In 1973 in Los Angeles, a widowed caseworker named Anna has to investigate a truancy notice to the Patricia Alvarez family that she has been working with for years. When she visits the house, she finds that the mother has locked the two kids, Carlos and Tomas, away in the closet. She says she is keeping them hidden from La Llorona but Anna just sees a mother acting irrationally. Anna can get them into a church home until something more permanent comes along. The first night that the boys are staying there, Tomas is sleepwalking and Carlos follows him down some very long hallways to La Llorona. A call comes in from the police and they have found the two boys drowned in the LA River. Now, La Llorona needs to find two more kids.
THE CURSE OF LA LLORONA is the debut film by Michael Chaves and he is currently filming THE CONJURING 3. With this film, it is based on the old Latin American folklore where there is a woman who was wronged by her husband and kills his children for revenge. It is a story that has varied over the centuries but it very prominent in the culture. The practical effects are really good and get plenty of screen time unless there is a call for CGI. The actress who plays La Llorona has a very strong appearance as an evil entity but also in her natural form. They can pull off creepy very well with this movie. I also like that the film is on the corner of THE CONJURING Universe so it is in a supernatural and lived-in world.
Cast
Linda Cardellini – Anna Tate-Garcia
Roman Christou – Chris Garcia
Jaynee-Lynne Kinchen – Samantha Garcia
Raymond Cruz – Rafael Olvera
Patricia Velásquez – Patricia Alvarez
Marisol Ramirez – La Llorona
Sean Patrick Thomas as Detective Cooper
Tony Amendola as Father Perez
VIDEO QUALITY:
The video is a 1080p AVC presentation that has clearly been captured digitally. The opening on the field in Mexico has tight details and a beautifully warm feel. There are some filters on the images to make them clear but have a vintage-like look. There are plenty of details that show on the tighter shots of people’s faces. Contrasting and lines are sharp. Some of the glaring issues are the crushing/noise in the lower-lit areas. It is there whenever there is dim lighting but the scene in the Alvarez apartment is the strongest example. That being said, there are a lot of deep blacks and shadows that make it seem like looking into the unknown at times.
AUDIO QUALITY:
The audio is a Dolby Atmos mix that sounds excellent. There are some nice moments with the overhead speakers of thunder and echoes. There is a lot of creepy tones and movement all over the place. The larger movements and things like rain immerse the viewer. Effects make the jump scares work better. The LFEs are strong but still subtle. The dialogue is privatized well.
SUPPLEMENTS & PACKAGING
-The Myth of La Llorona: Some of the cast and crew explain the Mexican folklore of La Llorona.-Behind the Curse: This sort of branches off from the previous extras with the cast explaining the curse and how this film is a long time coming.
-The Making of a Movie Monster: This gets into bringing the creature to life from the ground up on actress Marisol Ramirez.
-Deleted Scenes
-Storyboards
Disc Details
2-Disc Set w/ 1 Blu-ray and 1 DVD
Digital copy
Running Time
93 mins
Edition Ratings
Rated R
Region Coding
Region Free
Video Resolution
1080p AVC MPEG-4
Aspect ratio: 2.40:1
Audio Mixes
English Dolby Atmos
English Dolby TrueHD 7.1
English Dolby Digital 5.1
French (Canada) Dolby Digital 5.1
Spanish Dolby Digital 5.1
Portuguese Dolby Digital 5.1
Subtitles
English SDH
French
Portuguese
Spanish
