You Are Not Me (Marisa Crespo, Moises Roméra, 2023)

Sure, you can go home again — but do you really think it's a good idea?

After living overseas for the past three years, Aitana surprises her parents by coming home unannounced for the holidays — only to discover there is a stranger occupying her bedroom.

You Are Not Me (Tú no eres yo in its native Spanish) is a disconcerting horror film that benefits from keeping its cards extremely close to its chest. Although it’s immediately clear that something very odd is going on, the film is intentionally secretive about what that something is. Eventually — once the cat does indeed claw its way out of the bag — the film pivots into a wholly new and equally terrifying direction.

But I’m getting ahead of myself…

Aitana is a young woman who has always had a challenging relationship with her parents. Three years ago, she stormed off after a massive argument, and several months passed before they heard from her again. By that time, she’d wound up in Brazil where, eventually, she settled down with the love of her life, Gabi. Together, they adopted a baby. This trip is the first time Aitana has returned to Spain since her disappearance. It is also the first time Gabi and their infant son, Joao, are meeting Aitana’s family in person.

There is one other key character in Aitana’s immediate family: her disabled brother Saúl. While Aitana’s parents are decidedly standoffish towards Aitana and her burgeoning young family, Saúl is thrilled to bits to have his big sister home and quickly forms a friendly bond with Gabi. He is a lively character, despite his degenerative muscular disease — a condition which has worsened considerably in recent months.

And then there is Nadia the imposter. Aitana’s parents have never mentioned Nadia to Aitana the whole time she has been away. They don’t even think to mention her until Aitana goes into her childhood bedroom and discovers the woman sleeping in her bed and wearing her pajamas.

It is almost like her parents found a random stranger and substituted her wholesale for their actual, absent, daughter. Yet they dote on Nadia in a way they never did for Aitana.

Aitana is understandably perturbed. She has nightmares about Nadia throwing Joao off the balcony. Sure, it was just a bad dream — but in reality, plenty of freaky stuff is happening:

Aitana’s parents throw a Christmas Eve party for a whole host of strange old people Aitana has never met before… Her aunt and uncle who were previously very close to Aitana’s parents tell her they haven’t seen them in months… Nadia is gifted Aitana’s precious belongings, including her dead grandmother’s jewelry… Saúl claims to be able to talk to their dead grandfather then suffers a seizure… Aitana is locked in the isolated guestroom in a turret separate from the rest of the house… After only minimal detective work, Aitana discovers that Nadia might not be who she claims to be at all — but rather a criminal gypsy called Nathalia…

And yet Aitana’s parents won’t hear a negative word against Nadia. They love her like the daughter they never had.

Tonally, it feels like Get Out for anyone who’s felt disconnected from their parents during adolescence or young adulthood.

And then, as I hinted at earlier, You Are Not Me becomes an entirely different horror movie. Without giving anything away, Aitana’s discomfort at her parents’ earlier strange behavior is proved to have been valid and Aitana is forced to collaborate with Nadia as the true terror at work is fully exposed.

You Are Not Me is an unsettling, compelling, and highly creepy horror film. Despite the film’s understated nature, there is a lot going on. We are with Aitana as she suffers through trials at turns frustrating and highly suspicious.

This is lowkey horror, relying on mystery and unease to craft an atmosphere of continuous dread as both Aitana and the audience struggle to put the pieces together to learn what exactly is going on; there are multifaceted levels at play here, as well as shifting subplots and copious red herrings that only serve to emphasize Aitana’s disorientation — and keep you guessing.

Ambiguous in the best possible way, You Are Not Me will linger in your mind rent-free for days after watching.

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