When Juan Carlos Fresnadillo burst onto the scene with his Spanish-language feature “Intacto” in 2001, many took notice, including director Danny Boyle who would pass the torch of the undead along to the young helmer for the second installment of the “28 Days Later” franchise. Paying respects to Boyle’s work, while also acting as a perfectly capable standalone film, 2007’s “28 Weeks Later” surpassed many audience’s expectations. With so much momentum in his career, it was odd to watch the hype surrounding Fresnadillo dissipate, and that was certainly not helped by Bradley Cooper-starring remake of “The Crow” stalling before it ever really got off the ground.
But never fear, Fresnadillo is back with “Intruders,” starring Clive Owen, Carice Van Houten, and Daniel Bruhl in what is seemingly an update of the boogeyman mythos. With a script by Nicolás Casariego and Jaime Marques, “Intruders” chronicles two children divided geographically that are both experiencing supernatural visits from Hollow Face, a faceless man at night who takes possession of them. We’ve seen a few trailers for the film already, and this latest one provides more of the same, while emphasizing that the film seems to be more atmosphere than cheap shocks. We’re certainly down with that.
The picture will be bowing at the upcoming SXSW Film Festival, before quickly moving into theaters on March 30th, which means Fresnadillo could be put back on the map once again. While some of the films imagery appears to be a little too reminiscent of the J-Horror remakes of yesteryear, we’re hoping Fresnadillo pulls a treat out of his bag of ghoulish tricks, instead of going on to helm that Neal Moritz-produced “Highlander” remake we don’t need.
