Film review: No Filter
Film & TV
A stress-relieving potion has an unexpected effect in this light-hearted comedy showing as part of the Spanish Film Festival which opens in Adelaide this week.
What if you were suddenly free to voice every single thought you ever had, regardless of how sarcastic, nasty or socially unacceptable it may be? What if you finally had the chance to say the words you’ve been dying to say to your boss, your best friend, you ex? Would you? And what would happen if you did?
These are the questions raised in the light-hearted comedy No Filter (Sin Rodeos in Spanish).
Directed by Santiago Segura, the film tells the story of Paz (Maribel Verdu), a mild-mannered woman who is living a stressful life, working around the clock to support her lazy, uncaring husband and disrespectful stepson. Her sleazy boss humiliates her at every turn, her best friend is too busy texting to care, her neighbours won’t stop partying and her neurotic sister is more concerned about her pet cat than her.
When the pressure becomes too much, Paz consults a spiritual healer who gives her a potion which promises to heal all her pain. When she fails to follow the dosage directions, she begins to experience a rather unfortunate side effect which sees her unable to contain her thoughts or control her actions.
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With no inhibitions and no filter to hold her back, Paz lets loose on her family, her friends and her co-workers, embarking on a rage-filled tirade with some surprising results.
Each character is quirkier than the last, and the witty script makes even the most insignificant of them memorable.
Verdú (whose previous credits include Pan’s Labyrinth) delivers a charming performance as an overly passive woman who finds freedom in releasing her pent-up rage. Given the number of selfish, neurotic people in her life, it’s a wonder she didn’t snap earlier, but thanks to the film’s comic touch, the consequences of her brutal honesty are far more amusing and life-affirming than they would be in real life.
No Filter is showing at Palace Nova Eastend and Palace Nova Prospect as part of the Spanish Film Festival. See all screening times here.
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