Devil Dog Road
| Devil Dog Road | |
|---|---|
 Film poster | |
| Spanish | Lo carga el diablo |
| Directed by | Guillermo Polo |
| Screenplay by |
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| Starring |
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| Cinematography | Pablo G. Gallego |
| Edited by |
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| Music by | Pablo Croissier |
Production companies |
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| Distributed by | Begin Again Films |
Release dates |
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| Country | Spain |
| Language | Spanish |
Devil Dog Road (Spanish: Lo carga el diablo) is a 2024 Spanish black comedy road movie directed by Guillermo Polo in his directorial debut feature. It stars Pablo Molinero and Mero González.
Plot
With the prospect of earning €20,000, middling writer Tristán agrees on fulfilling his conflictive brother Simón's death wish of transporting his dead body from Avilés to Benidorm, enlisting the help of teenager Álex.[1][2]
Cast
- Pablo Molinero as Tristán[1]
- Mero González as Álex[2]
- Isak Férriz as Simón[3]
- Antonia San Juan as Merche[4]
- Emilio Buale as Babik[4]
- Luifer Rodríguez as Zarzo[4]
- Manuel de Blas as padre de Merche[4] ('Merche's father')
- Pino Montesdeoca as Greta[4]
- Itziar Castro as señora Bermúdez[4]
Production
The film was produced by Los Hermanos Polo Films, Japónica Films, Volcano Films, and Batiak Films, with the participation of À Punt and the backing from Gobierno de Canarias and the support of IVC.[5] It had a budget of around €750,000.[6] Shooting locations included Tenerife, the provinces of Valencia and Alicante, and Aragon.[5]
Release
For its world premiere on 10 April 2024, the film made it to the slate of the 41st Miami Film Festival (MFF).[5][7] It also screened as the opening film of the 39th Cinema Jove festival in June 2024[3] and was included in the 'Castilla y León en largo' programme of the 69th Valladolid International Film Festival (Seminci).[8] It is scheduled to be released theatrically in Spain on 25 April 2025.[9]
Reception
Alfonso Rivera of Cineuropa billed the film as "a trippy, colourful road movie, halfway between comic and US indie film, but at the same time just as Iberian as a Bigas Luna flick".[3]
Philipp Engel of Cinemanía rated the film 4 out of 5 stars, writing that in the film, a cross between Jamón, jamón and Wild at Heart, the [positive] values go beyond aesthetic delights, also including its sense of humor, its music, and the "now forever iconic" villain portrayed by Antonia San Juan.[10]
Manuel J. Lombardo of Diario de Sevilla rated the film 2 out of 5 stars, determining it to be "an amusement full of clichés and stereotypes" from a certain 80s and 90s indie cinema that Polo sets out hoping that a complicit and nostalgic viewer be able to catch the references and laugh at them.[11]
Carmen L. Lobo of La Razón rated the film 3 out of 5 stars, declaring it a "an amusing black comedy with a freshness and brass that is welcome these days".[12]
Accolades
| Year | Award | Category | Nominee(s) | Result | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
2025 | 7th Lola Gaos Awards | Best Director | Guillermo Polo | Nominated | [13][14] |
| Best Actor | Pablo Molinero | Nominated | |||
| Best Editing and Post-Production | Ernesto Arnal, Vicente Ibáñez, Óscar Santamaría | Nominated | |||
| Best Art Direction | Carla Fuentes, Alba de la Asunción | Nominated | |||
| Best Original Song | "Sueño intergaláctico" | Nominated |
See also
References
- 1 2 Madueño, Teresa (20 June 2024). "'Lo carga el diablo': los fantasmas nunca mueren". Valencia Plaza.
- 1 2 "Guillermo Polo debuta con la 'road movie' ibérica 'Lo carga el diablo': "Como ópera prima es un poco suicida"". Europa Press. 20 June 2024.
- 1 2 3 Rivera, Alfonso (26 June 2024). "Review: Devil Dog Road". Cineuropa.
- 1 2 3 4 5 6 Úbeda-Portugués, Alberto (19 April 2025). "Los estrenos del 25 de abril'. Lo carga el diablo'. El precio de la aventura". Aisge.
- 1 2 3 "'Lo carga el diablo', de Guillermo Polo, seleccionado en el Festival de Cine de Miami". Valencia Plaza. 4 April 2024.
- ↑ Moreira, Marta (27 October 2022). "En el rodaje de 'Lo carga el diablo', la película de humor negro que quiere realzar la belleza del casticismo español". Valencia Plaza.
- ↑ Markowitz, Douglas (6 March 2024). "Here's the Complete Miami Film Festival 2024 Lineup". Miami New Times.
- ↑ "El cine de Castilla y León asoma la cabeza en Seminci con dos largos y siete cortos". Diario de Valladolid. 26 September 2024.
- ↑ "Lo carga el diablo". Los Hermanos Polo Films. Retrieved 2 February 2025.
- ↑ Engel, Philipp (23 April 2025). "Crítica de 'Lo carga el diablo': entusiasta y desacomplejada ópera prima que va más allá del placer estético". Cinemanía – via 20minutos.es.
- ↑ Lombardo, Manuel J. (25 April 2025). "Carretera sin manta". Diario de Sevilla. Grupo Joly.
- ↑ Lobo, Carmen L. (25 April 2025). "Crítica de 'Lo carga el diablo': Living y p'alante ★★★". La Razón.
- ↑ Devís, Álvaro (19 December 2024). "'La casa' y 'L'àvia i el foraster', protagonistas de las nominaciones a los Premios Lola Gaos 2025". Valencia Plaza.
- ↑ "'La Casa' triunfa en los Premis del Audiovisual Valenciano con 10 galardones". Última Hora. 1 February 2025.