The Accursed Island is a weird, dusty trip worth taking

Is it worth your time?

Honestly, only if you have a soft spot for 1940s-era genre stuff that doesn't quite know what it wants to be. If you need pacing that moves like a modern blockbuster, skip it. If you like the smell of old film stock and watching characters act increasingly frantic in suits and ties, stay put.

The whole thing feels like a stage play that got lost on the way to the set. The island looks like it was built in a shed, but there’s a certain charm to the shadows. It’s not exactly The Ghost Breaker in terms of polish, but it has a weird, twitchy energy.

The vibe check

Antonio Quintana is doing a lot of heavy lifting here with his face. He spends about forty percent of the runtime just looking vaguely concerned at things off-camera. I can’t blame him. The script gives everyone plenty of reasons to be stressed out.

There is this one moment where they’re trapped in a cave, and the sound design just… quits. No wind, no distant waves. Just absolute, vacuum-like silence. It’s either a total technical failure or a stroke of genius. I haven't decided yet. 🧐

Some of the supporting cast are clearly just there to fill space, like they’re waiting for their lunch break to start. But then you get these sudden bursts of intensity from Mario Tenorio that catch you totally off guard. He delivers lines like he’s actually terrified of the scenery.

Bits and pieces

• The lighting in the cave scenes is aggressively moody. Sometimes you can't even tell who is talking.
• The dialogue feels like it was translated through a thick wool blanket. It’s clunky, but it adds to the surreal feeling.
• I’m pretty sure the same rock shows up in four different locations on the island.
• The pacing is weirdly stop-and-go, like a car with a bad transmission.

It reminds me a little bit of the dusty, unhurried tension you find in Call of the Desert, though this is definitely grimmer. It’s not trying to be a masterpiece. It’s just trying to get you to the end of the reel without everyone losing their minds completely.

It’s flawed. It’s definitely not for everyone. But it’s got a pulse, which is more than I can say for a lot of stuff I watch these days. Just don't expect it to make perfect sense by the time the credits roll. 📽️