Thesis

"My name is Ángela. They're going to kill me."

1996 2h 5m ES

👍

7.5

SOLID

🍅

86%

FRESH

⭐

7.4

IMDB

★7.5TMDB · 993🍅86%Rotten Tomatoes★7.4IMDB · 45,548

HorrorThriller

Synopsis

Spoiler shield

While working on a thesis about audiovisual violence, film student Ángela finds a snuff video where a girl is tortured until death. Soon she discovers that she was a former student in her university, and that the authors of the video are not very far either.

“My name is Ángela. They're going to kill me.”

WhatsApp X Facebook Telegram

Where to watch · US

PhiloSubscription

AMC Plus Apple TV channelSubscription

AMC+ Amazon ChannelSubscription

AMC+ Roku Premium ChannelSubscription

AMC+Subscription

ShudderSubscription

Shudder Amazon ChannelSubscription

Shudder Apple TV channelSubscription

Amazon VideoRent

Google Play MoviesRent

YouTubeRent

Amazon VideoBuy

Google Play MoviesBuy

YouTubeBuy

Cast

Ana Torrent
Ángela
Fele Martínez
Chema
Eduardo Noriega
Bosco
Xabier Elorriaga
Castro
Miguel Picazo
Figueroa
Nieves Herranz
Sena
Rosa Campillo
Yolanda
Paco Hernández
Ángela's Father

Credits

Behind the camera

Director: Alejandro Amenábar
Writers: Alejandro Amenábar, Alejandro Amenábar, Mateo Gil
Languages: Spanish
Countries: Spain

Want more? Switch to Cinephile mode in the header for DP, composer, budget, box office, production companies, keywords, and release history.

Did you know?

Fun facts 🍿

1 / 7

ERA

Did you know

30 years old — old enough to be someone's favourite childhood film.

MoodPlayr · trivia#01

2 / 7

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Directed by Alejandro Amenábar, shot by Hans Burmann. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.

MoodPlayr · trivia#02

3 / 7

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Original score by Alejandro Amenábar. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.

MoodPlayr · trivia#03

4 / 7

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Editor María Elena Sáinz de Rozas shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.

MoodPlayr · trivia#04

5 / 7

CAST

Did you know

Ana Torrent and Fele Martínez and Eduardo Noriega carry the top of the cast.

MoodPlayr · trivia#05

6 / 7

FACT

Did you know

Marketing tagline: "My name is Ángela. They're going to kill me.".

MoodPlayr · trivia#06

7 / 7

WILD

Did you know

IMDB entry: tt0117883 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.

MoodPlayr · trivia#07

Cinephile deep dive

The take

Alejandro Amenábar directs. Hans Burmann behind the camera. Alejandro Amenábar scores. María Elena Sáinz de Rozas cuts. Produced in Spain. Dialogue in Spanish.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

130 years old — old enough to be someone's favourite childhood film.
2Directed by Alejandro Amenábar, shot by Hans Burmann. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
3Original score by Alejandro Amenábar. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.
4Editor María Elena Sáinz de Rozas shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
5Ana Torrent and Fele Martínez and Eduardo Noriega carry the top of the cast.
6Marketing tagline: "My name is Ángela. They're going to kill me.".
7IMDB entry: tt0117883 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.
8Classified under 22 themes, including "research", "madrid, spain", "kidnapping", "psychopath".

The technical file

Cinematography: Hans Burmann
Original score: Alejandro Amenábar
Editing: María Elena Sáinz de Rozas
Costume design: Ana Cuerda
Makeup / hair: Paca Almenara
Runtime: 125 min · 2h 5m
Status: Released
Box office: $2,647,055
Original language: ES
Certification (US): 18+
IMDB: Thesis (1996)
Rotten Tomatoes: 86% 🍅 Fresh
IMDB rating: 7.4/10 · 45,548 votes
MPAA: R

Awards

15 wins & 6 nominations total

Also by

Alejandro Amenábar

Trailers & featurettes

Watch the pieces

Community reviews

What people are saying

Filipe Manuel Neto2023-01-05
★ 8/10
A hidden gem of Spanish cinema. What would we do if, while preparing our doctoral or master's thesis, accidentally came across evidence of a murder? I bet with most people, the obvious thing would be to go straight to the police and hand the matter over to the professionals, right? This is not what Angela decides to do when, while preparing her thesis on violence in cinema, she comes across a “snuff” video, showing a student from her college being savagely murdered and chopped into pieces. A video that caused her thesis advisor's sudden death when he saw it. Despite the very low budget, the film is really very well-made, and a clear sign of the great capacity, talent and creativity of its director, Alejandro Amenábar, one of the best and most regular Spanish directors (regular in the quality of his work, because he is one of those who only make a movie occasionally). I don't know, but while watching the film, I got the feeling that the director drew inspiration from his own academic experience, especially when he studied at the Complutense University in Madrid. We don't have, in this film, easily recognizable actors, but it wasn't difficult for me, who saw most of the director's work, to recognize Eduardo Noriega's face, and to appreciate the actor's well-done job, in the role of a magnetic, charming and elusive student, who may very well be the great villain (or not, watch the movie). Ana Torrent also did a job well done, although not much was required of her. Fele Martínez was also pleasant, giving the character a welcome irreverence and a somewhat unpredictable way of acting. Xabier Elorriaga looks a lot like some idiot college professor, so I also think he did well in the role he was given. Being a low-cost film, with few resources, we don't have anything visually ostentatious here, nor great effects. The film was planned to be simple, and the production clearly worked with what they had at hand: the sets and costumes are quite uncharacteristic, but they are within what we expect to see, since filming was almost always done on location. I really have doubts if there was a place that we can call a “studio” in this production. The soundtrack relies on electronics and synthesizer, but it works well, and fits with the period in which the film was made. Simple, effective, with good dialogues, a good script, an excellent director and good actors: a hidden pearl.

Production companies