Atrapados (1981) watch online HD

I reviewed "Atrapados" in 1981 for Variety at a Times Square screening room (in 35mm) and still remember the impact of the film 35 years later. It was quickly lost in the shuffle but deserved better.

Film was unusual in being a Spanish-language U.S. production shot in Puerto Rico and with a sci-fi subject matter. With only two characters, the last man and woman on Earth, it is really a character study, lacking the SPFX or trappings of sci-fi, contributing to lack of audience appeal. Like a vintage "Twilight Zone" episode, its sci-fi content or overtones are superfluous, another roadblock, as the various anthology series I grew up watching on TV about characters in conflict (Kraft, Alcoa, Douglas Fairbanks, Richard Boone Show, etc., etc.) are no longer viable on any screen.

But both actors do a fabulous job, especially Juan Colon in the lead. At the time De Niro's weight changes for his "Raging Bull" role were still on audience's minds, so I was struck by our protagonist's even more drastic weight loss undertaken here to show the character's evolution. It's a remarkable performance that presumably should stand the test of time - I haven't seen this film since.

If the Syfy network were truly interested in pursuing its original mandate, offbeat movies like this one or "Glen and Randa" and even Robert Towne in the Corman B- classic "Last Woman on Earth" would be useful programming in place of their ghost stories and other far-flung non-SF material.

The director Matthew Patrick showed a lot of talent, went on to make "Hider in the House" -another film I admired, but unfortunately never graduated to the big time in Hollywood -their (and our) loss.