Supernatural fantasies aren’t going to die anytime soon, and the Spanish Netflix movie holly blood, released on September 7, 2022, pokes fun at the genre’s reduction to a stereotypical attraction to pale vampires when it comes to teenagers. The film was directed by Jesús Font and introduces us to a fun-loving cast that includes Isa Montalbán, Oscar Casas, Jordi Sánchez, Piero Méndez, Carlos Suárez and more.
Its official Netflix synopsis reads:
“New to his school and desperate to win the affections of his crush, shy teen Javi poses as a vampire, unaware that a true immortal lurks in the background.”
-Hollyblood review contains minor spoilers-
holly blood it fuses many genres together, further spoofing the spoof it hopes to be. Most tropes don’t work when viewed individually. However, that is what makes it an almost interesting watch. It doesn’t subvert any barriers or act as a breakthrough in the genre, it’s just there as one of the latest additions to Netflix’s catalogue.
Despite that, you want to finish the movie only to find out how ridiculous it becomes. One of the similar English parodies of the Twilight Serie, vampires suck, has already attempted to change the narrative around ostensibly attractive bloodsucking creatures. Hollyblood also exists in the same category. All the lore surrounding vampires, which has now become stereotypes, comes along with parody: garlic acts as a repellant, holy water is the only sound weapon against them, a wooden stake through the heart as the last resource etc.
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We have the ‘nerdy’ vampire slayer, the charming delusional damsel in distress who aspires to become a vampire; the main guy with a hero complex who just wants his crush to love him (even if that requires cheating on her); best friend forever; the mysterious vampire; a gang of would-be thugs and of course the big bad that started it all, hiding in plain sight. It gives you all the archetypal characters that the original supernatural genre painfully develops into its counterparts. Coincidentally, a movie within a movie mirrors the actual plot of the movie, as in both cases there are three guys chasing the same girl.
The film’s comedic subplot is about the most anticipated fantasy release of holly blood, the premiere of which is packed with teenagers, especially girls who expect to see the actors shirtless on screen. Diego, our vampire hunter, also attends the premiere, searching for the infamous vampire legend Azrael, and in the process, also debunking the alluring allure of vampires. “Vampires are murderous beasts…. Vampires are dead, which means you’re into necrophilia…they’re hundreds of years old, so technically you’re in love with old men,” says Diego’s brief and revealing speech, but again the young women are taken. for “the romantic holly blood sh*t”, so his only conclusion is that necrophilia is “stamp collecting”.
The ongoing joke woven into the film’s presentation is that it really tries to establish the dark and mysterious aura around the story with the help of the soundtrack that plays during its 1hr 28min runtime. The color palette maintained throughout the film’s direction corresponds to that of a quintessential teen movie.
Netflix Hollyblood: Is it worth watching?
By being as simple as possible, the film helps you to let out a giggle here and there, making it nothing more than a one-of-a-kind watch. It will help you pass the time when you have nothing else to do and are mindlessly scrolling through the various OTT platforms. Since it’s a parody, it reaches a slightly entertaining level in terms of ranking, but it sure isn’t something one would recommend to a friend.
If you did, in fact, come across this movie, then chances are you’ve come across it yourself. Even the official synopsis doesn’t necessarily grab your attention, as it lays down an unoriginal path. However, certain elements support the comic version of vampires, one of them being the movie within a cinematic trope. If nothing else helps you recognize that the film is a parody, then young people sitting in the theater, watching the fictional alter ego of holly blood I hope I testify for the same.
holly blood now streaming on Netflix with English and other subtitles. Dubbed versions of the film are also available on the platform.
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