Tuno negro (2001)

User Rating:

4.8/10   

Directors:

Pedro L. Barbero
Vicente J. Martín

Writers:

Pedro L. Barbero (writer)
Vicente J. Martín (writer)

Release Date:

20 July 2001 (Spain)

Genre:

Drama | Horror | Thriller

Tagline:

La ignorancia mata.

Plot:

Students of the university of Salamanca are brutally murdered by a black masked minstrel. Alex, an architecture...

Plot Keywords:

Blood | Splatter | Female Nudity | Fight | Gore

Awards:

1 nomination

Cast

Silke	...	Alejandra 'Álex' Alonso
Jorge Sanz	...	Eduardo 'Edu'
Fele Martínez	...	Víctor
Patxi Freytez	...	Trucha
Enrique Villén	...	Teo
Rebecca Cobos	...	Michelle (as Rebeca Cobos)
Sergio Pazos	...	Alacrán
Javier Veiga	...	Marcial
Benjamín Seva	...	Insulino (as Benjamín Seba)
Eusebio Poncela	...	Don Justo
Maribel Verdú	...	Arancha
Carla Hidalgo	...	María
Paca Gabaldón	...	Profesora de Criminología
Mario Martín	...	Rector
Estrella Zapatero	...	Seven Eleven

Also Known As:

Black Serenade (USA) (video title)

MPAA:

Rated R for strong sexuality, violence, language and some drug content.

Runtime:

110 min | Spain:98 min (original running time)

Country:

Spain

Language:

Spanish

Colour:

Colour (Eastmancolor)

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Certification:

Germany:18 | Spain:18 | USA:R

Filming Locations:

Alcalá de Henares, Madrid, Spain

Company:

Lolafilms

Trivia:

When they try to save the girl, she passes in front of a cinema which is showing La niña de tus ojos (1998), a film starring 'Jorge Sanz (I)'.

Movie Connections:

References La niña de tus ojos (1998)

Soundtrack:

Sigo sin Dormir

Very decent Spanish slasher movie/giallo

This is an interesting movie. On one hand it is kind of slick Hollywood-style slasher movie involving an ultra-modern killer who stalks his prey in internet chat rooms and posts his murders on the internet. On the other hand it is enjoyably atmospheric and highly stylized, resembling the much more interesting (to my mind) early 80's slasher movies or the Italian gialli(many of which, people tend to forget, were Spanish co-productions). It has a great setting--the University of Salamanca, one of the oldest and most storied universities in the world. The high-tech slasher operates against this almost medieval background. He calls himself the "Dark Minstrel", connecting himself to a legendary (albeit fictional) group of poor student minstrels who took it upon themselves in earlier times to weed out the most undeserving upper-class underachievers. Like his brethren, the dark minstrel targets students who cheat or have bad grades--his motto: "la ignorancia mata" (ignorance kills).

The plot of this movie is actually pretty good, and those who claim it doesn't hold together really need to watch it again. The revelation of the killer is pretty surprising and is NOT a cheat if you are paying close attention. It's definitely as violent as your average giallo or slasher movie. The victims look pretty long-in-the-tooth to be college students, especially the most recognizable actress, Maribel Verdu (of "Y tu Mama Tambien" fame), but they are no less likable or any more stereotypical than your average slasher movie cast. The lead is a smoking hot German actress, who goes only by the name of "Silke". She's pretty decent and has a nice nude scene, something that is usually missing in most modern-day Hollywood movies (that may sound like a sexist thing for me to say, but the day they start casting remotely average-looking women in these things, based on their acting talent rather than their physical attributes, I'll stop complaining when they don't take their clothes off).

This is pretty decent movie overall, and I'd recommend it to anybody, but especially giallo and slasher movie fans.