''They Are All Dead'' () is a 2014 drama film with supernatural elements directed and written by Beatriz Sanchís which stars

Elena Anaya Elena Anaya Gutiérrez (born 17 July 1975) is a Spanish actress. She garnered public recognition in Spain for her performance in ''Sex and Lucia'' (2001), which also earned her a nomination to the Goya Award for Best Supporting Actress. She st ...

. It is an international co-production among companies from Spain, Germany and Mexico.

Plot

Set in the 1990s, it refers back to the 1980s, when Lupe, the lead character, was a rock star. In present time, Lupe suffers from

agoraphobia Agoraphobia is an anxiety disorder characterized by symptoms of anxiety in situations where the person perceives their environment to be unsafe with no way to escape. These situations can include public transit, shopping centers, crowds and q ...

. She lives secluded, only in contact with her son Pancho (a

boy scout A Scout, Boy Scout, Girl Scout or, in some countries, a Pathfinder is a participant in the Scout Movement, usually aged 10–18 years, who engage in learning scoutcraft and outdoor and other special interest activities. Some Scout organizatio ...

who hates her) and her Mexican mother Paquita. The ghost of her brother Diego breaks into her life.

Cast

Production

The film is a production by Avalon PC, Integral Film and Animal de Luz, with funding from Ibermedia and

Eurimages Eurimages is a cultural support fund of the Council of Europe, established in . Eurimages promotes independent filmmaking by providing financial support to feature-length fiction, animation, and documentary films. In doing so, it encourages co-op ...

. Shooting began on 11 February 2013. Shooting locations included

Madrid Madrid ( ; ) is the capital and List of largest cities in Spain, most populous municipality of Spain. It has almost 3.5 million inhabitants and a Madrid metropolitan area, metropolitan area population of approximately 7 million. It i ...

Release

The film was presented on 27 March 2014 at the 17th

Málaga Film Festival The Málaga Festival, formerly Málaga Spanish Film Festival (FMCE), is an annual film festival held in Málaga, Andalusia, Spain. The festival was established to promote Spanish cinema and help disseminate information about Spanish films. Since ...

. Distributed by Avalon, the film was theatrically released in Spain on 30 May 2014.

Reception

Mirito Torreiro of ''

Fotogramas ''Fotogramas'' is a Spanish digital and print film magazine which has been in circulation since 1946. It is one of the early film magazines in Spain. History Founded in Barcelona, it was first published on 15 November 1946 by Antonio Nadal-Rodó ...

'' gave the film 3 out of 5 stars, considering Elena Anaya (in a role tailor-made for her) to be the best about the film whereas he assessed that the writing needed more work. Jordi Costa of ''

El País (; ) is a Spanish-language daily newspaper in Spain. is based in the capital city of Madrid and it is owned by the Spanish media conglomerate PRISA. It is the second-most circulated daily newspaper in Spain . is the most read newspaper in ...

'' wrote that "it is not a perfect film, but it is a risky debut feature with a strong identity". Manuel Piñón of ''

Cinemanía ''Cinemanía'' is a monthly film magazine based in Madrid, Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost po ...

'' rated the film with 2½ out of 5 stars, considering that despite being an "original and bold" film, it is dragged by a forced homage to '

La movida LA most frequently refers to Los Angeles, the second most populous city in the United States of America. La, LA, or L.A. may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Music *La (musical note), or A, the sixth note *"L.A.", a song by Elliott Smit ...

', assessing that the film may have turned to be a "happy anomaly" if it employed less nostalgia and respect to the past. Reviewing for ''

Excélsior ''Excélsior'' is a daily newspaper in Mexico City. It is the second-oldest paper in the city after ''El Universal (Mexico City), El Universal'', printing its first issue on March 18, 1917. The newspaper's headquarters are located at Avenida Buc ...

'', Lucero Solórzano deemed the film to be a "a good debut by Beatriz Sanchís" and that, writing shortcomings notwithstanding, it works and is watchable. Reviewing for ''

The Hollywood Reporter ''The Hollywood Reporter'' (''THR'') is an American digital and print magazine which focuses on the Cinema of the United States, Hollywood film industry, film, television, and entertainment industries. It was founded in 1930 as a daily trade pap ...

'', Jonathan Holland considered the film to be "a challengingly offbeat but persuasively imagined “what if” bid to talk about well-worn family themes in an adventurous new way".

Accolades

, - , align = "center" rowspan = "4" , 2014 , , rowspan = "4" , 17th

, , Silver Biznaga for Best Actress , , Elena Anaya , , , , rowspan = "4" , , - , colspan = "2" , Jury's Special Award , , , - , colspan = "2" , Young Jury's Special Award , , , - , Best Original Soundtrack , , Akrobats , , , - , align = "center" rowspan = "5" , 2015 , , 20th Forqué Awards , , Best Actress , , Elena Anaya , , , , , - ,

2nd Feroz Awards The 2nd ceremony of the Feroz Awards was held at the Gran Teatro Ruedo Las Ventas in Madrid, on January 25, 2015. It was hosted by actress Bárbara Santa-Cruz and aired on Canal+ Spain. Winners and nominees The nominees were announced on Decembe ...

, , Best Actress , , Elena Anaya , , , , , - , rowspan = "2" , 29th Goya Awards , ,

Best New Director ''Best New Director'' was an award given by the New York Film Critics Circle from its first inception in 1989 until discontinuing in 1996. There was no award in 1993. 1980s 1989 *Kenneth Branagh – ''Henry V'' **Runners-up: Steve Kloves – '' ...

, , Beatriz Sanchís , , , , rowspan = "2" , , - , Best Actress , , Elena Anaya , , , - , 24th Actors and Actresses Union Awards , , Best Film Actress in a Leading Role , , Elena Anaya , , , ,

References

{{authority control 2014 films Fiction about agoraphobia Spanish drama films Mexican drama films German drama films 2010s Spanish-language films Films set in the 1990s Films shot in Madrid Avalon films 2010s German films 2010s Mexican films 2010s Spanish films