Phenomena review: Is the new Spanish paranormal thriller movie worth the watch?

Phenomena is a brand new Spanish suspense thriller movie, with a brief side of comedy. The movie, which was inspired by a real-life story from 1987 involving the Hepta Group, debuted on Friday, April 14, 2023, exclusively on Netflix. Fernando Navarro and Marta Buchaca served as writers for the Spanish movie, with Carlos Therón as director.

The brief official description for Phenomena, released by Netflix, is as follows:

"Three middle-aged women who investigate paranormal events are put to the test when their leader Father Pilón disappears. Inspired by the real Hepta Group."

Phenomena depicted a series of high-pitched dramas and astounding paranormal activities. Despite the movie's disjointed story-telling and inconsistent pace, it provided the audience with a fascinating viewing experience. Thus, the movie is definitely worth a shot.

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A review of Phenomena on Netflix: An intriguing story presented in a dramatic and entertaining manner

A refreshing story that showcased the harm caused by both paranormal and human activities

Netflix's Phenomena dealt with some pretty astounding paranormal activities at an antique store, causing havoc in the lives of a team of four paranormal experts, including Father Pilón, Gloria, Sagrario and Paz.

However, what is interesting is that the movie also showcased how human beings are as evil as paranormal entities. For instance, in the movie, the caretaker of an antique store is shown physically harming and abusing her own daughter. Thus, the story depicts the evil sides of both the supernatural and the human world.

The writers did a decent job of chronicling the intriguing story and layering out the events one by one to provide viewers with a fascinating journey. The personal complexities between the lead characters have also been written in an engaging manner, adding another interesting dimension to the story.

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Promising direction let down by the inconsistent pace and disjointed presentation

A still from Phenomena (Image Via Rotten Tomatoes)

The director of the movie, Carlos Therón, attempted to make each scene quite upbeat and to the point. However, the movie's sometimes fast and sometimes slow pace made the viewing experience quite inconsistent.

Moreover, the story also jumped from one situation to another in the blink of an eye, making the presentation rather confusing and disjointed. Despite these flaws, the story is thrilling enough to merit a watch.

Scenes such as the one where Father Pilón was attacked and strangled by an unknown paranormal spirit, or the one where Gloria was possessed by the same spirit, or the one where the caretaker tried to attack the trio, were all filmed in an engaging manner, designed to keep viewers hooked.

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Impressive acting by the lead cast members

A still from Phenomena (Image Via Rotten Tomatoes)

The ensemble cast, entailing Toni Acosta, Belén Rueda, Gracia Olayo, and Emilio Gutiérrez Caba did a promising job of portraying their respective characters. Acosta as the psychic member of the group Gloria, Rueda as Sagrario, who had been chasing the ghost of her husband since his death, Olayo as the documentarian Paz and Caba as the leader of the group, Father Pilon, were quite fitting.

Their on-screen presence was strong and captivating. They each possessed different personality traits, making their characters unique and quite distinct from one another. Actress Toni Acosta, who stole the show in several scenes, put on a power-pact performance throughout the entire movie.

Other supporting actors in Phenomena included Luis Fernández de Eribe, Fran Cantos, Miren Ibarguren, Andrea Gara, Miren Ibarguren, Ivan Massagué, Lorena López, Óscar Ortuño, Natalia Agüero Avecilla, and Antonio Pagudo.

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Don't forget to catch Phenomena, which is streaming exclusively on Netflix.