Everlasting Love

At only 69 minutes, "Everlasting Love/Amor Eternal," a Spanish metrosexual drama packs a wallop, with darkly-lit homosex and a shockingly disgusting ending. Director and co-writer Mar�al For�s (along with co-writer Vicente de la Torre) explores what we can only hope isn't a real gang of high school seniors who kidnap girls and boys, brutally rape them, and (for some) invite them into the gang so they can fully participate in their own sick growth.

A mid-40s teacher of Chinese in some Barcelona, Spain, high school, Carlos (Joan Bentall�) leads a dangerous life by trolling a local forest for one-time-only mansex as he is unable to commit to any kind of romantic relationship. One evening he runs into a student of his, Toni (Aimar Vega) hits on him and they commence a more-than-once sexual tryst, which we can vaguely see in the gloom of the forest through their car windows. Hot and steamy, mind you, but with no fog-on-window to distort.

Carlos is insistent they discontinue, but cannot stop lusting after this shy, thin young man. But it turns out Toni is a part of this aforementioned gang of rapist/killers and when Carlos invites the two other young men and the only girl (who is gang-raped early in the film) in for drinks, gets naked in front of them (and us) and leads to the bloody denouement, well then one may easily ask what the hell is the matter with him?

What keeps this film from being snuff-porn is the solid story-telling elements and the understanding of these deeds which the script actually attempts to show us. Of strong interest is the way it unveils the all-consuming sexuality of the gang and of the teacher.

The film is stops a step just before grizzly, both with the sex and the deaths, which allows some distance for perspective. And then it jumps into the deranged. Oh, boy....

How much is the writer's fixation/fetish is unknown to us, but the exploration is some of the value in this admittedly bizarre and scary film. Shot cheaply in both indoor and outdoor settings, with men (mostly) having it off with each other (not much romantic about it, either), Mar�al wants us to see what is going on out there, mostly without police involvement.

As stated, this is not for the squeamish - not by a long shot - but the film is also a well-crafted examination of thems-who're-not-us! It's not graphic enough for porn, or snuff, but it does pack a wallop, yes it does.

"Everlasting Love/Amor Eternal"
tla releasing
$19.99
www.tlareleasing.com