Cronos

Cronos is a vampire movie with a Latin American twist as director/writer Guillermo del Toro gets to the heart of the eternal myth in Mexican style. The tale begins in 1536, when an alchemist, fleeing the Inquisition, arrives in Veracruz with a fantastic invention that prolongs and regenerates life. Almost 500 years later, the Cronos device turns up in an antique store. By accident, Jesus Gris (Federico Luppi) learns part of its secret and soon develops a longing for blood—any sort of blood will do, but human is best. All of this is observed by Jesus’s small granddaughter, who alone seems to understand what is happening to him. The film treats its subject matter seriously, but there’s a delicious current of humor underlying the narrative. The sets and art direction are superb; the actors walk a razor-thin line between the overwrought and the ridiculous, without missing a step. Del Toro mixes genres with elegant rhythm and style. This intelligent film is one hell of a debut. —Festival 1994.

Cronos screened at The Festival in 1994 with Guillermo del Toro in person.

Films from the Vault revisits previously presented titles at the San Francisco International Film Festival, highlighting the Festival’s role in championing emerging artists and iconic auteurs and inviting audiences to rediscover these films anew. —Jessie Fairbanks