''The Chalk Line'' ( es, Jaula, links=no; ; also known under the working title ) is a 2022 Spanish horror mystery psychological thriller film directed by Ignacio Tatay, in his feature debut. It stars

Elena Anaya Elena Anaya Gutiérrez (born 17 July 1975) is a Spanish actress. She garnered public recognition in Spain for her performance in ''Sex and Lucia'' (2001), which also earned her a nomination to the Goya Award for Best Supporting Actress. She sta ...

Plot

The story is primarily set in a residential area with upper-class villas. One night, Paula and her husband discover a wandering girl who is obsessed with a monster that will allegedly haunt her once she crosses a chalk square drawn on the ground. After attempting to amend their conjugal relationship, the couple pledges to foster the girl on a temporary basis.

Cast and characters

Production

Isabel Peña Isabel Peña Domingo (born 1983) is a Spanish screenwriter. She often works in tandem with Rodrigo Sorogoyen. Biography Born in 1983 in Zaragoza, she became a fan of classical cinema when she was very young. She earned a degree in ''Comunicac ...

collaborated in writing the story. The project, a Pokeepsie Films production, was halted due to the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic in Spain. Filming resumed in July 2020, with Oriol Barcelona on cinematography duties. The film was shot at a number of locations in the

Madrid region The Community of Madrid (; es, Comunidad de Madrid ) is one of the seventeen autonomous communities of Spain. It is located in the centre of the Iberian Peninsula, and of the Central Plateau (''Meseta Central''). Its capital and largest munici ...

, including Madrid, San Lorenzo de El Escorial,

Boadilla del Monte Boadilla del Monte () is a Spanish town and municipality located in the west of the Community of Madrid, inside its metropolitan area. It has the second highest level of income per capita in all of the country of Spain. In 2017, it had a popula ...

, as well as a set in Villaviciosa de Odón.

Release

Distributed by Sony Pictures Entertainment Iberia, the film was theatrically released in Spain on 9 September 2022.

Reception

The review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes reported a 60% approval rating, with an average score of 6.8/10, based on 5 reviews. Raquel Hernández Luján of ''

HobbyConsolas ''HobbyConsolas'' is a Spanish video game magazine founded in 1991 by Hobby Press and published by Axel Springer SE. The first issue appeared in October 1990. The monthly magazine offers information about games for all consoles, and since 2012 ha ...

'' gave the film 78 points ("good"), deeming it to be "candy for thriller lovers", with "good performances and production values", endorsing a "memorable debut". Miguel Ángel Romero of '' Cinemanía'' rated the film 3 out of 5 stars, writing that Tatay makes a masterful debut, "a horror-tinged thriller whose strength lies in the acting quality of its protagonists". Jordi Batlle Caminal of '' Fotogramas'' rated ''Jaula'' 3 out of 5 stars, deeming the debut feature to be a "model exercise in genre cinema, well-made and without authorial pretensions", featuring a "spectacular" plot twist at the height of the hour mark. Marshall Shaffer of ''

Decider.com The ''New York Post'' (''NY Post'') is a conservative daily tabloid newspaper published in New York City. The ''Post'' also operates NYPost.com, the celebrity gossip site PageSix.com, and the entertainment site Decider.com. It was established ...

'' considered that despite being a "promising feature debut" for Tatay, the film "never quite coheres as it should", failing to "fulfill all its ambitions or breakthrough beyond its (admittedly impressively crafted) atmosphere".

References

External links

''Jaula''
at ICAA's ''Catálogo de Cinespañol'' {{DEFAULTSORT:Chalk Line Films shot in the Community of Madrid Films shot in Madrid Pokeepsie Films films Spanish horror thriller films 2022 horror thriller films 2022 psychological thriller films 2020s Spanish films 2020s Spanish-language films Spanish mystery thriller films Mystery horror films Spanish psychological thriller films Film productions suspended due to the COVID-19 pandemic 2022 directorial debut films Spanish psychological thriller films