CRIMEN FERPECTO / PERFECT CRIME (2004)
Director: Álex de la Iglesia
Cast: Guillermo Toledo, Mónica Cervera, Luis Varela, Enrique Villén, Fernando Tejero
Screenplay: Álex de la Iglesia and Jorge Guerricaechevarría
Guillermo Toledo, Mónica Cervera, Perfect Crime
In Álex de la Iglesia's daring, pitch-black comedy Crimen ferpecto / Perfect Crime, the ambitious, suave Rafael (Guillermo Toledo) has two major goals in life: to bed every beautiful woman in sight and to become the head of the clothing department at one of Madrid's major department stores.
Everything seems to be going Rafael's way — until he discovers that his chief rival, Don Antonio (Luis Varela), has been chosen as the new Emperor of the Floor. A heated confrontation between Rafael and his newly appointed boss leads to the latter's accidental death. In a panic, Rafael instinctively tries to hide the body. He is unaware that someone has overheard the fatal argument.
That someone turns out to be Lourdes (Mónica Cervera) a shy, nail-biting salesgirl whom Rafael abhors because he finds her ugly. In the past, Lourdes used to become an emotional wreck whenever she crossed paths with the sensuous Rafael; now, things are different. She quickly takes charge of the situation by gleefully getting rid of Don Antonio's chopped-up body and by blackmailing Rafael — either he becomes her lover or…
Even though Rafael doesn't have much of a choice, he soon realizes that he can't cope with Lourdes, for she needs a perpetual sex machine to keep her satisfied. Besides, she follows his every move and has turned the clothing department into her own private fiefdom. Desperate, Rafael starts planning the perfect way to get rid of his overbearing accomplice.
Speaking to the audience at the AFI FEST screening of Perfect Crime, director de la Iglesia (who also co-wrote the screenplay with Jorge Guerricaechevarría) explained that he was a "freak," and therefore could relate to the film's twisted, wide-eyed, big-nosed heroine — a character that wouldn't remind anyone of, say, Marilyn Monroe or Jayne Mansfield.
But that's all the better. As the deceptively shy and insecure salesgirl who turns out to be a fiercely determined, sexually insatiable, all-seeing Medusa, Mónica Cervera — in a role written expressly for her — is a unique kind of anti-heroine. Whenever she's on screen, this Spanish-speaking Rosalind Russell with a (really sharp) edge lifts Perfect Crime to the realm of classic comedy.
As a plus, de la Iglesia and Guerricaechevarría come up with a few outrageous, politically incorrect bits that would have done fellow Spaniard Pedro Almodóvar proud, including an uproarious dinner-table conversation involving Lourdes' mother and sister. The latter is a precocious (and psychopathic) little girl who, much to mom's dismay, claims she can't eat because she got pregnant after being raped by her gym teacher.
Unfortunately, despite its many positive elements Perfect Crime suffers whenever Cervera is not around. Without that one key performance, de la Iglesia's gritty satire on our perverted social and personal values is unable to sustain its comedic level.
Reviewed at AFI FEST.