SILENCIO

SILENCIO

A feast for the eyes — a miniseries about vampires

Vampires don’t have it easy either. Do they represent a minority? Yes. Are they often misunderstood? Absolutely. Have they had to deal with prejudice? Since the dawn of time. The heroines of “The Silence,” bloodsuckers in ruffs and in crisis, first appear to us in the depths of the Middle Ages, when the Black Death ravages Europe. Human blood is undrinkable, one of the sisters is torn by romantic dilemmas, and the whole vampiric clan is still trying to solve humanity’s greatest problems. At least theoretically, through endless conversations. Centuries pass, but the dilemmas remain the same. People still don’t know how to be happy, though they keep chasing happiness, and new plagues keep falling upon the world.

“The Silence” is a visually exquisite miniseries that dazzles with the beauty of its cinematography, production design, and make-up, but makes an even greater impression as a biting satire. This story of jaded vampires is wickedly funny, and their alienation brilliantly reflects the growing confusion of the planet’s inhabitants. There’s a musical scene that mixes gothic ’80s disco with horror, there’s cannibalism, grotesque gore, and plenty of dark humor. All of it in the unmistakable style of Eduardo Casanova, whose “Piety” and “Skins” we proudly showcased at earlier editions of our festival. Casanova creates films that are vulgarly beautiful and shockingly delicious, operating on an aesthetic level from another galaxy. “The Silence” is yet more proof that he’s a filmmaker worth watching closely.

The series premiered this year at the 78th Locarno Film Festival. In the leading roles: Leticia Dolera, known from the “Rec” series, Ana Polvorosa (who had already worked with Casanova on his earlier, equally excellent “Skins”), and María León, also seen in “Close Your Eyes.”