Cabinet of Curiosities “The Autopsy” Episode 3 Review: Balance Between Rationality, Coldness and The Fantastic | Guillermo del Toro’s Cabinet of Curiosities

Episode Title: The Autopsy

Cast: F. Murray Abraham, Glynn Turman, Luke Roberts

Director: David Prior

Streaming Platform: Netflix

Filmyhype.com Ratings: 3.5/5 (three and a half stars) [yasr_overall_rating size=”large”]

Let’s go ahead and arrive at the third episode of Guillermo Del Toro’s Cabinet of Curiosities anthology, The Autopsy, available on the platform from 26 October. Here the gothic and science fiction come together to give life to the most noir story of the series. Surely a confirmation of the crescendo, even if a bit like in the case of the first episode, the bitter aftertaste remains at the finish. However, as we will see in our review of the third episode of Guillermo del Toro’s Cabinet of Curiosities, The Autopsy is also capable of giving a bit of healthy disgust, focusing on a type of horror that, by now, we see less and less often.

One of those absurd nightmares whose cause will never be known. He has all the cards on the table in Autopsy, directed by David Prior (The Empty Man) and written by David S. Goyer, to be. The first story of the second day of Guillermo del Toro’s Cabinet of Curiosities on Netflix, this time dedicated to loners, is a set of mysterious ingredients that, mixed, give life to a bizarre recipe, the result of which – however – is not entirely convincing. This time, unlike the sensation experienced with the first episode of the Lot 36 series, it is not so much the duration available that hurts the goodness of the story (this time it is close to the hour), but the presence of too many elements that do not find a precise quadrature in the ending.

Cabinet of Curiosities “The Autopsy” Episode 3 Review: The Story

The autopsy begins with a prologue set in a mine. One of the workers appears to be in the throes of indescribable madness. His last gesture is to drop a bomb, which promptly explodes causing the death of other of his colleagues. That’s when the tale begins, with the arrival of old coroner Carl in Sheriff Bailey’s office. It is the latter who begins to tell the whole story to his old friend, which began with the disappearance of some people in the country. The mystery will become even more tragic when it is discovered that in the bodies found there is no blood inside the organs. An investigative case that has now come to a standstill. And that’s why Carl will have the bodies of the miners who died from the explosion of the bomb at his disposal, to proceed with an autopsy,

The autopsy is a story that for the most part is concerned with adding riddles about riddles, unanswered questions and unexplained events at first sight. Then, when the viewer has become aware of the whole premise, he chooses to abandon the words and focus on the strength of the images. That no, they are neither spectacular nor particularly pleasant, but certainly strong. The solution of the enigma, which will take place during the third act, where again the word will be predominant, as in the best examples of detective stories, will try to unite all the remaining points. But at what price?

Cabinet of Curiosities “The Autopsy” Episode 3 Review and Analysis

There are different types of horror cinema. Over the past few episodes, we have witnessed the horror of a fantastic mould involving demons and cults of sects, or the horror that involves monsters and creatures that inhabit the underground. Here David Prior’s choice is to cause a visual shock, demonstrating that one must not forget the horror of pure vision. Here, rather than focusing on the narrative aspect (whose set of stories, clues and explanations makes the ending less powerful than expected), the strength of The Autopsy lies in the brutal force of the images which, as the title describes, concerns the opening of corpses. Not a splatter and exaggerated choice, but an almost scientific approach to the subject, made explicit with a filter of absolute normality.

It will be only later that the strong chills will be released in a moment that, in the hands of the coroner Carl, substitutes what would normally be considered hysteria for rationality. It is perhaps the most disturbing aspect of the episode, which does not spare itself in gory details and which, for lovers of the genre, will give more than a few jolts (and – why not – even fun). Because horror in cinema and on TV needs to test us, stimulate our gaze and challenge us to keep our eyes open, without hiding behind a pillow or behind our hands. And this is where we are stimulated to snoop, voyeurists of the most macabre image.

In the role of Carl, F. Murray Abraham plays crafts and gives life to a protagonist who knows how to quickly build a beautiful bond with the viewer, getting involved even in the most violent sequences. This is, of course, the cast member on whom the spotlight is focused the most, so much so that the rest of the characters simply acquire a smaller dimension, also about the stories told. Rational, but without being inhuman, Carl is the worthy protagonist of a story that embraces this modus operandi, without giving in to virtuosity, but rather allowing simplicity and a certain medical distance to capture events, without focusing on emotions.

A balance that works properly (also because it will have to mix some fantastic elements with the logic of the doctor) and that yields only in the final, when the more rational side is preponderant over the word and, instead, the fantastic one gives a new look to the camera, however, resulting almost a tone out of tune and too noisy in the score. There is also an ending in full horror style, almost open, suspended. The half episode is of reconstruction. The other half is set in a morgue. As said before, certainly the most morbid episode of the entire anthology, where we do not spare ourselves from the horrifying details. The level of acting is very high, and the atmosphere is also rendered very well, immersive and dark. The part dedicated to the reconstruction is perhaps a little too anti-climactic, which means that we arrive at the most interesting part of the film a little burdened, although we always talk about an hour of total narration.

Perhaps the real problem with this story is having inserted too many elements that initially paint it as a noir thriller but, subsequently, we understand that it is a completely different genre. The plot twist is certainly unexpected, yet what the ending reserves does not fully convince. We see a progressive growth of details, direction and restlessness. Yet once again there is the feeling that time is not enough to be able to go in-depth and not just scratch. The creepy elements are not enough, and even if for more than a moment the silence and the dark can play tricks on the viewer, it must also be said that one expects to go a little further … the boundaries of reality.

Cabinet of Curiosities “The Autopsy” Episode 3 Review: The Last Words

The Autopsy, the third episode of Guillermo del Toro’s Cabinet of Curiosities offers a vision for strong stomachs, thanks to a balance between rationality, coldness and the fantastic that stimulates the viewer’s voyeuristic curiosity. Too bad for the ending that unbalances the too many elements present by losing the strength of this horror story.