''Geometria'' is a 1987 short

fantasy Fantasy is a genre of speculative fiction involving magical elements, typically set in a fictional universe and sometimes inspired by mythology and folklore. Its roots are in oral traditions, which then became fantasy literature and d ...

horror

comedy Comedy is a genre of fiction that consists of discourses or works intended to be humorous or amusing by inducing laughter, especially in theatre, film, stand-up comedy, television, radio, books, or any other entertainment medium. The term o ...

film written and directed by Guillermo del Toro. It is based loosely on

Fredric Brown Fredric Brown (October 29, 1906 – March 11, 1972) was an American science fiction, fantasy, and mystery writer.D. J. McReynolds, "The Short Fiction of Fredric Brown" in Frank N. Magill, (ed.) ''Survey of Science Fiction Literature'', Vol. 4 ...

's short story "Naturally", which was originally published in '' Beyond Fantasy Fiction'' and later reprinted in the short story collection '' Honeymoon in Hell''. ''Geometria'' was shot in Guadalajara, Jalisco in

Mexico Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guatema ...

. It is the tenth short film del Toro directed, though all but 1985's '' Doña Lupe'' remain unreleased. Del Toro was not satisfied with the original cut of the film, and said that he was not able to finish it the way he wanted to at the time. A director's cut of the film, slightly shorter than the 1987 cut, with a new music score composed by

Christopher Drake Christopher Drake is an American film, television and video game composer. Drake was selected by director Guillermo del Toro to provide the music for the first two 75-minute animated films, '' Hellboy: Sword of Storms'' and '' Hellboy: Blood an ...

was included on

The Criterion Collection The Criterion Collection, Inc. (or simply Criterion) is an American home video, home-video distribution company that focuses on licensing, restoring and distributing "important classic and contemporary films." Criterion serves film and media scho ...

's 2010 release of del Toro's 1993 feature film debut, '' Cronos''. In the film, a high school student has repeatedly failed his

geometry Geometry (; ) is, with arithmetic, one of the oldest branches of mathematics. It is concerned with properties of space such as the distance, shape, size, and relative position of figures. A mathematician who works in the field of geometry is ...

exams. He summons a demon to fulfill his wishes, in hopes of both passing the exams and of resurrecting his father. The demon twists the meaning of his wishes to inflict horror on the student. He then explains that the student's poor understanding of geometry has doomed him. Instead of drawing a protective pentagon (as per instructions), the student had drawn a

hexagon In geometry, a hexagon (from Greek , , meaning "six", and , , meaning "corner, angle") is a six-sided polygon. The total of the internal angles of any simple (non-self-intersecting) hexagon is 720°. Regular hexagon A '' regular hexagon'' has ...

. Which is useless for protecting him.

Plot

A Mexican widow (Guadalupe del Toro) receives a letter from the

high school A secondary school describes an institution that provides secondary education and also usually includes the building where this takes place. Some secondary schools provide both '' lower secondary education'' (ages 11 to 14) and ''upper seconda ...

attended by her son (Fernando Garcia Marin). It informs her that the boy is about to fail his

exams for the third time. The woman berates her son, then turns on the television, refusing to speak to him. The boy leaves the room, vowing that he will never fail geometry again. The boy resorts to using

black magic Black magic, also known as dark magic, has traditionally referred to the use of supernatural powers or magic for evil and selfish purposes, specifically the seven magical arts prohibited by canon law, as expounded by Johannes Hartlieb in 14 ...

in order to pass the exam. In a dark room, he reads from a tome of sorcery, which states, "As a protection for the invocation of a major demon, place yourself inside a pentagon drawn with your own blood. This pentagon will be your only protection." The boy proceeds to follow these instructions. While the woman sits in the living room, watching a pastiche of ''

The Exorcist ''The Exorcist'' is a 1973 American supernatural horror film directed by William Friedkin and written for the screen by William Peter Blatty, based on his 1971 novel of the same name. It stars Ellen Burstyn, Max von Sydow, Lee J. Cobb, Kitty ...

'', she hears her son screaming from the next room. When she enters, she finds him standing in the middle of the bloody seal. He shouts a warning, telling her that the pentagon is his only protection. A glowing portal opens in the wall, and a demon (Rodrigo Mora) steps through. The boy asks the demon to grant two wishes. The first is that he will not fail geometry again. The second is the return of his father, Francisco, who died in an accident three months ago. The demon complies with the latter, causing Francisco to materialise immediately. However, he is now a mindless

zombie A zombie ( Haitian French: , ht, zonbi) is a mythological undead corporeal revenant created through the reanimation of a corpse. Zombies are most commonly found in horror and fantasy genre works. The term comes from Haitian folklore, in w ...

. Francisco kills and eats his wife, while their son looks on in horror, unable to step out of the pentagon for fear of losing its magical protection. The demon commands the boy to surrender, but he refuses to give in, saying that he cannot be harmed while he stands within the pentagon. The demon reasons that he has already granted one of the boy's two wishes: his family is together again. He also points out that what the boy has drawn is not a pentagon, but a

, which offers no magical protection whatsoever. The demon muses that the boy's other wish has also been granted: he will never fail geometry again. Francisco approaches his son from behind and takes hold of his head, tilting it backwards. The boy laments the unfairness of his situation. The demon agrees, and reaches out a hand to take hold of his throat. The screen fades to black as ripping sounds are heard.

Reception

''Bloody Disgusting'' said, "''Geometria'' makes for an inspiring short from a filmmaking standpoint, as well as a humorous piece of gruesome horror for the casual fan."

References

External links

''Geometria'' (original cut) on YouTube

''Geometria'' (director's cut) on YouTube

''Geometria'' on IMDb
{{Fredric Brown 1987 comedy horror films 1987 short films 1980s dark fantasy films 1980s supernatural horror films 1980s high school films Mexican short films Mexican supernatural horror films Supernatural comedy films Supernatural fantasy films Demons in film Films set in Mexico Films shot in Mexico Films based on short fiction Films directed by Guillermo del Toro Films with screenplays by Guillermo del Toro 1980s Spanish-language films Films produced by Guillermo del Toro 1987 films 1980s Mexican films Films about widowhood Films about mother–son relationships Films about magic Films about wish fulfillment Zombie comedy films Resurrection in film Fiction about uxoricide Films about mathematics