who come together in a bus station during a mysterious down pour and...............I can't really say anything else without going into spoiler territory.

What I can say is it's weird, like really really weird and I struggled to take it seriously. There were moments I assumed it was a comedy, but it's actually not. It heavily reminded me of something you'd see on the Twilight Zone or Outer Limits but had been stretched out into a 90 minute movie.

The premise is ridiculous, the whole thing doesn't come together in the end. Yes it's explained, it just isn't very good.

I wish I could go deeper into this film and explain but saying anything would spoil it (Not that there is much to spoil). All I'll say is this is certainly one of the weirdest movies I've ever seen, it's highly original but that isn't always a good thing.

The Good:

Very original

Very stylish

The Bad:

Too silly to be taken seriously

Overall it's bafflingly awful

1968 was a turbulent time in both Mexican and United States history. It was a time of great sociological unrest, when authority was questioned, and social protests became prominent. While the United States lost Robert Kennedy and Martin Luther King Jr, the Mexican government used its power to suppress political opposition from innocent students leading to a massacre in Tlatelolco during the reign of president Diaz- shortly before the 1968 Olympics.

I bring this up only because it serves as background for Isaac Ezban's fascinating and imaginative second Science Fiction film- "The Similars".

Ezban's film, shot mostly in black and white as a time period piece- is a reflection of the Golden age of TV, with the aesthetics and visual flamboyance few Directors have. One can view this story as a metaphor - a microcosm of Ezban's much larger narrative of reality played out on stage, or as a good old fashioned B movie Science Fiction story. It works well on both levels.

Setup- 8 people find themselves stranded at a bus station during a devastating rainstorm only five hours outside of Mexico City. But this is no ordinary storm, nor are the news reports that come in. This rain contains a lot more than just water.

The cast of characters are comprised of an old man on the verge of retirement, a pregnant woman on the run, a medical student, a mother and her handicapped son, and a few significant others. As with his brilliant debut film- "El Incidente", the characters seem inconsequential to the story. They are used merely to examine the human condition when put in a position of extreme circumstance.

As the story unfolds, we witness a strange phenomenon. Each character, by way of a bizarre seizure, wake up no memory and the same face. As expected tensions arise, characters become desperate for answers, paranoia takes over, and violence- including a few deaths. The student fears the government is involved. Others believe it's the Devil. An old native Aztec woman has an opinion too, but nobody can understand a word she says.

Could one of these characters hold the secret? Is there some sort of cosmic game taking place? Can fantasy become an uncontrollable reality? There is dark humor throughout this film, which Ezban delivers- tongue in cheek. I won't spoil the surprises. This is a fun, imaginative journey into Science Fiction. While his feature film "El Incidente" was explained within the context of abstract spiritual realism, this story has it's dots well connected and unfolds with perfect timing.

The film's main metaphor is - what does man become when stripped of his identity? That was in question that tragic day in Tlatelolco in 1968. Somehow, the military forgot that individuality can not be compromised, and there are dangers when our identity is suppressed in favor of forced conformity- in other words- when people are forced to "All Become The Same" (tagline). The fact that Ezban used a Sociological equivalency to his Sy/Fy story shows that this Director may become a true future visionary in the world of modern day Cinema.

The direction of Ezban, along with the cinematography of Isi Sarfati, leave the film with a real 60s look and feel. Yes, this is very much Ezban's tribute to Rod Serling's - The Twilight Zone - A combination of 4 ("Mirror Image", "It's a Good Life", "Mind and the Matter", & "Monsters are due on Maple Street") with a unique twist by Ezban that Serling would have loved.

Like great Writers and Directors, Ezban's story is fun, fascinating, and totally original- and just when you think you have the film figured out, he throws us the proverbial curve ball and dares us to hit it. On imagination alone, I give this a rating of 8/10.

To properly kick off my 2018 movie viewings after being ill for a good part of January,I decided to finally see the titles in my Netflix saved list that I've most anticipated viewing. Reading Kim Newman's Video Dungeon's page in Empire magazine a few months ago,I found out about a fascinating-sounding Mexican Twilight zone-style movie. Looking on Amazon UK,I was surprised to find that it had come out on disc in the US,but not the UK. Not being sure how to see the film,I was happy to stumble upon it on Netflix UK,which led me finding out how similar things can be.

The plot-

Mexico 1968:

Wanting to get out of a storm, Ulises goes to a cavernous bus station. Getting little help from the warden, (who is to retire in two weeks) Ulises finds a payphone and gets the news that his wife has successful given birth. Waiting for the storm to clear,Ulises hears on the radio fears of there being something unusual about the rain. Greeting fellow guests to the bus station,Uliese is horrified to find each guest slowly transform into looking just like him.

View on the film:

Drenched in the unsettling eerie atmosphere of The Twilight zone, writer/director Isaac Ezban & cinematographer Isi Sarfati give their journey to the outer limits its own angles via deep,black and white-monochrome corridor shots being covered with pelts of rain,and the transformations into various Ulises being unveiled with a macabre streak. Back by a fittingly thunderous score from Edy Lan,Ezban wisely limits the fallout in the outside world to crackles on the radio,which are piled on the hopelessness being felt in the bus station.

Drawing on 50's Sci-Fi Comics as a major plot device, the screenplay by Ezban has the shadow of the Tlatelolco massacre linger over the bus shelter,and giving the tale an urgency,as government paranoia feeds into the transformations. Unwillingly becoming the focus of suspicion, Gustavo Sánchez Parra gives a great performance as the anxious, sweating with fear Ulises,who sees a hard rain fall on all their similar daily routines.

If you are a fan of The Twilight Zone you will love Isaac Ezban's creation, The Similars. Authentic in its approach, a genuinely suspenseful film which you cannot turn your eyes away from. A spine chilling master-piece evoking the spirit of classic thrillers and black and white science fictions before it. If this film was a book, you would not put it down, and surely, even if you guess the ending, you could still be wrong. It carries a message, and at the end, you understand just what that message is. Strong performances by the actors and excellent directing make this film a pleasure to watch and one you will want to see again and again, and share with everyone who has not seen it.

We're all unique they say. Well some say it. There is others that say we are much more alike than we'd like to believe. So what to believe then? Our eyes that would tell us different? Or do they fool us? Now the characters in this have a hard time and it's not just because they are trapped inside a building during a storm. There is something else going on around them.

If you like Science Fiction and you like mystery as well, you will have a great time. It's also very funny and scary at times, like many of them are. After watching this, you may take a look around and see things differently. Very differently then before ... Seriously though: Very entertaining, very suspenseful and beautifully shot and edited as well

While I liked the style of this movie, the concept wasn't executed well enough for me. I found it more comical than creepy, more wacky than weird. Some of the acting and editing was awful, and I definitely felt like some moments were cringe-worthy. I am a fan of the Twilight Zone, which other people have compared this to, but The Similars was too ridiculous and unsubtle to be in the same league as the classic series. I feel like I'm in the minority here, but I say skip this one.

This movie is indeed going to be a sci-fi classic. It is a movie that everyone who loved the Twilight Zone will appreciate, in fact one person said to Isaac Ezban during a question and answer session that the movie, was like a love letter to the Twilight Zone.

Fans of the matrix will applaud, and lovers of science fiction the world over will come to know and cherish.

This movie is a great work and clever. It keeps you guessing, trying to figure it all out, what is happening, why? Who is doing what? Why? Where is this going? What will be the end?

When it ends, it is left open, for a sequel, or unending possibilities. The characters are portrayed strongly, the script strong. Even though it is in Spanish with English subtitles, it takes nothing from the pleasure of watching the movie.

A truly masterful piece of work. Fantastic script, clever lighting, simple set, strong performances, controversial ending, great direction, and more than enough to take home from the movie to keep you talking for months, if not years.

An award winning movie and director (Buffalo Dreams Fantastic Film Festival 2015 awarded the movie and director with several distinctions).

In short, it is simply brilliant and a must watch movie.

This is absolute garbage. I just finished watching this movie and it is the worst thing I have ever seen, leaving a bad taste in my mouth and wishing I could wash my eyes out. It looks like the most obnoxious student film with zero motivation and no substance. The spoiler is pretty laughable (I genuinely laughed) but it's enjoyable for about 15 seconds until you realise the movie is this stupid. Everything looks cheap and tacky - I'm guessing it had a small budget but Jesus Christ! The grainy, cigarette burn/Kelvin insta filter gets annoying very quickly. I watched this because people were comparing it to Hitchcock. Within 5 minutes I realised people are stupid. Watch this movie if you want to be robbed of life. Fin.

I really liked this movie! There will be zero spoilers here; I'll be getting straight to the point.

Where horror films are concerned, I'm beyond weary of the seemingly endless stream of remakes and reboots coming out of Hollywood. For years I've been waiting for someone — ANYONE — to start thinking out of the box and create something original. Finally, the writer/director/producer of "The Similars" did just that. His name is Isaac Ezban. Remember it... because I have a strong feeling that Guillermo Del Toro will be getting a bit of home-grown competition on 'the horror front' before too long.

'The Similars' is sort of a 'period piece' that's set in 1968, with the Tlatelolco Massacre hovering over it like a dark, ominous cloud from start to finish. (If you're unfamiliar with the incident, Google it.) This movie is also a tribute to the horror classics of the 1960s. Interesting and attention-grabbing from the start, it straddles the fence between 'bizarre' and 'comically absurd' before then veering straight into 'old-school horror' territory with a rather unexpected sci-fi twist. If you want or need to know more? Track it down and watch it. Seriously. The less you look into this movie ahead of time, the better. Allow yourself to be pleasantly surprised.

An interesting photography. Irregular performances (the kid was not my favorite). Good atmosphere generating suspense. Music that more than to homage Bernard Herrman's scores, sounds like plagiarism (also final credits look like quite similar to North by Northwest and Psycho titles, beyond a homage). The script is interesting but I do not feel an strong closure and even could be considered for some a 68's mexican student massacre trivialization.

just to watch one occasion without demanding too much. And if you are a Hitchcock's fan, like I am, you probably could feel uncomfortable for excessive similarities in technical aspects.

Anyway, enough to feel curious and seeing another Ezban's work.

6/10

This movie is extraordinary a Mexican sci film in it's way to become a cult classic

From the director of "El Incidente" brings us a film that takes place in October 2 of 1968 a disturbing time for Mexico, this film is a pure noir ambient situated in a stormy night in a bus station hours away from the city, eight characters are locked on this place, an old man in the reception, a man desperate for going to the city, a pregnant woman, a young student a worker, an old woman and a woman and his son, these are the eight characters the compose the story of The Similars.

These eight characters are victims of something unexplainable, that night a strange phenomenon happens, that night they all start to look the same all leading to a macabre revelation.

Why is this happening? What or who's doing this? Is this an illusion? Is this real? How it will end?

Are many of the questions will you ask yourself when you're seeing this film, as the story unfolds the paranoia grows, the thrill haunts you and the questions without answers keep going, the script is smart and brilliant at putting us pieces to figure out what's happening and once the twists start coming out, the experience is beyond amazing, the way the characters are portrayed it's incredible great performances by the cast, every character in this film composes the story perfectly and more when the plot twists are happening

The movie feels like a "horror" film but it has some dark humor themes that give the film a interesting unique touch, you need to know that are some practical effects on this film totally creative and crazy something to admire.

Edy Lan brings us a beautiful and a terrfying score, it's magnificent and it takes you into the film, the music here it's like a character, the soul of a film is it's soundtrack and Edy Lan proves this with The Similars

Isaac Ezban with this film delivers a beautiful tribute a love letter to "The Twilight zone" that cult classic sci fi series, The Similars gives a beautiful homage to this series and it's genre, i'm sure fans of the genre will clap after the film ends. and the cinematography by Isi Sarfati, this great and talented cinematographer gives a unique visual style to this film a 60's one that takes us into that time.

A perfect direction and a strong and intelligent script, amazing performances, a magnificent soundtrack and an a beautiful cinematography compose the movie of THE SIMILARS

Isaac Ezban shows us that sci fi movies still exist in Mexico and there is no doubt we will hear more of him in the next years

Brilliant, a must see movie.

Watch it for yourself, make up your own opinion, my personal 2 cents on the film... not really worth it.

The scariest part of the experience was that, up to this point i had never EVER contemplated shooting a freakin brat and i have seen the original twilight zone episode the kid was based off of, not scary, very annoying film, honestly expected better from the director, alas there is always the next one.

I don't understand how many people find this movie a good one. I have to stop it at 30 minutes, and that's a thing that I almost never do... too many nonsenses

This movie make me wanna quit my Netflix subscription. Don't waste your time.

Started this with high hopes, liked the way it was presented and filmed, but a ridiculous story that is more annoying than anything else... Shame

I'll be honest, its not a true horror movie. Theres nothing "scary" about it, but it is entertaining for the most part. Extremely silly, but great cinematography. Many other reviewers hit it on the head when they compared it to an old "Twilight Zone". The overdone screaming and yelling was quite annoying at times and the acting was so-so, decent premise. It could have been done so much better because I understood the point, but there were a few random parts of the story line that seemed pointless and just thrown in. It really starts off decent, the ambiance and the storm. But some parts were just flat out stupid - such as the baby, and the dog at the end.

Imagine Alfred Hitchcock and David Lynch both working on an idea for a collaborative flick, while riding Willy Wonka's shuttle through the LSD tunnel, pouring each other's glass to the brim with Laudanum Absinthe. This is probably what comes out at the end of it.

This movie was many things. Grainy, stylish, repellent, thrilling, dragging, outrageous silly, diabolical, weird, annoying at moments, but nowhere dull.

It's story unfolds mainly through the quick and sudden change of perspectives which I found a bit distracting and chaotic, but in the end it fell in place.

I was surprised by the effective and efficient use of the minimalistic interior setting. It worked perfectly as canvas to blend the different types of genre (thriller noir, horror, sci-fi, surrealism) together in one highly stylised weirdness. The camerawork, particulary in the opening scenes, grabbed my attention immediately. Beautifully done.

This was a pleasant surprise after a bunch of less interesting Netflix horror flicks. Contrary to what the English title might suggest, this was all but similar to most.

If there was a thing to complain about, than it would be the middle part were all characters have a go at each other. By that time I lost interest because the dialogues seemed forced and unnecessary. One could argue that this was an attempt to put emphasis on the fact they were merely pieces, but that didn't work for me.

The good thing is that the story let me with a lingering thought about the power of imagination. It's something we all have and mostly enjoy, but at the same time try to keep under control. Bad things might happen otherwise.

Or at least, that's what we think...

"The Similars" is an entertaining movie that pays homage to classic Twilight Zone that won't disappoint its viewers.

The film makes obvious references to the 1968 Olympics and the Tlatelolco Plaza massacre. I just can't make the connection between the film's story and the real life horror in Mexico City in October 1968. I hope somebody on this board can help me figure this out.

The "Similars" all look like archetypal student revolutionaries, and a key character repeats the line, "Kill all the innocents." Most of the government's victims in Tlatelolco Plaza were clearly innocent of any crimes meriting their execution by the Mexican government. Maybe the "rain" refers to a "rain of bullets" or a "reign of terror"? Another character asks if the mystery is the work of "the Americans or the Soviets," and we know today that the U.S. government was involved in the actions of the Mexican army at Tlatelolco. I just need help putting this all together.

Los Parecidos is a nod to older horror movies and it succeeds in style. It invokes feelings of the 80's in color, style, looks and characters, including paranoia to the government.

But the story is lacking. The story is about a group of people who get stranded in a station during a crazy storm with supernatural elements in which various people turn into clones of each other. Each has their own theory, driving one against the other, succesfully creating an atmosphere of distrust and claustrophobia. The characters however feel rushed, although they do what they can, given the script.

The events feel random and aimless. Since they're caused by a child with reality altering powers, possibly controlled by aliens. This gives the creater too much freedom and he can go any way with it, without forming a grounded base for either the characters or the events. The scares are few and repetitive. The acting is decent. And the conclusion is random, especially since the ending is kind of open and suggests that more events are coming.

Watch it for the nostalgia, but other than that, it's not worth talking about or remembering.

While beginning to watch this movie, I expected little from it, because I had never seen a Mexican movie before, it was a horror movie(which is IMO the least cared-about genres) and I cudn't find a wikipedia page about the movie. And was I surprised? Definitely!

I have seen hundreds of horror movies till now(I'm a sucker for horror flicks), but I can confidently say that The Similars is one of the most creative and imaginative horror movies I've ever seen. This is exactly what horror is supposed to be- something that challenges our thoughts and opinions and something that makes us fear the 'unknown'.

But to get the essence of the movie it is necessary to watch it till the end. There are parts where the viewer can get irritated/confused as in the first half, the writers offer little to explain the crazy happenings. It is only in the second half that things actually start to fall in their place. Still, I would strongly recommend people who enjoy horror which is not just dark but also a bit imaginative to watch this movie!

Writing anything more about the movie will only ruin its effect.

"Los Parecidos" (2015) directed by Isaac Ezban, I caught this screening couple of years ago and I met Elsa of Zensky Cine was in attendance to discuss this film; she stated how Ezban was giving homage to Sci-fi movies.

Reyes's comment sums up this film, which is quite, a "genre" film incorporating elements of horror, science fiction and the supernatural. In addition, Ezban incorporates a significant part of Mexican history; a tragic one, the 1968 Tlatelolco student massacre. I think that many viewers that evening for looking for a political portrayal or even a complete satire since the director chose this infamous massacre.

Majority of film owes alot of its references with U.S. 1950-60's sci-fi and horror movies -- so many citations from "Invasion of the Body Snatchers", "War of the Worlds", etc.; even its soundtrack as a nod to "Psycho" music composer, Bernard Hermann.

It centered on a group of eight characters taking refugee in a bus station during unnatural weather. An acid rainstorm, presumably happening in other parts of the world giving an end of world feeling. One character, an older indigenous woman gives a cultural referral to Mexico's past; from the pre-Columbian world, premonition within Aztec and Maya traditions -- she warns the others on the unfolding tragic events.

With its many plot twists, I think many viewers were not prepared for this -- but many whom seen Ezban's film, "El Incidente" (2014) knew what to expect. Latin American cinema in this country gets stereotyped for being a certain way or having a certain look. I think many expect "hunger aesthetics", "magical realism" or a film done within an Italian "Neo-Realist" approach.

Though I feel that Ezban's story a little ambitious I was kept interested with the film's apocalyptic view of Mexico, which in the late 1960's was a real (not imagined) turbulent one. Not to give out any spoilers whether if it was the director's intention or not, "Los Parecidos" reminds me of a particular 1961 "Twilight Zone" episode.

Love this movie!!! I'm going to tell people about this movie as long as it stays fresh in my mind. But it's not at all frightening . I'm not going to poop on any other reviews but this only works if it's comedy horror not as a straight forward horror movie. If your going to tell me you were scared when the first " mutations " happened that very first reveal came and you did not laugh hard then you may need to switch to scooby doo . And the only tension came is waiting to see the dog would also have the same "mutation" and that was awesome and that sealed the deal for me. Awesome Awesome Awesome!!! This is to straight forward horror what The Room is to drama.. But as horror comedy it is with few equals.