El Crimen Perfecto (The Perfect Crime) (2004)

It's hilarious. It's poignant. It's artistic. It's even philosophical at times. I can't imagine anyone not liking this film. "Crimen ferpecto" is a great surrealistic comedy along the lines of "Being John Malkovich", "One Night at McCools" or even the masterpiece "Brazil".

The plot begins bizarre, and from there it gets ever bizarrer. Set in a department store (the perfect metaphor for the human condition!), this film brilliantly weaves the themes of glamorous/plastic life versus the mundane/real. Trapped between worlds and desperately trying to achieve the former is our hero Rafael, a man whose entire life exists within the ladies' clothing department. Somehow he gets wrapped up in murder, blackmail and ectoplasmic visitations from lovable corpses. Yeah, I told you it gets bizarre.

But despite the zany plot, there's a very poignant & sober message that runs just below the surface. It's subtle, but it comes to fruition during the magnificent climax when we realize exactly what this whole wacky movie is about. If you've paid attention to symbolism, metaphor, allegory and all that intellectual jazz, you'll get it, and you'll see how everything fits into place. If not, fine, you'll enjoy the picture anyway because it's just plain funny. The beauty is that you can take it at your own pace. Great film. Damn near perfect. Er... ferpect.