Irati - Age of Gods and Monsters

Paul Urkijo Alijo, the director of the fairy tale hell horror Errementari, now comes up with a dark fantasy tale that draws on Basque folklore and has the feel of fantasy films from the 1980s, and is definitely magical and unconventional. The film is set in the year 778, in a mythical and world with fantasy creatures like water sprite a a cyclops, Christians and Muslims, a lost treasure, beautiful forests and nature, engaging music, practical effects and interesting characters. A nice film to watch, but I think the potential of that world was greater, there could have been more of the creatures and it could have been more brutal and darker. The best scene is in the cave with the cyclops, which looks properly creepy, and the atmosphere there could be chopped up. The opening medieval joust with the knights is also interesting – even if it had some weird editing. I was expecting a more epic finale. It's definitely an interesting and unusual film that has its charms and is worth seeing, but I can't shake the feeling that it could have been better. 6/10. (16.05.2023)