Clare Durant
Alex
Overview
Abraham and his female friend Álex have a close relationship; they share both secrets and fears. When Abraham starts going out with Anchi, he begins to distance himself from Álex, who gradually dives into a living hell where she encounters strange apparitions, nightmarish visions and extreme situations.
Cast
12 people
Reviews
5 min readThe Unseen Weight of a Teenage Mind
There’s a moment in Animas where the camera lingers on Álex’s face as she wakes from another nightmare, her breath shallow, her eyes darting like a trapped animal’s. The shot is framed so tightly that her panic feels like it’s pressing against the screen. It’s the kind of moment that makes you lean forward in your seat—not because something is happening, but because nothing is, and that’s the point.
The horror here isn’t in what’s chasing her; it’s in the suffocating quiet of her own mind.
Directed by José F. Ortuño and Laura Alvea, Animas is a film that understands something fundamental about adolescence: the way fear doesn’t always announce itself with jump scares or gore, but seeps in through the cracks of everyday life. The story follows Álex (Clare Durant), a high schooler whose world begins to unravel when her childhood friend Abraham (Iván Pellicer) starts pulling away after getting involved with a new girl, Anchi (Liz Lobato).
What starts as a familiar tale of shifting friendships quickly spirals into something far more unsettling. Álex’s reality fractures—hallucinations, apparitions, and a creeping sense of dread that blurs the line between psychological torment and supernatural intervention.
The film’s greatest strength lies in its refusal to explain itself. Is Álex losing her grip on reality, or is something sinister truly haunting her? The directors never hand us a neat answer, and that ambiguity is both Animas’s most frustrating and most compelling quality.
It’s a gamble that won’t work for everyone—horror fans expecting a clear payoff might walk away feeling cheated—but for those willing to sit with the discomfort, the film offers something rarer: a portrait of teenage isolation that feels viscerally real.
Ortuño and Alvea’s co-direction is an interesting choice, and it shows in the film’s duality. There’s a clinical precision to the way the camera captures Álex’s unraveling—close-ups that feel almost invasive, long takes that let the tension simmer—but there’s also a dreamlike quality to the visuals, as if the film itself is struggling to distinguish between memory and nightmare.
Full Plot (Spoilers)
Spoiler warning
This section contains the full plot, including major story reveals. Overview above stays spoiler-free.
Buzz & Rumors
Public reportsBehind the Scenes of Animas (2018): A Spanish Horror Collaboration with Netflix Buzz
Animas (2018), the Spanish horror film directed by José F. Ortuño and Laura Alvea, arrived with a whisper but quickly gained traction for its eerie atmosphere and Netflix distribution. latestnetflix.com's read is that while the movie’s plot—centered on a group of friends haunted by supernatural forces—has sparked debate among horror fans, the behind-the-scenes story offers a glimpse into its creative process and the challenges of indie filmmaking.
A Dual-Director Vision
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fSpphfBa5XI
Ortuño and Alvea, a directing duo, brought Animas to life as a co-creation, a rarity in horror cinema where solo auteurs often dominate. Their collaboration appears to have been a deliberate choice, blending Ortuño’s background in genre filmmaking with Alvea’s narrative-driven approach. The film’s dual-country production—Spain and Belgium—hints at a logistical tightrope, though specifics about budget or on-set tensions remain scarce 
. What’s clear is that the directors aimed for a slow-burn horror experience, prioritizing mood over jump scares, a decision that divided audiences .
Cast Chemistry and Netflix’s Role
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XMDQ3tX9QRs
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=53v2zJoG94Y
The film’s ensemble cast, led by Clare Durant and Iván Pellicer, brought a mix of fresh faces and veteran actors like Ángela Molina. Durant and Pellicer, in particular, have spoken about the film’s intense shooting conditions in interviews, though details are limited to promotional clips. In a YouTube interview, the two leads described the experience as "challenging but rewarding," citing the film’s psychological demands . Netflix’s acquisition of Animas in 2019 (a year after its theatrical release) gave the movie a second life, exposing it to a global audience and sparking renewed discussions about its ambiguous ending .
Mixed Reception and Fan Theories
Animas’s reception was polarized. While some praised its atmospheric tension and cinematography, others criticized its pacing and lack of clarity. The film’s 5.1/10 rating on SensCritique reflects this divide, with voters split between calling it "underwhelming" and "underrated" . Netflix’s platform amplified fan theories, particularly around the film’s cryptic finale, which became a hot topic in spoiler-filled reviews . The directors have remained tight-lipped about intended interpretations, leaving audiences to debate whether the horror was supernatural or psychological.
The Road Ahead
Despite its modest budget and mixed reviews, Animas stands as a testament to the resilience of indie horror. Ortuño and Alvea’s partnership, the cast’s commitment, and Netflix’s distribution all played roles in the film’s journey from festival circuits to streaming prominence. Whether it spawns a cult following or fades into obscurity remains to be seen—but for now, it’s a case study in how horror thrives in the digital age.
Entertainment rumors and trivia aggregated from public reporting. Treat speculation as unverified unless a cited source confirms it.