EIFF2008: Time Crimes

A man uncovers a crime that he himself may be about to commit. Sound weird? Good. This tremendously imaginitive Spanish thriller blends sci-fi and horror into a tense, exciting and totally mindbending time-travel thriller that you really, really want to be fully awake for. I really pity the folk who had to nip out from the screening to go to the toilet, as you really can't afford to miss a minute of this one.

A man stumbles across a crime; he is stabbed and chased by an unknown assailant, where upon he comes across a mysterious scientific establishment conducting weird experiments. And that's where the fun really starts.

For the first half of the film, events seem to be taking a pretty obvious and predictable route - the film however doesn't stop there, pulling the rug from under you with wild abandon and weaving an intelligent and complex tale that will drag you in and tie you in knots right up until the satisfying conclusion.

This is going to be a little more difficult to market than the rest of the Spanish horror output of late but if it does make it to a cinema near you, please support it. It's yet another of the highlights of the festival so far, and is sure to leave you with plenty to think about it while undoubtedly attaining cult classic status. It's been a long time since I left the cinema hearing so many people arguing about what just happened in the movie - make sure one of those voices is yours.