A news crew tries to interview some cops investigating a strange scene at a home up in the mountains. A freaked out neighbor called the police the night before after hearing loud sounds and screaming on the property. The residents of the house have disappeared. Next, we flash back to see the missing couple, Manuel and Altair, a few weeks before their disappearance. Manuel is a filmmaker whose project gets sidelined while he documents his wife Altair’s odd behavior. She’s been having terrible dreams, sleepwalking, and is acting funny (to put it very midly). Their marriage goes to heck as Altair becomes more and more disturbed. She seems to be waiting for something and it’s not the invention of the iPod (I don’t think).

1974: La posesión de Altair (2016) is Mexican writer/director Victor Dryere’s debut feature film and it’s a doozy. It’s gotta be hard as hell to find a new angle on both the possession and the found footage sub-genres, but he has managed to do both. The usual tropes of these types of films are here but they’re slickly done and delivered with an energy that more indie horror filmmakers need to take note of.  It’s impossible to deny how much care went into the production of this film. I really wish 1974 (the film, not the year) had had a theatrical release beyond a few festival appearances here in the US as I would’ve happily gone to check this one out.

My only issues with this film are that a couple of the setups for the scares don’t land so great and some of the symbolism is a bit too heavy handed. Those nitpicks aside, there’s a lot to enjoy with 1974: La posesión de Altair. It’s an immersive little film thanks to its great performances, the fact that it was shot on an actual 8mm film camera, the creepy soundscape music score, and the tacky 1970s decor. My fondness for the found footage genre has waned greatly over the years, but this little gem just does its thing so damn well. I really want to talk about the ending because Dryere beat a certain American film to the punch by several months. But I won’t spoil it for you.

This All Region Blu-ray from Cauldron Films looks very nice but not too nice since this film is supposed to be all beat up and stuff. The only extra is an interview with Uriel Villalobos, the film’s sound designer, who discusses how he created the film’s unsettling aural atmosphere. It’s really cool, but I was hoping to hear from more of the crew and the cast about this film. There is also a trailer for 1974: La posesión de Altair. The limited edition of this release comes with a soundtrack CD.