Sometime in the 1930’s, a pianist named Orlando (Hugo Stiglitz) has fallen in love with actress Griselda (Luz Maria Jerez) at the theater where she performs. After much admiring from afar, Orlando finally nabs Griselda and they begin a very deep romantic relationship which then leads to their blissful marriage. Orlando is to go to Paris for a music study & just before he is to leave—Orlando wants to spend time with Griselda at his luxurious family mansion where his aunt Eloisa (Rosita Quintana) remains resided. When the couple arrive, Eloisa is not welcoming & not keen with Orlando having a new bride and it is then that Griselda learns that Orlando was married before and that his crazy wedding dress-wearing mother “disappeared” after a fire broke out where she resided near the mansion. All this madness & drama leads to something far more sinister and that is that someone or something wearing the mother’s wedding dress & holding a single piece of piano wire is stalking Griselda in & out of the mansion. Orlando’s mental state seems to be declining since he begins to have nightmares of his first wife’s death & generally blacking out and this all of course stems from his constant arguing with his aunt Eloisa, whom clearly is not so innocent herself.
Hasta Que La Muerte Nos Separe ("Til Death Do Us Part") is minimalistic & predicable. My first time viewing had me in some mystery (in the beginning), but right in the middle of the movie I had figured it all out. It was all just too obvious by then. The movie’s minimalism stems from it being set only at the mansion and featuring about 4 characters in the majority of its runtime. It all honestly seems there was more planned for this movie, but with whatever budget they had, they just had to make do with the basics. The very, very basics. They couldn’t go far into something much more dark & perhaps even supernatural. Oh, well.
Now I’m not gonna completely knock down on Hasta Que La Muerte Nos Separe since the movie is fairly entertaining with its 1930’s gothic tale conceived by writer & director Ramon Obon (the son of the legendary Mexican horror filmmaker of the same name), having an eerie & appealing setting, and having such a vague leading character played by the always awesome Hugo Stiglitz and his weird ass aunt played by the very legendary Rosita Quintana. Hugo Stiglitz here wears the most ridiculous wig ever and it was worn to make his character look like he’s from that time period. I think. Speaking of costumes, I truly admired the tattered wedding dress that the antagonist wears and having them hold a piano wire as a weapon. How splendid!
