The Creature

“Have I changed?”

Plagued with fertility issues, Marcos (Juan Diego, Can't Say Goodbye) and Cristina (Ana Belén, Turkish Passion) see their marriage crumbling as he ignores her traumas to align himself with a growing fascist political movement. Marcos desires wealth and status, leveraging his celebrity, hoping God will provide a family to complete his image. When Cristina becomes pregnant, she miscarries after a vicious dog lunges at her. Ironically, she soon brings home a new stray dog to keep her company. Soon, the dog and Cristina become close. Weirdly close. Their connection drives a wedge between her and Marcos, who now has eyes for his flirty co-host, Vicky. 

Iglesia is always open to exploring counter-culture themes or characters. His work is loaded with subversive storytelling and fringe ideas meant to shock audiences and reveal a world hidden from mainstream cinema. The insinuation within The Creature is that some genuinely salacious things happen between a woman and her dog. However, thanks to some clever editing, it is up to the viewer to decide. Reading into it, you get a sense of what Iglesia wanted to convey without the need for graphic depiction. He chooses instead a violent rape scene between Marco and Cristina to offer the film’s most deplorable moment.  

At the heart of The Creature is Cristina’s reaction to being a cog in the wheel of Frano extremists wanting her body to produce yet another follower of the regime. “And that's what I have to do: dress well and act a fool,” she says, going to a rally with Marcos. Here, there is more humanity in the love of a dog than in the love of her husband, the Catholic Church, and her country. While Iglesia goes to great lengths to depict her awareness and choices, the assumed zoophilia angle is an excellent metaphor. Watching the film was an exciting experience as I wasn’t sure where the story was going, but as a fan of Iglesia’s work, I was along for the ride! 

The film didn’t cause much controversy during its release. Many of his other works received their fair share of vitriol for sure. Few directors in the 1970s were doing such transgressive work, making his catalog a critical collection to explore. Thanks, Severin! In different hands, this film would be yet another Sirk-ian melodrama about the pitfalls of marriage, with ideological differences tearing apart the happy couple. Seeing the possibilities, Iglesia took the “sober route,” as filmmaker Gaspar Noe puts it, and takes the feature in a low-key dramatic curve, keeping audiences interested rather than disgusted. 

Vital Disc Stats: The Blu-ray
The Creature arrives on All-Region Blu-ray, thanks to Severin Films. Loading the BD-50 disc presents the Severin logo before landing on the Main Menu screen with scenes from the film framed by the navigation menu. 

Severin Films delivers The Creature to Blu-ray with an excellent 1080p transfer in 1.85:1 from a 2k scan of the original negative. Primaries are strong with greens and blues appearing vibrant. Most scenes have a faint yellow tint, though it's barely noticeable. The source material is in excellent shape with no damage or dirt evident. Grain is minimal except for a few insert reaction shots in which the field becomes heavy. Focus issues appear in certain scenes, such as when Cristina is figuring out a name for the dog. Fine detail is evident within costuming, facial features, and fur particulars on Bruno. I’m impressed at the black levels here as well when Bruno is in shadow, we’re still able to see his features. Overall an excellent transfer of the film though its clean aesthetic makes me wish there was more film grain. 

Severin supplies The Creature with a sole DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 Mono track in the original Spanish. The mix sounds clear and well-balanced from the start. The dialogue and effects are clean, with heated exchanges testing clarity. Musical tracks pop nicely even when their appearance isn’t entirely warranted. English Subtitles are available. 

While not overflowing with supplements, Severin provided enough for fans of the film to begin their journey into Iglesia’s body of work. To get your bearings, start with the Gaspar Noe interview first. 

• A Strange Movie (HD 22:41)  Interview with Assistant Director Alejo Loren in Spanish with English subtitles. A long-time Iglesia collaborator, Loren recounts his work with the director, which includes a hilarious anecdote involving pubic hair. 
• Gaspar / Eloy (HD 14:04) An interview with Filmmaker Gaspar Noe who speaks highly of the filmmaker’s work creating transgressive cinema. 
• Introduction by Gaspar Noe (HD 4:29) In 2023, the Cinematheque Francaise presented a 22-film retrospective of Iglesia’s work. Here is the introduction from filmmaker Gaspar Noe. 

The Creature is a thought-provoking film that doesn’t deserve any of the perverse labels it received. Sure, it’s a weird movie, but I find it interesting that Iglesia’s features depicting homosexual love were targeted more than this melodrama of a traumatized woman finding romantic solace in her dog’s company. Severin’s Blu-ray looks excellent, though it is too polished for my taste. The filtered grain removed a gorgeous filmic patina I wanted for this release. Paired with clear and clean audio, the A/V package is an excellent reason to pick up this film. Iglesia isn’t for everyone, so this is at least Worth A Look