“We Are What We Are” is American remake of the Mexican film
of the same name. This is a great remake where there are enough moments and
parts of the original storyline in while having plenty changes to make this
film unique and enjoyable. The first and foremost change between the two films
is the fact that the gender of the family members is swapped, so where the
father died in the original, the mother dies in the remake. This is a clever
change that I’ve never seen before and it works out beautifully. The second
most noticeable change is where the two stories take place; in the original the
family lives in a poor section of Mexico City and in the remake, the family
lives out in a rural town with a declining population. With those two factors
in place and various cultural differences, the two movies are able to follow a
similar story about a family of cannibals and how they try to carry one with
their lifestyle after the family loses their “bread winner”. The remake earns
bonus points because it addresses why the family has resorted to cannibalism, whereas
the original never did.
The Parkers are a polite but reclusive clan who suddenly
lose their matriarch, leaving behind her husband Frank, daughters Iris and
Rose, and young son Rory. The timing couldn’t be worse for the clan because an
important family ritual is only days away. Iris, as the oldest daughter, is now
responsible for performing the ritual. Rose, on the other hand, is disgusted by
the family’s history and wants nothing to do with it. The annual ritual turns
out to be murder and consumption of a person that they’ve kidnapped and locked
away in a cave like cellar under Frank’s work shed. The town’s doctor, Doc Barrow,
becomes suspicious when he finds a bone in the creek one day. Having lost his
own daughter after she mysteriously disappeared and the town’s high missing
persons rate, Doc Barrow and Deputy Anders begin to follow the clues that lead
back to the Parkers. How the family
reacts and responds is both thrilling and unsettling.
Favorite moment – The first act moves along nicely while the
second act slows down a bit too much. I love the intensity and suspense that
drives the third act to its thrilling conclusion.
Rose...
Rose and Iris
Dinner time for Rose, Frank, and Iris
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