THE FLESH ITSELF

***

Directed by Ian SBF.

Starring Jorge Guerreiro, Pierre Batelli, George Sauma, Luis Carlos Persy.

Horror, Brazil, 97 Minutes.

Reviewed as part of Tubi FrightFest 2026

Set during the Paraguayan War that took place in the 19th century, Ian SBF’s The Flesh Itself, or A PRÓPRIA CARNE to give it its original language title, is a moody, measured and atmospheric period horror that makes an immediate impression. Beginning with the cold blooded murder of their own colonel, three deserter soldiers make their way through the inhospitable forest that seems to stretch on forever. Consisting of the headstrong, impulsive Gabriel, wounded ex-slave Gustavo and the meek Anselmo, the trio soon find themselves seeking refuge within a large wooden shack, occupied by Fazendeiro, a lopsided, intimidating  old man and his quiet, and much younger female companion Garota. As they cover their identities with a story of being attacked and robbed by bandits, they begin to suspect that Fazendeiro may know of their lies and begin to wonder why all the other doors in the shack are kept locked at all times.

Measured in its pacing, this is an atmospheric slice of period horror that is convincing with its period elements. Taking a horror tinged lens to a part of history that perhaps is not as well known to Western audiences as it should be also helps with the film's evocative atmosphere that is foreboding from the start. Like the protagonists, we are kept in the dark as to what Fazendeiro is hiding within his rickety old shack. When the revelations arrive however the film ramps up its pacing with an increasingly gnarly and squirm inducing final act that includes an enticing and surprising final shot.

The cast all acquit themselves well with their nicely written characters, as Gustavo, Jorge Guerreiro is the most sympathetic character here with his performance of an abused slave while Pieree Batelli and George Sauma also manage to make their respective characters of Gabriel and Anselmo convincing and sympathetic despite their hard-edged and cowardly personas. Special mention however should go to Luis Carlos Persy as Fazendeiro, an unsettling figure of a man in all ways as he toys with his guests that leaves them, and the audience, on edge throughout.

Beautifully photographed by Vinicius Brum, this is an original and grisly horror that marks out Ian SBF as a director to keep an eye on in the future.

Iain MacLeod