Crime photojournalist Santiago (Harold Torres) finds himself in troubled waters in Disappear Completely. The latest film from Luis Javier Henaine tells of a week in the life of Santiago after he finds himself cursed. His affliction sees him slowly lose each of his five senses. Desperate for a cure, he turns to the darker side of faith, seeking help from the local Bruja.
When first introduced, Santiago is very similar to Jake Gyllenhaal’s Nighrcrawler character. He is not quite as amoral, but certainly views other people’s misery as his route to happiness. His ambition and desire to be the best is pushing everyone away, including his pregnant girlfriend. Once hexed, Santiago becomes even more self-obsessed, going to extreme lengths to try and rid himself of it. This is an interesting route within which to explore the story.
Told over the course of a week, Disappear Completely is careful in how it develops Santiago’s curse. His problems are slow to arrive, building up gradually. The first senses to go are smell and taste, but rather than having Covid, he’s suffering from something supernatural in origin. His lack of these senses, coupled with having come into contact with others with similar conditions, is enough for him to leave medical science behind. In doing so, he takes a further step away from his girlfriend, who is herself a medic. Scenes with the bruja are mesmerising; Henaine spends plenty of time showcasing the dance of rituals.
As the story moves forward, the pace picks up and the finale plays out in silence after he loses his hearing. This isn’t the typical movie ‘silence’ that is accompanied by score. It is complete silence. The sensory deprivation is thrust upon the viewer as it is Santiago, and it causes a lot of disorientation. As other characters arrive and start to converse with him the divide between viewer and movie is driven wider. Although unable to hear the words being spoken, those familiar with Spanish may be able to lipread and therefore be privy to more than those that don’t. It becomes a disappointing climax and one that will alienate those with little experience of the language.
A fusion of Nightcrawler with witch doctors, Disappear Completely straddles both the old and new world. The combination of these opposing outlooks creates a nice battle at the film’s core. It reflects the inner and outer turmoil that Santiago himself is experiencing. With long chunks of the film propelling neither the narrative nor the characters, Disappear Completely requires a lot of patience. For those that do invest fully, Henaine offers a poignant cautionary tale.
Disappear Completely
Summary
A film that requires patience, Disappear Completely doesn’t entirely reward the investment, but still offers a compelling story of curses of old colliding with the world of new.
Disappear Completely was reviewed at Fantastic Fest.
