The Sacred Spirit (2021) {Arrow Video Blu-ray Review}

Reviewed by Jason Lockard

Ever since man first looked up at the stars he wondered whether there was something beyond. Whether another race of beings could live beyond this world.

Many films and TV shows have been made featuring the idea of visitation from extra-terrestrial. From the family classic ET, to Fire In The Sky, or my favorite show of course The X-Files. 

In 2021 Writer/Director Chema García Ibarra gave his take on this genre of films with the sci-fi comedy drama The Sacred Spirit. Now the good folks at Arrow Video have given this foreign film a chance to shine on deluxe Blu-ray.

A missing girl. A community in shock. Jose Manuel lives a quiet life. He works in his modest tapas bar, takes care of his elderly mother and attends weekly meetings of the Ovni-Levante, a group of devoted UFO enthusiasts who gather after hours at the office of a local estate agent to exchange information about extraterrestrial messages and alien abductions. When their leader dies unexpectedly, only Jose is left to know the cosmic secret that could alter the future of humanity. And only Jose knows what he must do.

The Sacred Spirit is a movie the loads all of the "conspiracy theories" you know and love including, ancient aliens, organ harvesting and secret societies. The story is strange is a delightful way. It is so unique it is hard to take your eyes off of the screen.

The film is transferred to Blu-ray in 1080p in it's original 1.78:1 aspect ratio. The Spanish soundtrack is a DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1. There is also an option for English subtitles. Now this film is a 2021 release so there is no damage to the print as it is a new film but it looks pretty great as you might expect.

Now I am a fan of the old Godzilla films and call me crazy but I love those bad overdubs. I really wished this film was given one of those English overdubs. For me it would have made this film that much better. 

Arrow Video is known for adding some of the coolest bonus features to their Blu-ray releases and The Sacred Spirit is no different. This 2 Disc Blu0ray set is jam-packed with bonuses. Take a look at what is included in this set.  

DISC 1 - FEATURE & EXTRAS

* Beyond the Eye of Horus, a visual essay about the use of surveillance and Egyptology in The Sacred Spirit by Alexandra Heller-Nicholas

* Pyramid Scheme, a visual essay examining conspiracy, class and capitalism in The Sacred Spirit by Josh Nelson

* Domestic Science Fiction, an interview with writer-director Chema Garcia Ibarra

* Behind the Scenes, four short featurettes shot during production

* Elche Vision, a series of six location reports about the making of the film, hosted by actress Lorena Iglesias in character as Esther Armengol, presenter of The Sacred Spirit’s fictional local TV show

* Promotional videos in which the characters of The Sacred Spirit talk about themselves

* Uncut TV Clips, background television broadcasts shot especially for the film and presented here in full

* Image gallery

* Theatrical trailer

DISC 2 - DOMESTIC SCI-FI: THE SHORT FILMS OF CHEMA GARCIA IBARRA (LIMITED EDITION EXCLUSIVE)

* The Attack of the Robots from Nebula-5 (2008) 7 mins, Sundance Film Festival Award Winner

* Protoparticles (2013) 8 mins, Sundance Film Festival Award Winner

* Mystery (2013) 12 mins, Berlin International Film Festival Award Winner

* Uranes (2014) 59 mins

* The Disco Shines (2016) 12 mins, Buenos Aires International Festival of Independent Cinema Award Winner

* The Golden Legend (2019) 11 mins, Ann Arbor Film Festival Award Winner

* Fully illustrated collector's booklet featuring new writing on the film by Shelagh Rowan-Legg, author of The Spanish Fantastic: Contemporary Filmmaking in Horror, Fantasy, and Sci-fi

* Fold-out poster featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by Oink Creative

* Reversible sleeve featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by Oink Creative

Watch The Trailer Below:



This is one amazing foreign film Blu-ray. I think one of the coolest bonus features is disc two featuring all the award winning short films of Chema Garcia Ibarra. This feature is almost worth the price alone.

So if you love foreign sci-fi films The Sacred Spirit deluxe Blu-ray from Arrow Video may just be what you are looking for. Head over to Amazon and order your copy today. 

Out of Four Film Reels (Four Being the Best) Arrow Video's Blu-ray The Sacred Spirit receives...