“Rosario” is an impressive directorial debut

First-time director Felipe Vargas explores the consequences of forgetting one’s roots in the chilling horror film “Rosario,” produced by Highland Film Group and Muchio Mass Media. Alan Trezza wrote the screenplay, which begins with our titular character, a Mexican immigrant, receiving her first communion. After a spooky incident involving her eerie grandmother, it becomes evident that Rosario is destined to move on when she grows older.

After the opening credits, the film jumps to the present day, where Rosario (Emeraude Toubia) now goes by Rose and is a successful stockbroker living in the big city. The character of Rose stands out in horror narratives because she embodies both capitalist resilience and emotional detachment before returning to her late grandmother’s apartment, which forces her to face a cultural and spiritual legacy she desperately wanted to avoid. The screenplay elegantly portrays how Rose battles with her internalized need to hide her Mexican heritage, which Vargas addresses with both emotional depth and subtlety.

Emeraude Toubia is a real find as she juggles Rose’s avoidance of her heritage, which becomes both a failure and a perilous weakness because ancestral forces start appearing in sickening and more violent forms. The movie slowly reveals its central mystery through deliberate pacing, letting dread grow in hidden areas and silent intervals.

The discovery of a secret room in her apartment containing arcane artifacts and ancient symbols reveals Rosario the hidden truth about her ancestral history. Here, “Rosario” finds its voice: Through ritualistic duty emerges a generational descent into horror that transforms love and survival into a lens of loss.

David Dastmalchian captivates as a secretive tenant, sharing only fragments of his vast knowledge. He masterfully blends elements of threat and sorrow, creating a bridge between the physical and spiritual. Through subtle gestures, he conveys terror while his eyes reveal hidden wisdom, showcasing his talent in horror. His strong screen presence is evident whether delivering a soft monologue or observing Rose with unsettling calm. José Zúñiga and Paul Ben-Victor excel as Rose’s father and grandmother’s superintendent.

The most impressive element of the film could be its practical effects. Vargas immerses himself completely in body horror which delivers disturbing yet fascinating results. Veins protrude in unnatural ways while skin breaks apart in ritualistic designs, and audiences will recoil during a transformation sequence that features an ancestral mask. The film benefits from no CGI usage because the practical makeup and effects provide a realistic texture that makes its horror elements truly disturbing.

“Rosario” doesn’t just frighten—it confronts. We bear our family heritage’s burdens even as we escape its grasp. Felipe Vargas’s first film presents an audacious horror experience that generates genuine fear through its atmospheric and gory elements and “commitment to cultural specificity and emotional truth. “We can hope that Felipe Vargas has just started an enduring career marked by fearlessness.

Final Grade: B

“Rosario” opens in limited release tomorrow.