Huesera “Bone Basket” is a 2022 Peruvian–Mexican horror drama film about a young pregnant woman who becomes cursed by an evil spirit. Also known as Huesera: The Bone Woman
Directed by Michelle Garza Cervera (shorts: Falha Comum; The Original; Abismal; Mexico Barbaro 2 segment ‘Vitriol’; La Rabia de Clara; Isósceles) – making her feature directorial debut – from a screenplay co-written with Abia Castillo. Produced by Edher Campos, Lorena Ugarteche and Paulina I. Villavicencio.
The Disruptiva Films-Machete Producciones-Maligno Gorehouse production stars Natalia Solián (500 Millions of Red Shoes), Alfonso Dosal (Narcos: Mexico), Mayra Batalla (Prayers for the Stolen), Mercedes Hernández (Identifying Features), Aída López (Capadocia) and Martha Claudia Moreno.
Plot:
Valeria’s joy at becoming pregnant with her first child is quickly taken away when she’s cursed by a sinister spirit. As danger closes in and relationships with her family become fractured, she’s forced deeper into a chilling world of dark magic that threatens to consume her. A group of witches emerge that could be her only hope for safety and salvation, but not without grave risk…
Reviews:
” …Cervera uses a lot of restraint with the scares, putting the drama at the forefront means her feature debut is more horror adjacent than outright horror. But her firm grasp of imagery and tension-building is focused and effective, using fear to engender sympathy with laser precision. Even if Valeria’s denial puts her multiple steps behind the viewer; Cervera’s strong debut sweeps you up in Valeria’s nightmare regardless.” 3.5/5 Bloody Disgusting
“The scares might be on the slight side, but the storytelling in Huesera does a great job of taking a familiar concept and approaching it from a perspective that we don’t get nearly enough of, and that alone was enough to make me appreciate the cinematic magic that Cervera was able to conjure up with her debut feature. The film’s soundtrack is also excellent and I absolutely loved the cinematography…” 3.5/5 Daily Dead
“The scenes in punk clubs are great, filled with young slam dancers and singers who smash microphones into their foreheads […] Huesera taps into the profound anxieties surrounding childbirth. This occult horror is a bold and transgressive film, a terrifying vision of domestication and motherhood.” 8/10 Horror Buzz
” …a horror film that will speak to its audience and affect them in different ways. It is not a one-note horror film. It hits differently than most. Huesera culminates in a truly unexpected ending, one that is decisive but also equivocal. It signals the arrival of great talent…” Screen Anarchy
“La Huesera is at times spine-chillingly terrifying. Rarely resorting to jump scares, the horrors in Garza Cervera’s project come from increasingly disturbing imagery (a sequence toward the end uses bone-breaking sound design to horrifying ends). Likewise, its visual grammar privileges an off-kilter sensibility that keys us into the sense that something is always slightly off.” Variety
Background:
Director/co-writer Michelle Garza Cervera commented: “With my first feature, I wanted to shine a light on the kind of characters whose stories are usually kept hidden in families. Those who are silenced always hold onto the most wondrous treasures, and celebrating this was always the goal of the film.”
Release:
Huesera premiered in the Midnight section at the Tribeca Film Festival in June 2022. Meanwhile, XYZ Films has already picked up the distribution rights for North America.
Cast and characters:
Alfonso Dosal … Raúl
Sonia Couoh … Vero
Martha Claudia Moreno … Ursula
Mayra Batalla … Octavia
Aida López … Maricarmen
Pablo Guisa Koestinger … Vecino
Samantha Castillo … Carolina
Mercedes Hernández … Isabel
Enoc Leaño … Luis
Anahí Allué … Norma
Gabriela Velarde … Young Valeria
Natalia Solián … Valeria
Trailer [1080p HD]:
