On The 3rd Day – Fantasia Review (3/5)

ON THE 3RD DAY is a different kind of vampire horror movie from Argentina (org. title Al Tercer Día). It’s a slow-burn story that utilizes flashbacks in a very elegant way. We screened it during Fantasia 2021. Read our full On the 3rd Day movie review here!

ON THE 3RD DAY is a horror movie from Argentina (org. title Al Tercer Día). This is essentially a classic vampire story but told in a somewhat different way. You’ll experience the story via flashbacks. Mostly due to the fact that our main character is in an accident and then wakes up three days later and needs to figure out what happened.

This is a slow-burn story at times but never becomes boring or too slow. Ultimately, this is a very brutal storyline in many ways. Both supernatural and very realistic and all-too-familiar elements. It does feel a tad too long which is why our overall rating isn’t higher.

Continue reading our On the 3rd Day movie review below. We screened it at Fantasia.

The story of becoming a vampire

We’ve watched many different kinds of vampire stories over the years. Sure, there are the huge blockbuster movies from The Lost Boys to Interview with a Vampire and Daybreakers. However, many indie and foreign filmmakers have also been making vampire movies with different takes on these often classic stories.

You may have heard of Park Chan-wook’s Thirst (2009) from South Korea or Only Lovers Left Alive (2013) which starred Tilda Swinton and Tom Hiddleston. Also, the recent Netflix release Blood Red Sky starts slow but turns out to be a classic vampire slasher movie.

DON’T MISS OUT ON

Our review of the Netflix vampire movie Blood Red Sky here >

The brutal ending of On the 3rd Day

For On the 3rd Day, we’re not dealing with a story that’s all that different or innovative. However, the style of storytelling makes it feel fresh and relevant. All while managing to stay true to the vampire horror movie classic elements.

Also, the ending of On the 3rd Day is brutal! Sure, you might guess what’s coming for the On the 3rd Day ending when it’s approaching. But again, the way it’s told hits perfectly.

A lot of what works really well for this movie is due to both the story and directing, but it’s the cast that pulls it all together. In particular, the main character Cecilia is portrayed perfectly by Mariana Anghileri.

Check out On the 3rd Day if you enjoy vampire stories!

Daniel de la Vega is the director of On the 3rd Day which was written by Alberto Fasce and Gonzalo Ventura. This vampire horror mystery is based on a novel by co-writer Gonzalo Ventura which might be why the story does feel very strong.

The Argentinean company behind this movie is Del Toro Films. They also made the amazing The Funeral Home from last year’s Fantasia lineup. Basically, you can be pretty sure that the production quality and story are strong enough when they decide to produce a movie.

DON’T MISS OUT ON

Our review of The Funeral Home which we reviewed during Fantasia 2020 here >

In my opinion, On the 3rd Day (Al Tercer Día) is exactly the kind of movie that shows how strong Spanish language horror movies tend to be. And from Argentina specifically, you should also make sure you check out Aterrados which is terrifyingly brilliant.

On the 3rd Day screened during the international film festival Fantasia in Canada.

Details

Director: Daniel De la Vega
Writers: Alberto Fasce, Gonzalo Ventura
Stars: Moro Anghileri, Diego Cremonesi, Lautaro Delgado Tymruk, Osmar Nuñez, Gerardo Romano, Osvaldo Santoro