Director: Gonzalo Calzada

Cast: Sofía Del Tuffo, Marta Lubos, Pedro Merlo

Production Company: Buffalo Films

Runtime: 114 minutes

Some drugs are used to improve your health, while others are simply toxic to your system. That might seem pretty obvious, but can narcotics also be used to soothe a tortured soul? Luciferina (2018) warns us that a hallucinogen today may not keep the demons away…

In the movie, Natalia (Sofía Del Tuffo) returns home after the sudden death of her mother. Natalia’s sister and her friends have decided to go searching for a esoteric plant. She joins them on their journey, not anticipating the darkness she will soon encounter.

Examples of religious and sexual symbolism are prevalent throughout the movie. The two are boldly entwined here, like they were meant to be together from the very beginning of time. These meaningful images turn up in dreams, paintings, and even jewelry…

Luciferina is loaded with truly frightening moments. In fact, the scares often build upon each other, until they reach a shocking crescendo. I must admit that I jumped a few times, despite the fact that I’m a real veteran of these kind of movies!

The terror blossoms from a variety of independent sources. There are supernatural events that are pretty creepy all on their own, but they are supported by the reality of abusive relationships and the possible side effects of powerful stimulants.

Drugs are used to reach another level of existence, or to reveal a hidden world in this film. In that way, it is very much like Ken Russell’s Altered States (1980). The more demonic events also reminded me of The Evil Dead (1981) and even The Ring (2002) for a moment or two.

This movie provides an extremely fresh take on the concept of possession and exorcism. Not such an easy thing to do in such a well-established genre. Calzada must be a fan of Ken Russell, since he also includes themes reminiscent of The Devils (1971).

Luciferina will definitely fuel your imagination. Should you believe what you see, or will it turn out to be no more than an illusion? In the end, you’ll have to decide for yourself. Is Lucifer a living entity, or does he just represent the worst in all of us?

BLU-RAY INFORMATION:

Luciferina has received a high definition release from Artsploitation Films. The movie is unrated and presented in Spanish. The English subtitles are easy to read and there’s also an SDH option. The film’s trailer is also included on the disc.

– John Migliore

For more information on the film, check out the links below…

Official Trailer

IMDb Page

Official Site

Luciferina on Amazon