Veneno para las hadas (1984)

Director:

Carlos Enrique Taboada

Writers:

Carlos Enrique Taboada (story)
Carlos Enrique Taboada (screenplay)

Genre:

Fantasy | Horror | Mystery

Plot:

Mexico City circa 1965: Fabiola is an aristocratic little girl, who is very lonely and bored. At school...

Plot Keywords:

Witch | Nightmare | Supernatural | Occult | Poison

Awards:

5 wins & 5 nominations

Cast

Ana Patricia Rojo	...	Verónica
Elsa María Gutiérrez	...	Flavia (as Elsa María)
Leonor Llausás	...	La Bruja (as Leonor Llauzas)
Carmen Stein	...	Nana (as Carmela Stein)
María Santander	...	Miss Aragón
Ernesto Schwartz
Rocío Lazcano
Blanca Lidia Muñoz		(as Blanca Lydia Muñoz)
Sergio Bustamante	...	(voice)
Lilia Aragón	...	(voice)
Hilda Pérez Carbajal	...	(voice)
Marcela Páez	...	(voice)
Araceli de León	...	(voice)
Patricia Acevedo	...	(voice)

Also Known As:

Poison for the Fairies (literal English title)
The Evil Fairies (USA) (video title)

Runtime:

USA:90 min | Mexico:90 min

Country:

Mexico

Language:

Spanish

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Filming Locations:

Colonia Condesa, Mexico City, Distrito Federal, Mexico

Company:

Instituto Mexicano de Cinematografía (IMCINE)

Movie Connections:

References The Bad Seed (1956)

Kids are not scary

Two little girls strike a friendship. One tries to convince the other she's a witch. The other is a pushover who bends to the would be witch's will. On and on the movie drags with the pointless interaction between the two little girls, with many a dramatic cut away as they pose "shocking" questions. You know, the kind sweet little children shouldn't ask, such as, "How do you make a deal with the devil"? Oooh... creepy.

In the end, the pushover is sick of being controlled by her witchy friend. Her belief that her friend is a witch leads to a tragic end. But by the time it comes, you won't care in the least.

I can imagine this film may have been frightening to a very religious 1960s Mexican moviegoer, but it doesn't even hold up as a charming relic. It merely drags on. It is boring. It is pointless. It is not to be watched.

There are many here who have a lot of good things to say about it, based on their knowledge of the director's other works and, of course, that common denominator everyone says about pointless films: "Ah, the cinematography is wonderful!" Those reviewers probably have a point. But for the ones who found this movie with no prior knowledge, who don't care about its "photography," its "atmosphere" or its...whatever else it has -- for these viewers, then, who just want a *good* movie that will entertain them for an hour and a half, do yourselves a favour, folks:

Skip it.