Article About Dark Mirror in Fangoria Magazine

An excellent article by Samuel Zimmerman in this month's issue.

Some highlights:

"The saying goes, 'Behind every great man is a great woman.' And that's certainly the case when it comes to writer/director Pablo Proenza and his wife/producer, Erin Ploss-Campoamor, who with that phrase and the plight of overlooked 'great women' in mind crafted Dark Mirror, a haunted-house chiller that also manages to thought-provokingly examine women's roles in the modern world. The movie (currently airing via IFC video-on-demand and debuting on DVD later this year) was inspired by the couple's ideas, worries and one great location: their own home."

"'Pablo came up with the concept soon after we moved into this cool old house, which was filled with beautiful cut glass windows,' Ploss-Campoamor says. 'At first it was really nice, but after a while, it started to feel more like we were living in a giant fishbowl.'

"'You'd see movement and not know where it came from,' adds Proenza. 'Or at night, you might see a figure out of the corner of your eye and your heart would skip a beat... 'While all of this was happening, we were trying to get a couple of different movies made,' Ploss-Campoamor says. 'It was starting to look like it might never happen for us. We were reaching an age where we wanted to have a kid, and we just felt trapped. How to be parents and still have a film career? How to be artists and still make money?... All this stuff just started percolating,' she continues, 'and Pablo began writing about a woman trapped inside this supernatural glass house.'"

"Their diligent casting agents led them to audition Lisa Vidal, who puts in a strong performance as Deborah Martin, the film's protagonist...'We saw a lot of women, but Lisa blew us away,' Proenza says, and Ploss-Campoamor interjects, 'Then she showed up on set and continued to blow us away."

"Proenza adds, 'I believe she saw this as a great opportunity. There are so few good roles for women.' Which, as the film contemplates, rings true in life as well as in the movie biz.

"Ploss-Campoamor explains, 'We wanted Dark Mirror to have something to say, a commentary on how hard it still is for women to be moms and have careers. We found it crazy how in some ways, things haven't changed that much in the past 40 years, and women are still struggling with a lot of the same issues.' The film explores this lack of progression through the house's backstory - a supernatural murder mystery involving a famous painter, his neglected spouse and the gateways between the worlds the house's mirrors and other glass surfaces represent."

"In employing these horrific elements, Proenza was able to convince his wife that scary movies don't just prompt chills in your spine. 'Horror is more in tune with core feelings than other genres,' he says. 'It gives a way into our basest, most animalistic feelings. Jeckell and Hyde, Dracula, Frankenstein - these aren't just characters; they represent us and the world we live in. Horror is absolutely the way to explore these ideas. The truth is, even without trying to imbue your film with 'meaning,' if you make a horror movie, it's already there. You're working through something.'"

To read more of Samuel Zimmerman's article "DARK MIRROR: Dying in Glass Houses," buy a copy of Fangoria Magazine, issue #285, dated Aug 2009.

Damaged 2.0 review

Great (and very funny) review of Dark Mirror by Louis Fowler at Damaged 2.0
louisfowler.blogspot.com

Some highlights:

Being Hispanic myself, I know I can be overly critical of movies with Latinos in the lead role. We tend to allow ourselves to be embarrassed in ways that would make even AMOS 'N' ANDY say “Seriously fellas, take it down a notch.” Mainstream studios tend to cast us as either gang-bangers or hotel maids and when we actually make our own movie, it's for the lowest common denominator, typically crappy shot-on-video comedies with names like C[H]ULOS IN DA TAQUERIA or SPRING BREAK VATOS, with characters that come off like third-rate Homies figures and with half as much personality. What's wrong with casting a Hispanic as just a regular guy? Maybe an accountant? They just happen to be Hispanic...can we move out of this cinematic barrio, just once?

... Deftly mixing a handful of honestly scary moments with one truly unpredictable twist after another, director Pablo Proenza excels in the type of classic filmmaking Polanski did in the 60s—the kind you wish Polanski himself would return to. The whole thing is a thinking man's mind-screw with no easy answers.

... The cast is great, especially Lisa Vidal as the aforementioned Deb—it's pretty much her show to carry and, when the ending is uncovered, without giving away any spoilers, you'll fully realize the whole power of her performance, because, man, I had no clue. None.

... DARK MIRROR: a mature, thought-out scare film that doesn't talk down to me or treat me like an imbecile. That's all I ask.

There's a lot more at louisfowler.blogspot.com and he's got some hilarious asides.

Dark Mirror breaking sales records!

Apparently Dark Mirror is on its way to becoming one of IFC On Demand's best selling titles ever!

Dark Mirror screens in NYC on July 2

Dark Mirror is the feature presentation for the LatinHorror film series "The HORRORphiles #3" at the Anthology Film Archives in New York City on July 2 at 8pm.

For more info visit Facebook or the LatinHorror web site.

Exlusive clip!

Still not sure if you want to see the film?

The Arrow, over at JoBlo.com has an exclusive clip. Check it out!
"Dark Mirror" exclusive clip

The Reviews for DARK MIRROR are In! ("Thrilling" "spooky" "cool" & more...)

From Ronnie Scheib at VARIETY:

“Excellent!”

“Defying logic while continuously flirting with it, Pablo Proenza's debut feature about a haunted house -- or a woman's madness, or both -- sustains suspense throughout, thanks in part to the tour-de-force perf[ormance] of Lisa Vidal as the eye of the spectral storm.”

“In the tradition of The Uninvited, Repulsion, The Others and recent J-horror… Proenza adds another turn of the screw… to his spin on the genre.”

From Louis Fowler at DAMAGED 2.0:

"Creepy!" "A really good movie."

"Deftly mixing a handful of honestly scary moments with one truly unpredictable twist after another, director Pablo Proenza excels in the type of classic filmmaking Polanski did in the 60s."

From FATALLY YOURS:

“Intriguing!” “Thrilling!” “A stunning finale.”

“Lisa Vidal was great as Deb. She really kept the viewer guessing as to whether she was crazy or if something evil really was responsible. Her character really makes the audience appreciate working (or even single) mothers, who play the dual roles of raising a child as well as pursuing a career. The rest of the cast did a fantastic job as well.”

From Samuel Zimmerman at FANGORIA:

“Excellent!” “Suspenseful!”

“Proenza’s capable direction imbues the [film] with atmosphere and dread.”

“The strongest part of Dark Mirror, and the key reason to see it, is Vidal’s performance. The story is her journey, and she owns the film as a woman struggling with her role in the world... Dark Mirror examines women[‘s] constant fight between being... moms and career women, and why they can’t be accepted as both... It’s nice to see a film exploring these avenues, especially in a genre often perceived to be misogynistic.”

“Dark Mirror [with its] small but talented cast and crew, does what it does well and intelligently.”

From Cyberhal at QUIET EARTH:

“Twists and turns all over the place.”

“I would like to thank first time director Mr. Proenza, from the bottom of my heart, for the scene in which the incredibly tasty Tammy (Christine Lakin) stands in her bikini, holding a pistol in her hand, and play acts a heist: cheers mate, here’s to you, won't forget it.”

From Michael Allen at 28 DAYS LATER ANALYSIS:

"A hypnotic scenario from writer[s] Matthew Reynolds [and Pablo Proenza]."

"A clever...quickly moving story."

"The final reveal [is definitely] worthwhile."

"Dark Mirror does not copy the original 1946 film and instead draws a more sinister character as [its] antagonist...a trapped and bitter spirit, [who] manipulates those in [its] spiritual prison...Bypassing the shallow blood and gore, Dark Mirror [instead] brings tension and mystery [to the genre.]"

From Brian Harris at WILDSIDE CINEMA:

"Some will undoubtedly compare Dark Mirror to films like Aja’s Mirrors...but not to worry as it just doesn’t have the carnage (or over-the-top scene chewing of Sutherland) contained in Mirrors."

"Lisa Vidal did a great job and really brought life to her character."

From BrianTT at HOLLYWOODCHICAGO:

"Vidal [is] very, very good...I kept wondering while I was watching it why this actress wasn’t a bigger star. She’s beautiful and does excellent work in Dark Mirror."

From Mike Bracken at HORROR GEEK:

"Vidal’s performance is the highlight of the film. Her portrayal of Deborah [makes] you genuinely feel as though she’s a real person and not a character in a movie."

"A well-defined feminist streak...runs through the entire film. Vidal’s Deborah is... surprisingly well-drawn [as she] juggles being a mother, a wife, [and] trying to find work again as a photographer."

From Cynthia Fuchs at POP MATTERS:

“Spooky!"

"Deb’s dilemmas [seem to be] finding work [with] a couple of misogynistic dolts and sorting out her strained relationship with her mother. With all this going on, it’s no surprise that she loses track of… her increasingly jumbled self-image.”

From Matt-suzaka at PARACINEMA:

“Cool!” “Creepy!”

“Dark Mirror has some fantastic, very realistic dialogue. Sounds like real people talking, especially when Deborah and husband Jim are interacting with each other…”

“There's some great talent attached to this film, with director Proenza's direction, the music, …acting, and the film’s style, all done nicely on a meager budget. … Overall, there are enough good points to make Dark Mirror a worthwhile view, plus it's under 90 minutes, so it's a quick watch to boot.”

“Overall the acting is good… most notably David Chisum, who when interacting with Vidal [has] great chemistry... Of course, the driving force of Dark Mirror is the very easy on the eyes, Lisa Vidal, who puts forth a solid performance, as she really carries the film on her back as Deborah."

“Armando Salas’ cinematography is solid…the film has a nice dreamlike quality to it... I also dug how the film quality changed whenever Deb looked at herself in a mirror, it had a really cool filtered alternate reality look about it.”

“I also really enjoy[ed] the film’s score done by Pieter A. Schlosser and Isaac Sprintis, as it is very haunting, simple, and never obtrusive…I am always a sucker for a little creepy piano.”

"[But it’s] Vidal's performance [that really conveys] the underlying message of Dark Mirror. The mental struggle of a wife and mother stuck at home ... having a difficult time resurrecting her photography career, the loneliness she feels [with her] husband… always at work, having to take care of their child all by herself. This leads to Deb having a lot of time... to dwell on her own thoughts, as she becomes more and more delusional, or so it seems... Makes you wonder, is there really a killer or spirit behind the deaths? [Or] is it all in Deb's own head?”

Dark Mirror Starts Today!

You can watch our film right now on IFC On Demand! (click here for more info)

Thanks to everyone who made this journey possible. And a toast to the next film.