The Dollmaker has a Lynch-like vibe and doses of gore

Rodrigo Noya as Tomas - Image courtesy of Jinga Films

The Dollmaker is a film with clear influences. David Lynch is a big one, in that the movie's setting, Palacios, "a town where nothing happens," harbors dark secrets beneath its surface-level innocence, just like Twin Peaks. There's also a sequence that's more than a nod to the creepy woman in the bathtub from The Shining, and the main character has all kinds of mommy issues like Norman Bates in Psycho. Yet, despite the obvious influences, The Dollmaker mostly carves its own path, with some memorable performances, some truly shocking moments, and dark humor.

The movie stars Rodrigo Noya as Tomas, a lonely young man who works at a video rental store that looks like it's stuck in 1985. He takes care of his mother, who is a life-sized doll, but he constantly sees her alive in bloody and disturbing visions. Before the plot kicks into high gear, director Jose Maria Cicala, who co-wrote the script with Griselda Sanchez, really spends time developing the strange and unusual town as a character, complete with oddballs and a popular 1950s-style diner, Trixie, where Tina (Sanchez) works and becomes the love interest of Tomas, after he meets her at a local clinic. The town is filled with corrupt cops, bizarre characters, and kidnapped young women, and yet, no one, especially the police, do anything to save the missing women. It's evident early on there's a cover-up occurring, and the only one who cares to rescue the women is a new police inspector named Porter (Alejo Garcia Pintos). Yet, at every turn, his colleagues just don't care and put in little to no effort, hinting that they're in on the cover-up.

Besides a well-established setting, the film includes some great performances, especially from Noya and Sanchez. They're truly two standouts, and it's no surprise that Noya won an award for Best Actor when the film played last year's Screamfest. Without spoiling anything, I'll just say that Tomas has a lot of layers, and Noya does an excellent job conveying them all. Meanwhile, Sanchez is quite memorable as the red-headed waitress who zips around on roller skates, taking orders, but finds connection with another lonely soul.

As for the horror elements, there are plenty in this film, as well as several disturbing moments, including a rape early in the film that's tough to watch. That's followed by various scenes throughout the movie where the viewer sees the cruel and awful fates that befall the kidnapped women, who are kept in a dingy basement and subject to the sick and sadistic whims of their kidnapper. The blood and gore look good on the screen, but the context of it makes it difficult to stomach, especially because it deals with the brutalization of young women.

That said, the film isn't without its humor, not only its quirky characters, but also the fact there's an actor who plays triplets, and there's a well-written joke or two made about it. In the context of the movie's dark subject matter, the humor is needed. The film's ending, however, will likely frustrate some viewers. It's simply a little too ambiguous and surreal, and though the movie as a whole has those moments, most of the plot is grounded in a central narrative about missing young women and Tomas' mommy issues. The ending is quite befuddling and doesn't quite stick the landing.

Overall, The Dollmaker is a well-made Argentinean film that showcases a lot of talent, especially from Cicala, Sanchez, and Noya. They really deserve future projects, and I can't wait to see what they do next. Additionally, though horror fans will easily recognize the movie's influences and inspirations, it still forges its own path, blending dark humor with truly horrific moments.

The Dollmaker is available on VOD beginning August 25.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fgydDAf50sc