More ghosts ‘n ghoulies in this average flick based on an average indepedent comic book made by a bunch of independent creatives. Hey, hold on a second. If a small town comic like this can make a feature, why isn’t Judge Dredd getting another? Can’t Transmetropolitan break into cinema? And shouldn’t Crossed ever get the big screen, is raping someone while tearing their face off in the midst of the apocalypse that taboo?… wait, don’t answer that.
Penny Palabras is about, well, Penny Palabras, their ventures of the supernatural, and her alarming ability to communicate with individuals inhabiting other dimensions. Some forces are benign, others are crazy, but the worst is surely the dark and menacing Straw Man, and their whisperings of torment and hardship upon the pressured student teen, leaving to Penny find herself reaching for extreme solutions as her misery expands.
There isn’t much of a decent introduction or explanation and without reading the comic book, it’s tough to reliably gauge what is going on because the film lurches in movements that leaves you with the feeling you should have read something before watching. No narrative or lowdown is offered despite its obvious absence. Even though there’s this missing link, there’s a hint of general watchability, although it’s really very poor and stretched due to the badly arranged production and plotline.
It’s a nice idea at first. The characters themselves seem alright – and they’re definitely designed well. Along with the adolescent stereotypes, and struggling with the relationship with her and her mother, Penny interestingly finds herself speaking to the dead better than the living. The directives are pretty good at times too, especially the decision to keep the style black and white, which enables scenes to fulfill this sense of strange intimacy.
What doesn’t work is the woefully amateur acting which crashes so hard thanks to the cameras and productive decisions, and the incredibly tacky soundtrack that destroys the emotion and authenticity of each scene. Clearly there’s an ambition to connect with the undead in an advanced way, and that’s certainly admirable, but the cheap instrumentation and two-bit design coupled with the poorly framed settings could have demanded serious editing and second thoughts.
And it doesn’t help that the movie just plain sucks. Even with its heart in the right place, it’s tediously difficult to plow though and just seems too comic book-inspired for a serious release. Save yourself some time and give Donnie Darko another watch.
3/10
Possession Media 