I'm not a complete fan of Alex de la Iglesia's movies - he's technically proficient, but the things that tend to interest him (old style cinephilia, terror films of the 70s, pop culture in general) are far from mine. This biting satire of consumerism, though, is probably as perfect (or ferpect) a film as he can make. The movie stars Rafael, who works as the head salesman in the ladies section of a large department store in Madrid (it is subtly touching that Rafael believes his position in society is far more important than it really is). Around him work very beautiful, model-like women, that he never fails to bed. He's the ruler of a very small kingdom. Soon, a job opens for one of the top posts in the department store, and he founds himself fighting for the promotion against the balding Don Antonio, one of the old-fashioned vendors in the men' section. Rafael accidentally kills him, and after wards disposes of the body. But there is one witness, Lourdes, the ugliest worker in the department store (and I mean, really ugly), who is in love with Rafael. She's also something of a psycho, has a really crazy family and she will then proceed to blackmail Rafael into marrying her in order not to blow the whistle about the murder; a nightmare for the consummate ladies man that is Rafael. The last 20 minutes are something of a letdown (De la Iglesia probably didn't knew how to end the story, since a tragic ending would be out of line with the farcical tone of the movie before), but overall this is a surprisingly strong, entertaining movie, that is also hilariously critical of capitalism.

I caught this movie purely by chance on cable. Without casting too many aspersions on other user comments, there is a slightly different dynamic that makes this movie so enjoyable. While others have purported that Rafa is seeking a perfect life, the much more accurate description of his character is one that is seeking overindulgence in the material (and carnal) luxuries that can be found within the store he works in, Yeyo's. Without Yeyo's, Rafa is nothing, and Rafa knows this. Rafa appreciates, understands, and desires all excesses that can be obtained as a floor salesman, and ultimately, the store manager. So, when his archnemisis, Don Antonio, is promoted ahead of him, on the fickle whims of the store's accountants, Rafa is ruined, as Don Antonio makes priority one to fire Rafa. As fortune frowns on Rafa, he is forced to become compatriot and lover to the store's most miserable employee, Lourdes. Lourdes personifies all that Rafa abhors. But, Lourdes nonetheless makes Rafa hopelessly entangled to her. The true comedy of this movie is how Rafa must continually splinter and sacrifice his love of the grandiose to constantly appease his tormentor, Lourdes. I thought that Monica Cervera was particularly exceptional in her portrayal of Lourdes. Cervera excellently balances the neurosis of Lourdes with her strangulating hold over Rafa. Her embodiment of this precarious character is very believable. Not an easy task. Of course, Rafa's two most humiliating scenes are meeting Lourdes' family, and the wedding scene in Yeyo's. They are both priceless. I found the ending much more entertaining the most. Rafa is able to escape his personal hell, and rebuild a portion of the missing luxury in his life, only to have Lourdes give him one last punishing blow. The mud shower on the street was unnecessary and cliché though. If you catch this movie, give it enough latitude to draw you in.

It's hilarious. It's poignant. It's artistic. It's even philosophical at times. I can't imagine anyone not liking this film. "Crimen ferpecto" is a great surrealistic comedy along the lines of "Being John Malkovich", "One Night at McCools" or even the masterpiece "Brazil".The plot begins bizarre, and from there it gets ever bizarrer. Set in a department store (the perfect metaphor for the human condition!), this film brilliantly weaves the themes of glamorous/plastic life versus the mundane/real. Trapped between worlds and desperately trying to achieve the former is our hero Rafael, a man whose entire life exists within the ladies' clothing department. Somehow he gets wrapped up in murder, blackmail and ectoplasmic visitations from lovable corpses. Yeah, I told you it gets bizarre.But despite the zany plot, there's a very poignant & sober message that runs just below the surface. It's subtle, but it comes to fruition during the magnificent climax when we realize exactly what this whole wacky movie is about. If you've paid attention to symbolism, metaphor, allegory and all that intellectual jazz, you'll get it, and you'll see how everything fits into place. If not, fine, you'll enjoy the picture anyway because it's just plain funny. The beauty is that you can take it at your own pace. Great film. Damn near perfect. Er... ferpect.

I stumbled across this by accident and I am surprised that it didn't get wide release. Its a susbstanially funny movie and satire attacking one aspect of the "average Joe" Raphael (played by Guillermo Toledo) feels he is living the perfect life: working in an upscale department store as a handsome, well-dressed man, who haves sex with all the hot female employees (using the bed sets and the dressing rooms) while most of the other employees respect him. His only problem is a rival salesperson, who gets promoted over him. In a fit of rage, he accidentally kills him and the crime is witnessed by an mousy, unattractive sales clerk Lourdes (Monica Cervera). She vows to keep quiet, if he promises to go out with her. He agrees, but when she realizes she's got him wrapped around her finger, her demands of him increases as she forces him to do the 3 things he hates the most: marriage, settling down, and having children. As he's slowly driven insane by these developments, Raphael decides to get himself out of this rut once and for all.The film does a great job of skewering salesmen, particularly ones based on commission and the workplace rivalries, politics, backstabbing and etc. Anyone working in or who has been in such positions would sympathize. Home life, marriage and children gets attacked too as one of the funniest moments of the movie comes where he pays Lourdes's family a visit. The best acting in my book comes from Lourdes who's transformation from the shy, meek, clerk, to dominating, conniving woman is great if not hilarious. One wonders if she had this planned all along.But the problem I had with this one was the running length. Its a bit too long for a movie of this type, and as such, the comedy runs dry as it becomes more of a detective/character study flick, which it isn't really good at. While things end somewhat conveniently (albiet contrived), one wonders if they could've ended it much earlier with a neater ending.All and all, a nice and somewhat clever and funny little diversion thats worth the rental/viewing.