To the Limit (1997)

This Spanish-French thriller is set in Madrid where late-night radio talk-show host Elena gets a call from serial killer Javier Barea who claims he will kill within the hour. Lawyer Maria ... See full summary »

Director:

Eduardo Campoy

Writers:

Agustín Díaz Yanes, Luis Marías

Stars:

Juanjo Puigcorbé, Lydia Bosch, Béatrice Dalle

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Juanjo Puigcorbé	...	Javier
Lydia Bosch	...	María
Béatrice Dalle	...	Elena (as Beatrice Dalle)
Bud Spencer	...	Elorza
Mabel Lozano	...	Candela
José Manuel Lorenzo	...	Vadillo
Rafael Romero Marchent	...	Juez 2º
Manuel Gil	...	Secretario María
Etienne Draber	...	Roberto
Pilar Barrera	...	Actriz
Rosanna Yanni	...	Rosario
Patricia Pérez	...	Víctima
Antonio Del Olmo	...	Abogado
Alberto Cuadrado	...	Forense
Rosanna Walls	...	Puta Amiga

Storyline

This Spanish-French thriller is set in Madrid where late-night radio talk-show host Elena gets a call from serial killer Javier Barea who claims he will kill within the hour. Lawyer Maria Ramos is listening to the radio and immediately assembles an investigating team that includes Javier himself. Maria begins to suspect he's the killer, but she is simultaneously attracted to him. How long until she becomes the next victim?

---

Plot Keywords:

woman killed | serial killer | giallo | spanish giallo | violence against woman | 

---

Genres:

Thriller

---

Did You Know?

Trivia

Natalia Dicenta dubbed Béatrice Dalle in the Spanish version.

---

Soundtracks

Radar Love
Written by George Kooymans (as G. Kooymans) and Barry Hay (as B. Ray)
Performed by Golden Earring

User Reviews

Yawn..........seen it before somewhere..........yawn

Cine noir in the purest style with nothing innovative in either the story or how it is played out on the screen. Apart from being filmed in Madrid and mostly at night, there is no way of differentiating this film from any other product made in the USA. The story is as unoriginal as a stale pizza. During a late night radio programme with telephone call-ins, a sinister type announces he is about to kill a girl. Through more telephone calls leaving `clues' as to what he is going to do next, the film slithers murkily to its predictable end. It has no clout. It is rather like so many other regurgitated cinema or made for TV productions of this ilk.

Lydia Bosch hammers out her dialogues in flat toneless onslaughts and sounds as false as a $33 bill; Beatrice Dalle is somewhat better as she struggles with her tones of urgency so as to lend some kind of character and personality to the proceedings; Juanjo Puigcorbé seems so stereotyped as to not be real, and the appearance of Bud Spencer did nothing to enhance any of the other three main actors, mostly because none of them were cast for this film but miscast for this film. However, if you are a glutton for these kinds of thrillers, you will bear with it and not get very excited about anything; even the music will leave you wondering what it was trying to do.

No, if you want to see a really good Spanish thriller I suggest you try `99.9' (qv) which is far superior in all aspects.

Details

Country:

Spain

Language:

Spanish

Release Date:

19 December 1997 (Spain)

Also Known As:

To the Limit

Filming Locations:

Madrid, Spain

Company Credits

Production Co:

Creativos Asociados de Radio y Televisión (CARTEL), Enrique Cerezo Producciones Cinematográficas S.A., Smile Production

Technical Specs

Sound Mix:

Dolby SR

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1