México Bárbaro II – Unearthed Films (Blu-ray)

Theatrical Release Date: Mexico, 2017
Directors: Diego Cohen (segment Paidós Phobos), Christian Cueva, Ricardo Farias (segment Bolas De Fuego), Michelle Garza Cervera (segment Vitriol), Carlos Meléndez (segment Ya Es Hora), Lex Ortega (segment Exodoncia), Abraham Sánchez (segment La Leyenda De Juan Soldado), Sergio Tello (segment No Te Duermas), Fernando Urdapilleta (segment Potzonalli)
Cast: Francisco Barreiro, Humberto Busto, Laura de Ita, Emilio Guerrero, Pedro Joaquín, Aline Marrero, Fermín Martínez, Ramón Medína, Hoze Meléndez, Martha Claudia Moreno, Lex Ortega, Giancarlo Ruiz, Florencia Ríos, Pilar Santacruz

Release Date: January 16th, 2024
Approximate Running Time: 87 Minutes 6 Seconds
Aspect Ratio: 1.78:1 Widescreen / 1080 Progressive / MPEG-4 AVC (All Segments Except La Leyenda De Juan Soldado), 2.35:1 Widescreen / 1080 Progressive / MPEG-4 AVC (La Leyenda De Juan Soldado)
Rating: NR
Sound: DTS-HD 5.1 Spanish, LPCM Stereo Spanish
Subtitles: English
Region Coding: Region A
Retail Price: $34.95

"In this new horror anthology, 9 Mexican directors come together to narrate more traditions and brutal, ruthless and bizarre legends of their country. Mexico Barbaro shows the world the parts of their popular culture, from sweet stories told by their grandmothers, to the dark and disturbing ancestral culinary bloody rites. Traditions and legends that today continue to cause terror among Mexican people." - synopsis provided by the distributor

Video: 4.25/5

México Bárbaro II comes on a 50 GB dual layer Blu-ray.

Disc Size: 27.5 GB

Feature: 23.1 GB

There is no information provided about this transfer source. That said, when you have eight segments shot under different conditions and using different equipment, there are bound to be some differences in quality between these segments. Colors are nicely saturated, image clarity and black levels are solid, and compression is very good.

Audio: 4.25/5 (DTS-HD 5.1 Spanish, LPCM Stereo Spanish)

This release comes with two audio options, a DTS-HD 5.1 mix in Spanish and a LPCM stereo mix in Spanish. You can’t go wrong with either of these audio tracks; they both sound great. Dialog comes through clearly, everything sounds balanced, ambient sounds are well-presented, and both of these tracks sound robust when they should. Included are removable English subtitles.

Extras:

Extras for this release include a stills gallery, a theatrical trailer (1 minute 53 seconds, LPCM stereo Spanish with non-removable English subtitles), Exodoncia featurette (2 minutes 31 seconds, LPCM stereo with music from the film playing in the background), No Te Duermas featurette (3 minutes 32 seconds, LPCM stereo with music from the film playing in the background), Vitriol featurette and stills gallery (36 seconds, LPCM stereo Spanish, no subtitles), Bolas de Fuego featurette (7 minutes 59 seconds, LPCM stereo Spanish with removable English subtitles), and La Leyenda De Juan Soldado featurette (9 minutes 12 seconds, LPCM stereo Spanish with non-removable English subtitles).

Summary:

An anthology format with multiple filmmakers can make for an interesting viewing experience. And though anthology films are usually confined within a genre or share similar themes, there are always exceptions to this rule, like México Bárbaro II, a film whose eight segments could not be further apart. Despite being set in the realm of horror, there is a tonal difference in that some instances veer into the realm of absurd humor.

The opening segment, titled La Leyenda de Juan Soldado, revolves around a wrongly accused man, a soldier, who makes an unholy deal to get his revenge against those who murdered him. The next segment, titled Paidós Phobos, revolves around a woman who is consumed by a phobia, and she has something inside a room that holds the key to her phobia. The next segment, titled Potzonalli, revolves around an abusive, sadistic patriarch and his family, who finally give him his just due. The next segment, titled Bolas de Fuego, revolves around two friends who watch a porno movie in which ecstasy and death become interchangeable. The next segment, titled Vitriol, revolves around a lonely woman obsessed with her looks who takes makeovers to the extreme. The next segment, titled No Te Duermas, revolves around a young boy whose bedtime ritual unleashes something unholy. The next segment, titled Ya Es Hora, revolves around two girls who perform an occult ritual against a group of mean girls. The final segment, titled Exodoncia, revolves around a demented woman who is consumed by drug addiction.

Being that there are eight segments, directed by nine filmmakers, it is safe to say that there is not going to be any unity when it comes to performances and the look of each segment. Fortunately, when it comes to these two elements, most of these segments come out ahead, and in general, these segments are well executed from a production standpoint. The only segments that I was disappointed by were Bolas de Fuego and Vitriol. In the case of the latter, it suffers from too many poorly executed CGI effects, while the latter does not have a strong narrative or resolution. The best segments are de Juan Soldado, Potzonalli, and Exodoncia.

That said, though these segments have dark humor, symbolism, and social commentary, they are unfortunately lacking in one area; most of them are scary. Also, when it comes to short films or segments, you only have a small window of time to tell what you want to tell, and fortunately, the brevity of these segments works in their favor.

México Bárbaro II gets a solid release from Unearthed Films.

Written by Michael Den Boer