Sendero (2015) – Movie Review

I’ll admit that I had good expectations for Sendero (a.k.a. Path). The synopsis made the film look promising. But was it just a good concept that led to a poor execution? Find out here!

(Synopsis provided by IMDb.com):

“Ana (Andrea García-Huidobro) is a young woman who has just been given a scholarship to study in France. She decides to celebrate with her friends outside of the country. On the road, after helping an injured girl, they are kidnapped by a weird family.”

Unforntantly for me, Sendero didn’t deliver. The film tried to provide a mystery thriller with no answers and no thrills. If Sendero spent less time talking about the main character’s scholarship, and more time explaining the whole point of the film, it would have been better.

What worked for the film:

I will give the film points for the gore factor because it doesn’t hold back on the blood or special effects. The antagonists and the situation were actually pretty intriguing. The acting was decent enough. Those notes are probably the only positive things I have to say about Sendero.

What didn’t work for the film:

This column is going to be a hell of a lot longer. Let’s start with the fact that Sendero made absolutely zero sense! It has antagonists that claimed they’ve done this to people for decades, but they act like it’s their first day on the job. They constantly criticize each other and say “these victims must not be touched or violated”, then turn around and basically say “screw it, let’s just molest everyone we run into.” Then you have the leader who’s dressed like she lives in Victorian times. She was intimidating and creepy, but she just seemed so out of place.

Sendero leaves you with more questions than answers. They never explain who these antagonists are or why they kidnap people. The majority of the film is just the protagonists escaping and getting re- captured over and over again. The ending is unsatisfactory. They tried to build up something big coming for the main characters, then bring us someone that is bland and doesn’t do anything but threaten! What the hell were the filmmakers trying to accomplish here?

Final thoughts:

You wouldn’t be missing anything if you skipped this film. It was boring, confusing, and just a waste of time. However, if you like a film with zero comprehension and lots of blood, Sendero might be for you after all!