Vieja Loca (2026) is a new Spanish psychological horror directed by Martín Mauregui, a man who is usually working behind the scenes as a screen writer but finally took a leap into the directing world. This being his directorial debut is pretty impressive and you can definitely tell he was trying to put his own spin on the whole split personality horror trope. Vieja Loca follows Pedro as he reluctantly agrees to do his ex a favor and check in on her mentally ill mother, leading to long string of crazy events that will soon make him regret ever saying yes to her. 

At first glance at the summary, it does seem like another classic “crazy old lady” trope and while it does fall into this category, they do take their own spin on it. We learn bits and pieces of Alicia’s mysterious backstory through her violent outbursts and games of torture that she plays on Pedro. These scenes don’t reveal a whole lot but they do introduce us to this physically absent character, Cesar, who permanently lives in Alicia’s mind and torments her psyche even more. This is something that I wish they did spend more time on as it sounded like Alicia and Cesar’s relationship could be an interesting story to spend more time on, especially when it’s revealed that her daughter was confused about Cesar while her granddaughter said she had met the guy and he was as horrible as Alicia recounted. Though I do wish they had spent more time fleshing out this side story, the main story offered enough to keep you on your toes and had a pretty good ending that was both bleak but satisfying. 

This isn’t your average horror movie. From the trailer, I thought I was going into a movie that was full of jump-scares and no depth behind the “crazy old lady” but there is more to it than that. They really do play into the psychological part of it as we explore Alicia’s trauma. Her character is extremely interesting and entertaining to watch as she yo-yo’s between an extremely evil and sexual force to a playful, childish one. Carmen Maura was so perfect for this role. She really is the star of this movie and completely embodies the character. Watching her performance in this film has really influenced me to watch her other work, it’s an amazing showcase of her talent. Maura committed to this and made sure the audience could join her in following Alicia’s story and leave you wondering “What on earth could she do next?” Every vile action she committed against Pedro always left me in shock, every one of them. 

Vieja Loca is a must see! You will not be bored through any act in this film and that ending will make it all worthwhile. Maura is an amazing actress who really helped amp this already fun movie into a really great movie to throw on at the end of the day and just let yourself get lost in this wacky story. Mauregui’s director debut was a success in my opinion and I would recommend! 

Vieja Loca is currently available to stream on Shudder.