Intruders (2011)

Two children living in different countries are visited nightly by a faceless being who wants to take possession of them.

Director:

Juan Carlos Fresnadillo

Writers:

Nicolás Casariego (screenplay), Jaime Marques (screenplay)

Stars:

Clive Owen, Carice van Houten, Izán Corchero

1 win & 5 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Clive Owen	...	John Farrow
Carice van Houten	...	Susanna
Daniel Brühl	...	Father Antonio
Pilar López de Ayala	...	Luisa
Ella Purnell	...	Mia
Izán Corchero	...	Juan
Kerry Fox	...	Rachel
Héctor Alterio	...	Old Priest
Adrian Rawlins	...	Police Inspector
Michael Nardone	...	Frank
Mark Wingett	...	Dave
Peter McNeil O'Connor	...	David Warlton
Mary Woodvine	...	Teacher
Lolita Chakrabarti	...	ER Doctor
Ralph Ineson	...	Alarm Installer

Storyline

In Madrid, the boy Juan is terrified by the monster Hollowface and his mother is unable to protect him so summons Father Antonio to exorcise the monster from their lives. In London, the construction worker John Farrow is very close to his teenage daughter Mia. One day, Mia is spending the day at her grandparents' house in the countryside with her mother Susanna and she finds a box with the story of Hollowface hidden in a tree. Soon Mia sees the monster Hollowface in the closet of her bedroom and John defends her. When they are attacked for the second time, the security camera that John has installed does not show any intruder. Are Mia and John delusional?

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Plot Keywords:

supernatural horror | one word title | breasts | climbing a tree | flashlight | 

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Taglines:

The Nightmare is Real.

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Genres:

Action | Adventure | Fantasy | Horror | Thriller

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for terror, horror violence, some sexuality/nudity and language

Did You Know?

Trivia

During Mia's birthday, when everybody sings 'Happy Birthday To You', Susanna (Carice van Houten) yells "Hieperdepiep! Hurray", which means "hip hip" in her native language, Dutch.

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Goofs

No smoke is visible when Susanna extinguishes the fire from the "nightmare doll" her husband and her daughter were burning.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Juan: The shadow monster woke up. It saw the boy in the pot and said:
Juan: [making his voice gruff] "Mmmm. I'm starving. I'm going to eat you up."
Juan: So the monster opened his mouth wide and swallowed the little tailor whole. The boy fell and fell into a dark cave filed with slime...
Luisa: Is that it?
Juan: That's all I could come up with.
Luisa: Well, you'll think of something tomorrow. Let's go to bed.

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Connections

Featured in Projector: Intruders (2012)

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Soundtracks

Painted Up Doll
Written and performed by Ella Hunt

User Reviews

Hollow Face - Big Heart?

Two children, one in Spain, the other in England, are experiencing terrifying visits by the same demon who wants to possess them. The only viable link is that both children are writing a story...

A joint Spanish/English language production, Intruders is the sort of frustrating picture that has big and bold ideas on the page, but sadly on the screen in unfolds laboriously as it bites off more than it can chew. It came as no surprise to myself to find that upon opening internet sites frequented by horror fans, Intruders has greatly disappointed them. It's rarely frightening, sags desperately in the middle section, the pay off is weak, and ultimately it only skirts the boundaries of being a "horror" film.

So, the lack of shocks and suspense in bona fide horror terms needs to be tempered with genre expectation levels, this is more a family drama with fantastical horror elements lurking around the edges of the frame. This of course doesn't help anyone, like myself, who has bought into plot synopsis and the marketing strategy that accompanied the picture, but if able to see past the faceless demon that appears occasionally and promises something else? There's a decent and honest adult film pulsing away here.

Clive Owen plays the troubled father of the piece and he once again, as he did in Trust, shows that given this type of material he can deliver a performance of emotional substance. He's backed up by a very strong turn from young Ella Purnell as his daughter, and with the tech credits high - most notably Roque Baños' superb musical score - there is much to enjoy here. But as thoughtful as it is, and as solid as the film makers credentials are, its reputation is unlikely to be enhanced anytime soon. 6.5/10

Details

Country:

USA UK Spain

Language:

English Spanish

Release Date:

7 October 2011 (Spain)

Also Known As:

Intruders

Filming Locations:

London, England, UK

Box Office

Budget:

EUR10,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$40,746, 1 April 2012

Gross USA:

$69,136

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$5,486,559

Company Credits

Production Co:

Antena 3 Films, Apaches Entertainment, Canal+ España

Technical Specs

Runtime:

100 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1