In 2017, brothers Luciano and Nicolas Onetti released the found footage horror film What the Waters Left Behind. Met with mixed reviews, it has amassed a large enough audience to warrant a sequel titled, What the Waters Left Behind: Scars. Unearthed Films released the previous entry stateside. This time, MVD Visual and Cleopatra Entertainment handled those duties. It’s fitting since the film revolves around an indie rock band. I’m a sucker for rock and roll horror films though this isn’t exactly the classic definition. Putting a band at the core of a horror story piques my interest immediately, so I was eager to see if it worked.
An Anglo-American indie rock band finds themselves stranded in Epecuen, Argentina (where the terrifying events of the first film take place). The group is not only dealing with being stuck; they have to process the streak of bad luck they experienced while touring, as well as their own personal and internal conflicts. To make matters worse, what they encounter in the small town will test their strength and sanity, driving them to the brink of hell.
What the Waters Left Behind: Scars has a familiar premise, but the location helps to set it apart from other films of this ilk. The village of Epecuen, Argentina, spent something like twenty-five years under before it began to subside. It’s no longer inhabited by people, maybe one person, but to use this as the location of a horror film was slick (though not the first time). There’s some pretty spectacular-looking drone footage that captures how the place looks, and it feels like it really gives the film some added production value.
The story isn’t so unique. A group of young folks gets lost and fall victim to a crazed family living in the middle of nowhere. We’ve seen it a million times before. The rock band in the film is known as The Ravens. In the film’s first half, they’re all at each others’ throats after tour life begins to take its toll. Later in the movie, there’s an interesting shift when the crazed family begins to have inner turmoil, so the contrast adds something extra.
What the Waters Left Behind: Scars is pretty bleak and joyless, making it a tough watch, but it has something that draws you in. It’s a bit brutal at times but not overly full of unnecessary gore. It leaves plenty to the imagination.
The cast is solid, and the actors playing the crazed family were pretty menacing. This one was directed by Nicolas Onetti, with his brother taking a step back and acting as a producer. According to the end credits, the opening scene was directed by Matias Salinas. I never saw the first film, so my review is only based on what I saw in the sequel.
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What really stood out for me was the soundtrack. We get to see the band perform, and the song they play, “Seven Sins,” was performed by Raven Black, whom I had interviewed during the height of the pandemic. They have a second song featured at the end of the film, “Hear Me Cry,” so it was a cool surprise for me to hear them.
Overall, the movie is a worthy watch; it just doesn’t do anything we haven’t seen before. But What the Waters Left Behind: Scars is elevated by its locations and solid casting of the villains. The Blu-ray is pretty bare-bones and only includes a trailer and slideshow.
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