I do like a conceptual horror film, but they don’t always work well. The Platform is a vertical prison, cells stacked high, but we don’t know how high… or how low. Only that we open on level 48 with Goreng (Ivan Massagué) and Trimagasi (Zorion Eguileor). They’re in a square concrete cell, industrial lighting and a big square hole cut in the ceiling and floor, where they can see the edges of those above and below. Visually it looks amazing. Goreng is new and a novice. Trimagasi though clues him in on the do and don’ts. It’s as much a prison as it’s a metaphor for the class structure. Don’t talk to those below you, for those above won’t talk to you. To hammer this home, the only available food comes down through the holes of each level on a big levitating slab, but by the time it’s reached level 48, the levels above have had their fill. Leaving our two inmates with the leftovers, to eat what they can for a few minutes, before they must finish and the disgusting feast decends once more. So why are they here, what have they done? I don’t want spoil it, but let’s just say it’s more of an exchange than a punishment. Although not everyone is in the same boat. That’s the point. It’s a study in human nature… and it is Brutal! It’s undeniably gory, but not without merit. I hate gore in films for the sake of it, or any shock tactics, but this rides the line just about right. That said it’s not an easy watch, I guess that’s the point. It’s not all bleak though, for what is the human spirit without hope. Goreng has hope and he has a plan to prove that humans are innately compassionate. Like I said not all conceptual horror films work well, but this does.
6/10
