My local arthouse cinema has a one-off screening of this promising low-budget Spanish SF thriller from director Nacho Vigalondo this Sunday, but I can't make it - just wondered if anyone here had managed to see this yet?

From the Cornerhouse cinema blurb:

The feature début of the director of Oscar-nominated short 7.35 en la mañana (showing in ¡Viva! 2008 Kimuak shorts programme) is a mind-bending, time-warping sci-fi thriller that has already been bought by United Artists for a US remake.

Set in Cantabria, it follows the apparently normal, mundane activities of Hector (Elejalde) whose chance sighting of a naked girl in the forest outside his home leads him on a tense and at times terrifying journey through time. Who is the man in the pink bandage? CRONOCRIMENES mixes sci-fi and old-school horror with a mystery which keeps twisting in on itself to create an entirely refreshing new genre film.

Checking dvdgo.com reveals no Spanish DVD release for this as yet...

TIMECRIMES was the big hit of Fantastic Fest 2007, where it also won top honors. It's smart stuff and a lot of fun, but I think the less you know about it going in, the better, so I won't go into details.

Magnolia has it for the U.S. (it hasn't opened in Spain yet, so a Spanish DVD is a ways off) and it will be hitting many festivals throughout the year. Definitely check it out if it comes to your town.

I saw it at Fantastic Fest too. It's kinda a throw-back to 70's sci-fi; a thinking person's science fiction movie. It's not frantic, no big action set pieces, just a thoughtful, intricate plot that pays off if you pay attention. By all means see it when you have an opportunity.

A lot of times, films done tightly constructed become too tedious for me. I marvel at their technical precision to pull of a high concept plot. Luckily Timecrimes has been a film that even after the 4th viewing hasn't grown old on me. If anything I like this film more each time I've seen it. Luckily I think the film tries to be a thinking cinephiles and sci-fi readers type of film, versus a watered down mainstream affair, which makes it rewarding despite what obviously was a very tight budget. The pulsating score is also a plus and really compliments each scene (samples here).

I'll be posting interviews with Nacho and Karra Elejalde (Hector) up on Twitch towards the end of this month before the film screens at AFI Dallas.

Timecrimes will also be screening at this years Wisconsin Film Festival.

Wow, pretty enthusiastic feedback. I've just found out that the film does seem to be showing also next Monday evening, so I'll make the effort to track this one down. Ages since I saw a good SF story on the big screen, and this looks just the ticket.