Search box

Friday, June 12, 2015

El rey de la Montana (aka King of the Hill, King of the Mountain) (2007)

6.0 Popcorn boxes

This taunt little thriller is about a man, Quim (Leonardo Sbaraglia) who is driving, apparently in Spain, to perhaps meet a former girlfriend, Sofia.  He stops at a gas station/convenience store, and while on the pay phone, spots a pretty woman, Bea (Maria Valverde) who is stuffing items into her jacket.  They exchange looks.  He goes into the women's bathroom, and encounters the woman again.  They have a sexual encounter, and she leaves.  Quim discovers she's stolen his wallet, and he resignedly continues on his way.

He then spots the woman driving up a side road, so he turns and follows her,  Then, his car is hit by rifle fire.  He stops, and gets out to inspect the damage, when he is shot in the leg.  He scrambles back to his car, and speeds off, up the mountain.  He stops when construction equipment blocks his way, and he tries to flee on foot.  He's targeted again, goes back to his car, turns around and speeds off down the hill.  He runs over the gunman, who has appeared with a black lab, killing the man.  He encounters Bea again, and they drive off in her car when his car has stopped running.  Soon, they are under attack again.

We're obviously supposed to identify with Quim, who's the target of an unseen sniper.  But (spoiler alert!) he uncharacteristically turns the table on Bea, leaving her to fend for herself against the murderers.  In other words, he's a coward.  This fact knocks the film down a couple of popcorn boxes.  (End spoiler alert) 

The film is well photographed.  For an independent film, the production values are very good.  The plot is suspenseful; we never know what's coming next, and the tension never lets up.  A man and a gun always seems to be there.  The reveal of who's behind the killing is a shock, and the ending is unexpected.

Rated R for violence and brief sexual content

No comments:

Post a Comment