As films like "Perdita Durango" prove, Spanish director Álex De La Iglesia is a specialist for macabre humor. One of his earlier films, "El Dia De La Bestia" aka. "The Day Of The Beast" of 1995 is a perfect example for this director's talent, a macabre and hilarious black horror comedy that entertains highly from the beginning to the end. A catholic priest (Álex Angulo) goes to Madrid in order to prevent the birth of the Antichrist, which he believes to take place there on Christmas Day. In order to find the exact place where the Antichrist is to be born, the kind-hearted priest is forced to commit 'Sins', and furthermore associates with the surprisingly friendly Death-Meal lover and Satanist Jose Maria (Santiago Segura)... Angulo and Segura both fit very well in their roles, especially Angulo is very hilarious as the priest. Armando De Razza is furthermore great, and hilarious as Cavan, a hypocritical TV psychic. Director De La Iglesia did a great job making this film a hilarious Horror-comedy and still maintaining a dark and somehow gloomy atmosphere. If you like satirical Horror, make sure not to miss "El Dia De La Bestia", and enjoy 100 minutes of macabre humor and originality. Highly Recommended!
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Witchfinder-General-66626 December 2007
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Dr.Evil21 January 2012Holy schmoley! How did this movie ever escape me? - I couldn't believe that it was made 17 years ago, and I've never even heard of it. Thank goodness for Pirate Bay or I never would have. What a great blend of story, characters, humor, and of course being on "a mission from God!" I'm buying this one. I wonder why it hasn't been picked up yet by American producers. You know, like they did with "The Grudge", "Dark Water", and a host of others. I'm kinda glad they didn't. They would probably screw it up. - Along with the priest the fabulous sidekick Jose Maria. - I'd love to see these two together again. - Anyway, it you haven't seen this yet, hunt it down and enjoy. If you don't it might just be the "end of the world."
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claudio_carvalho22 June 2018The priest and professor of theology Father Ángel Berriartúa (Alex Angulo) has deciphered a code disclosing that the Antichrist will be born in Madrid on the Christmas day. In order to avoid the destruction of the world, he decides to go to Madrid on the Christmas Eve and commit as many sins as possible to sell his soul to the devil to destroy the Antichrist to save the world. He befriends and teams up with the death metal salesman José María (Santiago Segura) and finds a book written by the Italian Professor Cavan (Armando De Razza), who hosts a TV show on the occult. They kidnap Cavan to learn how to summon the devil and during an acid trip, they see the devil and Cavan decides to help the priest. Is the priest a lunatic or does the Beast indeed exist?
"El día de la bestia", a.k.a. "The Day of the Beast", is a hilarious and full of action black comedy horror film. This is the type of movie that can be seen many times and the viewer will still enjoy it if he is fan of black humor and dark jokes. The cynical Alex Angulo is fantastic in the role of a priest committing many sins to attract the attention of the devil. The bizarre characters, including José Maria and Professor Cavan, are also very funny. My vote is eight.
Title (Brazil): "O Dia da Besta" ("The Day of the Beast") -
KrowbOy24 September 1999Alex de la Iglesia has got to be one of the coolest directors ever. I liked Accion Mutante but I LOVED Day of the beast. It is a shame this movie has not been played in america because it's one of the best movies in a long time. It's funny...very funny if you have a weird type of humor. It's not really bloody and gory like people have stated but some scenes have a shock value to them. Visually Day of the Beast is wonderful it's darkley filmed and has cool production designes. The actors for the most part do a good job only sometimes they go a little over the top. The only thing wrong is that this movie begins to run out of steam at the end and the ending is kinda confusing and when satan appears it's a let down. But all in all a cool movie and a good time.......if only our awards were like spain's
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iaido6 January 2000A good idea, but a limited movie. Suffers from being small in terms of both storyline and budget.
A priest has twenty-four hours to stop the birth of the AntiChrist. He tries to sin along the way and be evil, though he isnt very good at it (his sinning is mainly just some petty theft, three minor assaults, and one accidental death) The milquetoast priest having to sin is a great device that the movie doesnt fully take advantage of, it could have been far more complex, like having to break the 10 Commandments, and, subsequently, funnier and sacrilegious.
He gets help from a tacky t.v psychic and a death metal druggie, the latter, for some unexplained reason, taking an instant liking to the priest.
Many of the sequences work great, such as trying to get the blood of a virgin, the invoking of the Devil, but some fall flat, like a scene in witch they have to perilously walk on the outside of a building (it definitely ISNT Hitchcok), and the finale when they face the Devil. Overall, it just isnt paced as well as Sam Raimi's Evil Dead 2, Darkman, Army of Darkness, or Peter Jackson's Bad Taste and Brain Dead, and its not as slick as a Dario Argento movie (no doubt these film makers are an influence on De Iglesia). It is very fun, far too clumsy, but, in the end, completely enjoyable, just not great. -
The_Void7 June 2006When you consider all the elements that have gone into this movie, it's hard to deny that it really shouldn't have worked. Spanish director Álex de la Iglesia has put together a film that fuses ideas of the apocalypse and the antichrist with heavy metal and one of the blackest streaks of humour that I've ever seen. Day of the Beast starts off with a string of blackly comic happenings, which see such things as a man crushed by a cross and a priest pushing a performer off his perch. Amazingly, the director manages to keep the laughs coming throughout, while at the same time ensuring that the apocalyptic tones aren't lost to the comedy side of the film. Personally, I didn't think that much else could be done with the idea of the antichrist - but I've been well and truly proved wrong by this totally unique horror flick! The plot follows a priest who believes that he has found a secret code of some sort, and that he has to commit evil acts in order to get an audience with Satan himself, so that he can kill the Devil's child, which he believes will be born on Christmas Eve. Aiding him in this quest is a drug-taking heavy metal fan, and the host of a paranormal TV series...
I've got to say that I'm really looking forward to seeing more of Álex de la Iglesia's films, as this guy has an absolutely great sense of humour; and even though this movie is only half a comedy, it's far funnier than many films designed only to make its audience laugh. The laughs are very dry indeed, and are guaranteed to appeal to people who appreciate jokes that are aimed at offending people. Aside from a great sense of humour and an interesting storyline, Day of the Beast also benefits from a plethora of great performances from a talented cast of Spanish actors. Álex Angulo, Armando De Razza and Santiago Segura are brilliant as the central threesome, and offset each other nicely with their defined and very different characters. While the film definitely is a comedy, it's obvious that Álex de la Iglesia is a horror fan; as the atmosphere is morbid and suspenseful, and many scenes are extremely suspenseful and well laid out. The special effects are hokey in true demonic horror style, and the light use of them ensures that they work well when used. Overall, I don't hesitate to call this a masterpiece. Day of the Beast is everything you could want from a cult horror movie and more! -
I'd only heard good things about this Spanish film " Instant classic etc " and went in to it knowing that it wasn't a full blown horror film . I'm guessing that most of the poor reviews on this page were by people who expected a full blown horror film and were disappointed by THE DAY OF THE BEAST being something it patently isn't ? However after seeing the movie I too was feeling some what let down too . Not by what the film wasn't but by what it is - a black comedy that ran out of steam
The first third is excellent . Catholic priest Father Angel Berriartua decides if he commits enough sinful acts then he will meet the anti-Christ who will be born on Christmas Day in Madrid . In effect it's an anti redemption plot and there is much amusement to be had as he conducts a one man misanthropic war against passer bys . This sets up the introduction of two more characters Jose Maria a death metal salesman and Professor Cavan a TV host on the occult and at this point you think you'll be enjoying a sort of Spanish Catholic version of MONTY PYTHON as all sorts of anarchic tasteless anti establishment gags come to the fore as a sort of La Vida El Brian
The bad news is that the plotting and story telling does indeed become anarchic but is also a bit too screwball . The tasteless biting black humour of the first third of the film disappears and we're subjected to more and more over the top humour . You can believe the situations of Father Angel taking place earlier in the film but when more and more characters take place the credibility disappears . Tight corners such as a shoot out with the police are resolved by very lazy scripting and perhaps the greatest sin the film commits is that it does become a film about redemption at the end -
jluis19845 December 2005On rare occasions, a movie appears that successfully mixes elements of comedy with those of horror without being silly, cheesy or vulgar. Alex De la Iglesia's superb "El Día de la Bestia" is definitely one of those movies.
With an interesting plot, very likable characters, good SFX(considering the low budget) and a great cast, this formidable movie from Spain turns instantly in a cult classic by it's own merits.
Alex Angulo stars as father Angel, a priest who is also a scholar of theology, and that has discovered that John's revelation contains encoded the date and place for the birth of the Antichrist: Christmas Eve of 1995 in Madrid. With that knowledge, he decides to turn himself into a satanist in order to discover the exact place of the birth. With the aid of metal-head Jose Maria(played by Santiago Segura) and the fake psychic Professor Cavas(played superbly by Armando De Razza), he goes on his quest to kill the baby before the anti-Christ's reign begins.
The story is filled with very dark humor as the priest has to sin in order for him to be convincing enough as a satanist. Alex Angulo really carries the film and gives a great performance, but is Armando De Razza who steals the show; Cavas and his girlfriend(played by beautiful Maria Grazia Cucinotta) have a great scene and Maria shines on her small role as the dumb blonde who dates Cavas.
De la Iglesia takes us on the roller-coaster that is this movie, as it never drags and goes on with a fast-paced rhythm. A great camera-work makes the film even better and the bizarre beauty of it's photography, contrasting the colorful Christmas with the dark gritty violence of the streets of Madrid.
Overall a near-perfect film, "El Día de la Bestia" will keep you entertained with it's irreverent(some would say blasphemous) dark humor.
10/10. Very recommended. -
Coventry17 August 2003I had never heard of this before, I didn't read reviews or thoughts or anything about this movie and I didn't even read the small texts on the cover of the box...This could have gone very wrong but instead of that it became 100 minutes of pure fun. So, now I'll do my best to recommend it to as many other people as possible. "El dia de la Bestia" was made in Spain, or the new great home of horror these days. Spanish directors proved themselves a lot lately and I think this guy, Alex De La Iglesia , deserves some extra credit. This guy obviously is a big lover of horror and the whole cult atmosphere around it. In a genius kind of way, he mixes a lot of appropriate elements in his movie like heavy metal music and fortune-telling. Angél is a priest who just translated a disturbing writing. He found out that the Antichrist himself will be born on Christmas day of 1995. In Madrid, because all the signs of apocalypse looks like it. To avoid this horrible event that would mean the end of the world, he has to face Satan himself. So, he travels to Madrid and commits a lot of sins, which is pretty funny to watch. He meets a heavy-metal freak (sorry : Death Metal!) and a fortune-teller who fooled many people by faking an exorcism. But when all preparations are set, Satan doesn't show up ! Did they make a mistake ? One thing is certain, they have to hurry because Christmas is only one night away... It wouldn't do much if I named all the actors of this movie because their names don't ring a bell. But, I can say they're all very good actors and they clearly did their best work in this film. Like I said before, this film contains a lot of humor but it never spoofs the genre. There's always a lot of respect present and I think that's a great achievement. Also, I would have thought there was a lot more gore in this film. To my surprise, the gory scenes are very limited and overall short. Gorehounds be advised because the cover and the title may make you think it's one big blood fest. Good film, nice change, great fun...highly recommended if you need a break from all the typical nowadays slasher-films.
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mrot26 November 1998When you hear Spanish films, Aldomovar is always brought up. Unfortunately, films like Dia De La Bestia suffer. This film is a treat to people who like their comedy dark and have a weird sense of humour. The Apocalypse never looked more interesting than in this film. Visually the film is darkly lit and the appearance of Satan changes the whole mood of the film. Next time you see this film in a film festival, DON'T MISS IT!!!
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NickKnack6826 November 2021As far as horror comedies go, this one has quite a few laughs especially during the first half. We have a great trio of mismatched protagonists who each bring their own thing to the table. The story could've been told tighter, but as is, most fans of occult horror/comedy horror should enjoy it well enough.
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batrich24 November 1999I thought this was a very well done movie even though it had one of those disjointed plots that are so common with European flicks,(the ending had me totally confused). I thought that the dubbing was well done and the movie was quite nice to look at. There was also a death scene that came right out of nowhere and kind of reminded me of something out of a Dario Argento film. I would give this movie 3 stars. ***
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schroeder-gustavo28 November 2015The Day of the Beast is supposedly a comedy about the end of the world and a priest doing as much bad as he possibly can to summon the devil in order to stop the apocalypse. Basically that's what this movie is. And I will say there is enjoyment to be found in the film, but that enjoyment doesn't last nearly as much as it should. First of all I didn't really find any of the characters to be relatable. I think the fat guy that works in the record store is supposed to be the character that the audiences should feel at least remotely connected with, but it's not really the case. Even with this I was enjoying The Day of the Beast until about the last half of the film. It just feels forced and uses some filler for some reason and a lot of things don't even make sense.
There is some enjoyment to be found in the Day of the Beast, but it's not enough and it doesn't hide the fact that the movie is an incoherent mess. -
Infofreak31 August 2001I have become increasingly dissatisfied with most of Hollywood's output, horror or otherwise. Too many movies are either highly cynical commercial products, aimed at teenagers with no discernment or real love of movies, compromised messes that please no-one, stale rehashes of previous works, or just plain STUPID. 'The Day Of The Beast' is none of these things! I was almost put off by the packaging with it's description of a "horror action comedy", expecting some kind of juvenile 'Army Of Darkness' crap (a movie I have no time for). Surprisingly, it DOES have horror, action and comedy, but blends them in original and exciting ways Hollywood hasn't dreamed of. Just compare this to recent supernatural themed thrillers like the brain-dead 'End Of Days' or 'Stigmata', and you'll see that director Alex de la Iglesia is working on a much more intelligent and provocative level.
'The Day Of The Beast' concerns a naive priest's attempts to summon Satan so that he can try and prevent the birth of the Antichrist and Armageddon. He befriends a hilarious acid-gobbling Metal fan (the wonderful Santiago Segura), and with the reluctant assistance of the host of a TV show dealing with the paranormal, the two comrades bumble through a series of adventures while trying to complete their task. The whacky humour and general silliness is balanced with a genuinely dark vision of Madrid and this is what gives this movie such a unique flavour. It juggles comedy, horror and social criticism marvellously, and never loses sight of it's themes of faith, evil and moral responsibility.
I can't recommend this movie highly enough as the antidote to the onslaught of contemporary asinine horror and fantasy movies. Make sure you track down the original undubbed Spanish version to fully appreciate it. 'The Day Of The Beast' ranks up with Mexico's 'Cronos' and Canada's 'Ginger Snaps' as one of the most imaginative and original horror movies of the last ten years. Don't miss it! -
killercharm10 October 2021And what a hoot. A professor/priest has somehow missed everything about how the real world lives while in his ivory tower. While in there he discovers that the antichrist's birth in imminent. Not only that but it will happen, "Right here in Madrid!" Imagine the surprise! Because his birth heralds the beginning of the end, the end of the world, this is huge.
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joalogon27 June 2006A complete cult film in Spain.
I think Alex is one of the most original talents in nowadays cinema. And not only in Spain, all over the world.
You have to realize what it means to issue such a film, and what a danger you take. How he uses black humour and keeps tension on every scene is incredible. And he has shown that in every one of his films, specially in The perfect crime (a pearl of how to use black humour), 800 bullets and Common Wealth. These are films to take with an open mind, no previous thoughts of what are you going to find. I'm still surprised at each one of his new films.
A masterpiece, but not a film for everybody. -
tonosov-5123815 October 2023With a splendid opening scene that perfectly showcases its premise, this black comedy unfortunately falls short of being truly amazing. Mostly because the plot just settles into the pattern of Cura inferring something as a sign for his bizarre conviction and following it, then the violence ensues as he further spirals into self-fulfilling, snowballing madness. It's fun the first couple of times, but this is all there is to the story and, really, the characters. They are very readily convinced, which is of course the whole point of the humor, as Cura's madness is indeed infectious, but as all three of them are on board to just randomly search through Madrid, and all doubt just disappears; they stop being interesting.
The 4K transfer also exposes a lot of very bad effects, and it sometimes feels like it was filmed with a different camera altogether. -
ElijahCSkuggs4 December 2007Over a year ago I accidentally bought Day of the Beast off Ebay with no subs. Finally after a long wait I got the chance to check out this flick, and what a damn shame I wasn't more safe when buying it the first time, because this was a really good flick.
El Dia De La Bestia is a comedy/horror/action hybrid that really meshes on a level that few movies have. It's Xmas Eve and a Priest, Metalhead and a TV Host band together to try stop the Anti-Christ from being born. Sounds like the beginning of a joke, but it's the truth and these guys go through some ridiculous stuff trying to accomplish their goal. The acting, cinematography, directing and especially the screen play were all great. The writing was fast, realistic and smart, just like how the movie played out. Day of the Beast has barely has any dull scenes, it's funny, and moves at a pretty fast pace. I suppose it's not gonna be everyone's cup of tea, but hell, for me, there's nothing in it worth complaining about.
I really hope this film gets more popular, because it definitely has the opportunity to have a large fan base. Hopefully someday it will get some more recognition and you'll be seeing it in Best Buys and so on. And the best part is the director has many more flicks that are supposed to be just as good. If you're looking for a plain old good flick, look no further, Day of the Beast is it. -
The Day of the Beast (1995) is a Spanish horror movie that I recently watched on Shudder. The storyline follows a priest who believes he has cracked the code to unleashing hell on Earth and it is about to happen soon. He begins looking for ways to commit as many sins as possible to save the planet. He teams up with a death metal rocker, a streetwalker and a black arts icon to help him on his journey.
This movie is directed by Álex de la Iglesia (The Last Circus) and stars Álex Angulo (Live Flesh), Armando De Razza (Hannover), Santiago Segura (Hellboy), Terele Pávez (Common Wealth) and Maria Grazia Cucinotta (The World is not Enough).
This is a fun journey with a crazy storyline to watch unfold. The priest is an entertaining and unpredictable character and Álex Angulo delivers a tremendous performance. The opening church scene was a perfect way to kick off the movie and there is a great use of an iron in here. This movie has one of the worst and funniest exorcisms you will ever see. There's a stair fall scene that is awesome too and the goat at the end is tremendous.
Overall, this is a wild ride that's an absolute must see. I would score this a 7/10 and strongly recommend it. -
Exiled_Archangel29 March 2003While El Dia De La Bestia had some logic errors, such as easily finding a virgin at her late 20's, it was a good film overall. It's designed as a thriller-comedy so you can't expect everything to be perfectly logical anyway. The only film I've seen with a similar plot was The Devil's Advocate, and I have to say this one was a few million times better. It's time dear Americans see it takes not only expensive FX but also and more importantly soul to make a good film. Probably 99.9% of the spectators of the film didn't pay attention, but Maria Grazia Cuccinotta shines in the bimbo role more than any other part of the cast does. But the general cast is quite flawless too. I have to say there's some good music in the film also :) I don't care if it's associated with satan, it's still good to hear metal in films like this one. If you've watched and liked The Devil's Advocate, and just like me, you think the film seems to have everything necessary to be a good film but something's terribly missing, you'll see that missing thing is right in its place in El Dia De La Bestia. Brilliant comedy, brilliant thriller, absolutely unique. 9/10.
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youngcollind23 April 2021A roller coaster plot, funny and original, with some fun nods to metal culture. May not change your life, but offers an entertaining escape.
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gracehenson-3079022 December 2021A theologian races against time to find out exactly where the anti-Christ is going to be born in Madrid on Christmas Eve, grabbing a music shop employee and a TV chat show host to help him along the way.
Beautifully shot and dripping with both menace and Christmas spirit, The Day of the Beast is a strange, gory, but very funny Spanish horror film that deserves to rank among some of the best horror comedies the genre has to offer. -
I went into this Spanish flick without realizing it had a strong comedic element, mainly in the crazy priest's sidekick. That was a distraction for me. Personally, what I got from "El Dia" was the character study of a delusional man who swears the end of the world is nigh. Really, regarding history, how many delusional cults have come and gone prophesizing the end of the world? From Jonestown to Heaven's Gate, it seemingly never ends. Such confused, twisted, misguided, delusional, mistakenly committed people are to be pitied. Still, if they keep their craziness to themselves and not force their off-the-wall beliefs onto other people, then it's okay.
Another element of the film that struck me as very interesting is how Madrid resembled sleazy Manhattan of the 70's and 80's. It's almost as if I was waiting for Taxi Driver Travis Bickle to suddenly leap out of one of the cabs and start shooting up the place. I mean, all the elements were in place - homeless folks, heavy metal mania, drugs, porn palaces, graffiti, endless violence. All that was missing were three-card monte hustlers and drug addicts constantly cleaning the windshields of unsuspecting drivers with their trusty squeegees in return for money. "Day of the Beast" wasn't bad, actually. A lot of work went and is therefore recommended. -
Spinal-Column30 January 2003I'm all for a nice bit of blasphemy, but sometimes that just isn't enough to make a good movie!
During the first half of EL DIA DE LA BESTIA I thought this was shaping up to be a fantastic film. There are some funny scenes with the priest who must summon satan and his unlikely side-kick, a heavy metal stoner. But before long the plot starts to unravel until, by the time we get to the climax, it is effectively meaningless.
Alex De La Iglesia has made some good films (particularly La Communidad) but this is not one of his best. The lack of a coherent plot overshadows the movies merits and makes this an unsatisfying watch. Perhaps if the script had been given a few months more attention it would have been an excellent film.
3/10