Review by Gary Tooze

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• Trailer (1:35 in 1080P)

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Description: Shocking, bloody and deeply affecting, We Are What We Are is a visceral and powerful portrait of a family bound by a monstrous secret. When a middle-aged man dies in the street, his devastated family is left in crisis: for their patriarch has always provided the human flesh on which they feed. Now he is gone, they are left with a terrible dilemma who will lead their hunt for victims and how will they sate their terrible hunger?

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When the patriarch of the family passes away, the teenage children must take responsibility for the family chores: the preparation of the rituals, the hunting and putting the all-important meat on the table. These newfound responsibilities are even more daunting, however, when you live in the city and happen to be a family of cannibals.

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A middle-aged man dies in the street, leaving his widow and three children destitute. The devastated family is confronted... not only with his loss but with a terrible challenge -- how to survive. For they are cannibals. They have always existed on a diet of human flesh consumed in bloody ritual ceremonies... and the victims have always been provided by the father. Now that he is gone, who will hunt? Who will lead them? How will they sate their horrific hunger? The task falls to the eldest son, Alfredo, a teenage misfit who seems far from ready to accept the challenge...

 

 

Excerpt from Eye For Film located HERE

Image :    NOTE: The below Blu-ray captures were taken directly from the Blu-ray disc.

We Are What We Are is technically modest on Blu-ray from Chelsea Cinema in the UK.  The image quality has some minor noise in the film's many dark scenes. Overall it is quite acceptable and gave me a decent presentation.  This is only single-layered but there is detail and depth above what one might expect. Skin tones seem a shade warm but contrast exhibits healthy black levels. Daylight scenes are more impressive but the cinematography should get some kudos for some interesting shots. Aside from the noise I have no strong complaints and the film's scheme maintains the eerie mood well - and the Blu-ray probably looks similar to the way the film did theatrically. I see no evidence of manipulation. It is consistent, clean and creepy.

CLICK EACH BLU-RAY CAPTURE TO SEE ALL IMAGES IN FULL 1920X1080 RESOLUTION

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We are provided with a DTS-HD Master 5.1 track at 1851 kbps in original Spanish with non-removable English subtitles. There are some crisp surprises with suspenseful depth. Enrico Chapela provides a haunting score that stayed in my head after the film that the lossless track produced well at the high end. My Momitsu has identified it as being a region FREE disc playable on Blu-ray machines worldwide.

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BOTTOM LINE:
I went into 'We Are What We Are' blind - not knowing what to expect. It keeps hinting at the horror genre but the real direction was curiously disturbing in a different, and more real, sense. There is some adept handling of the material and occasionally impressive cinematography. The Blu-ray gave me a chilling presentation. It's not a film I would recommend for the faint-of-heart but for those more adventurous - this is one scary and memorable flic! 

Gary Tooze

April 11th, 2011