The Chalk Line (Jaula) is a Spanish mystery thriller film, released on Netflix on 24th October 2022. The film is directed by Ignacio Tatay and the screenplay is written along with Isabel Peña. It has a runtime of about 1 hour and 47 minutes long and was theatrically released in Spain on 9 September 2022, now made globally available on the streaming platform.
The cast of the film includes Elena Anaya as Paula, Pablo Molinero as Simón, Eva Tennear as Clara, Carlos Santos as Eduardo, Eva Llorach as Maite, Esther Acebo as Claudia, Eloy Azorín as Beltrán, Mona Martínez as Sargento Arana, Sonia Almarcha as Gloria, Pau Roca as Cabo Bedoya, Cayetana Campos as Ainoha and Belén López-Valcárcel as Vecina Amiga.
-The Chalk Line Review Does Not Contain Any Spoilers-
Paula and her husband Simón were driving back from dinner and suddenly, they run into a girl wandering alone on the road. The girl appears in really bad shape and health, admitted to the local hospital, till the police try to find her parents or investigate if any missing girl reports have come for her.
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Two weeks later, after finding out that no one claims her, they decide to accept her at home temporarily to help her and turn their life as a couple around. Still, it won’t be easy, since the girl is obsessed with the idea that if she leaves a square of chalk painted on the ground something terrible is going to happen to her.
Paula will begin a journey through dark paths to try to discover the enigma of the girl’s past, with whom she has managed to establish an emotional bond. The girl refused to talk and was considered mute until she spoke to Paula. Meanwhile, the adoptive couple also seems to be going through a rough patch.
They have dreamed of being parents for years but weren’t able to. With the arrival of Clara, her motherly instincts arise and she feels the need to protect her at all costs. And soon we understand that the injections that Paula administers are not insulin, but a fertility treatment that she undergoes behind her husband’s back.
The film in the first half embodies all the elements of a typical horror film. An abandoned girl, with no information or traces of her at all, selectively talks to only one person and that person seems to be losing control of reality. On one side, this little girl doesn’t want to get out of a chalk square for fear of what’s on the other side.
On the other hand, slowly we are also becoming afraid of her, for what else she could be hiding, or is she the devil in a child’s form? This is the conceptual base of the film, whose Spanish title’s literal translation says – cage. They want to say that the cage has two faces – they protect the one in it, from the outside and in turn, it also protects from what is inside.
Could accepting this child be a grave mistake by the couple, as weirdly fatal things start to happen in their house. However, in the second half of the film, it completely turns its plot around from a horror to a crime mystery thriller. While we were anticipating for this innocent-looking child to show their true colours, we are introduced to the monster that walks in the real world and not some otherworldly thing.
Summing Up: The Chalk Line
The film has a fresh perspective but it feels half-cooked and leaves so many questions, without giving even a brief explanation. The creators tried to show the story of a person longing to be a parent and an abused child with a traumatic past, looking for some love and warmth. Together they help each other and will have to overcome the hurdles from the past.
The film is more of a psychological thriller overall, which takes an unexpected turn towards the end. This takes you by surprise but it doesn’t answer all the questions and mystery that was built around it. Apart from that, the film is a quick and intriguing watch, however, it fails to make a connection with the viewers.
The Chalk Line is currently streaming on Netflix.
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