It was quite by chance that I watched El Día de la Bestia (Day of the Beast) last night. FilmFour aired it as part of their extreme cinema series. It's written and directed by Álex de la Iglesia, a popular Spanish filmmaker who's created such films as Acción Mutante (Mutant Action), and more recently, 800 Balas (800 Bullets).

With a title like Day of the Beast I was expecting schlock horror, and my finger was hovering over the remote expecting to switch channels within a couple of minutes. In fact I put the remote down quickly. The plot revolves around Basque theologian, Padre Padre Ángel Beriartúa, (Álex Angulo) who's discovered via his biblical research that the the date of the birth of the Antichrist is hidden in the bible. Of course, he discovers that the Antichrist is going to be born in a couple of days: before dawn on Christmas Day. The Padre decides that the signs point to Madrid as being the beast's birthplace, and he sets off to save the world. He believes that if he sells his soul to the devil, then he can discover the precise birthplace of Satan's child, and destroy it. Upon arrival in Madrid, the priest teams up with José María (Santiago Segura), a straggly-haired death metal punk who does a lot of drugs. José latches onto the priest in a protective role as the Padre searches Madrid for a sign of the forthcoming Apocalypse. Father Beriartúa, decides that a TV psychic, Prof. Cavan (Armando De Razza), knows the correct ritual he must enact in order to sell his soul to the devil, so he turns up at his door wielding his faith, and an ability to get belligerent.

Álex Angulo is excellent as the earnest priest, who sometimes appears deranged when he's not seeming like a prophet. Santiago Segura puts in a brilliant performance as the loony, clumsy sidekick, who tags along with the Padre causing equal amounts trouble as help. The final part of the three wise men, Armando De Razza, is wonderful as the scamming TV psychic who doesn't believe in what he does until he meets up with the crazed theologian. This is an enjoyable black comedy, with good pacing, lots of action, witty dialogue, believable performances and an appearance by Satan himself. Who could ask for more? Since there are so many poor examples of this kind of Apocalyptic movie - usually taking themselves far too seriously - it's a refreshing change to see one that is humorous and gory in equal measures. Álex de la Iglesia directs the movie with assurance, and keeps the audience guessing whether the priest is truly mad, or if there is some truth to his mission. Unfortunately I think the final scene in the film is weak, and probably unnecessary, and lets down what is a fine example of a Apocalyptic horror movie. It's a minor flaw in what is otherwise an (occ)cult gem. I'll be watching out for more of Álex's work in the future.