Phantom Project (Proyecto Fantasma), the new Chilean film directed by Roberto Doveris is several things at once. It’s a light comedy-drama that revolves around a queer character without the coming-of-age part. It’s also a ghost story without the horror part. When these two changing pieces come together under one umbrella, it turns into an unexpected and mysterious spell of a movie unlike anything you’ve ever seen.
Think about A ghost story meet at the weekend. In hindsight, the loose plot revolving around a handsome gay protagonist named Pablo (Juan Cano) trying to figure out his life feels like a bedroom drama, but its structure shifts slowly and adapts to change and change. interruption. He welcomes a ghost in the form of animated, metamorphosed white lines that find a place in the apartment where he is staying.
Not all questions are answered in Phantom Project, as the film trusts its viewers to fill in the gaps themselves. If you were stumped by the end of the film, you’re not alone. This piece will attempt to inject thought and reconsider the ending once again. If you haven’t seen Phantom Project yet, don’t go because it contains spoilers it will end up ruining your movie experience. Come back to this explanation after watching the film. Good reading!
Ghost Project Plot Summary and Movie Synopsis:
Phantom Project follows the shy and reserved Pablo, who lives in Santiago, Chile. It begins with an original role-playing sequence where he is the patient and some of the other members of the acting school have to figure out if he is sexually active or not in order to prescribe him condoms. It establishes the key elements of the film superbly, as we learn the truth about Pablo’s libido and how it permeates the narrative fabric in an unusual way. As Pablo has no job, he tells these small acting roles and sublets his small apartment to pay the bills.
Pablo desperately needs the money to survive the rest of the month. Her last roommate Hector left the apartment without paying her the last two months’ dues and left behind plants, an old cardigan and a dog named Susan. He shows his sublet space to other people. He overhears the constant fights that take place downstairs between a couple. His friends come on certain days for an informal meeting. Between all of this, something unusual begins to happen in the apartment.
It turns out that the old vintage cardigan that Hector left behind is starting to show its own life. It never stays on the hook and falls immediately after being held. There are also mysterious noises, windows closing, doors opening and fruit baskets stumbling on their own, which Pablo recognizes as something beyond his control. Initially, he projects his anger onto poor Susan, but he slowly discovers that there might be a ghost in his room lingering around him, whose intentions are not yet entirely clear. This ghost is marked with white lines that change shape across the room. It comes in the animated form of a human figure, devoid of any face or identity. He collapses and disappears around the room and reappears all the time.
Again, Pablo discovers that his entire back is covered in bruises. He is increasingly estranged from his friends and, to some extent, from himself, always figuring out what he wants to do in the future. Her feelings for her ex-boyfriend Francisco (Fernando Castillo), who has become a real Youtube sensation, are still far from over. During a conversation with his friends, he learns that there are sexual urges in the form of spirits, and it’s not always that the spirit belongs to someone else – it could just be an extension of what we imagine ourselves to be as well. Or it could be a projection. That night, he hears the noise again in his apartment and undresses in bed. The spirit seems to wrap around him as he moans in bed and has an orgasm.
At another audition, he shows bubbly chemistry with an established actress named Antonia (Ingrid Isensee). Pablo gets the role. She sees the jacket Pablo is wearing and is fascinated by its warm and vintage look. She even wears the jacket before a shot. The film ends on an unusual note after a shot is cut and the jacket is held on a hook by a crew member. He falls back.
Phantom Project movie review:
Phantom Project is a confident feature debut from writer-director Roberto Doveris that serves as both a ghost story and a queer existential drama. Cinematographer Patricio Alfaro films the interiors of Pablo’s pastel-hued white apartment from a distance, as if there is something we are still a long way from. Even though the film’s cryptic title holds back any clues as to how the ghost slips into the narrative, Doveris cleverly strips away any unnecessary horror elements to shake up the news. As meandering some might find the conversational approach to storytelling, it’s an immensely watchable testament to a generation oblivious to their own place in the world. Like the ghost, Pablo is constantly searching for something – either ways to survive the month, or just the sense of pleasure he lacks in a relationship.
The only part that feels a bit half-baked is the overall impact of the spirit itself. Phantom Project is not interested in revelations, as any expectation of how the ghost story will manifest, in reality, will not be met. The spirit is right there, moving and touching the lives around it, but its connections to the characters are never fully defined. Perhaps the boredom in Pablo’s life manifests itself in the spirit, although the indication is not given of a precise direction. There’s a sensitivity that comes with the dilemma, and Doveris trusts his viewers to fill in the gaps themselves. As Pablo, Juan Cano is refreshing and restrained – we believe in his controlled projection of self and stand as he steadily navigates his emotions. It’s a superb film, fascinating in its visual style and audacious in its ambition.
Phantom Project movie ending, explained:
What spirit follows Pablo?
The shapeshifting ghost’s white lines that appear in Pablo’s apartment seem to want a connection with him. It’s more an emotional intelligence that Pablo is looking for, through his body, and the pleasure he wants to receive from his partners. The spirit seems to understand this void in Pablo’s life and gives him this pleasure when he has an orgasm one night. The marks on his body look suspiciously like someone pressing against him. Identity doesn’t matter at this point, or so the movie tries to say.
At the end, when Antonia is attracted to Pablo, she notices this cardigan and wears it during rehearsal. She also develops this quick and easy chemistry with Pablo, born out of an audition that involves physical intimacy. Even when the footage is in action and a gun is fired, nothing unexpected happens. Everyone is safe and well – he’s a ghost who doesn’t want destruction. He holds no vengeance but wishes for peace and acceptance. The old cardigan falls down when held on the hook. Maybe he knows that there is still so much work to do.
