Poison for the Fairies

Poison for the Fairies is a Mexican horror fantasy film set in 1965 Mexico City. It centres on Flavia, a wealthy but lonely schoolgirl who strikes up a friendship with Veronica, an orphan her own age who is absorbed by tales of witchcraft. Veronica claims to be a real witch and presses Flavia into serving as her assistant, using a string of coincidences to convince her friend that her magic is genuine. What begins as a childhood game turns darker as the demands Veronica makes of Flavia grow. The film was directed and written by Carlos Enrique Taboada, with Héctor López Lechuga producing for the Instituto Mexicano de Cinematografía and the Sindicato de Trabajadores de la Producción Cinematográfica. Ana Patricia Rojo plays Veronica and Elsa Maria Gutierrez plays Flavia, with Leonor Llausás, Carmela Stein, Maria Santander and Ernesto Schwartz in supporting roles.

Released in October 1986 and running about ninety minutes, the film followed several other Taboada features across the preceding two decades, including his earlier horror work. Its reputation rests largely on the two young leads and on the way the story moves from childish make-believe toward something more serious. It holds a rating of 7.2 out of 10 on IMDb from around three thousand two hundred votes, and a rating of 7.8 out of 10 on TMDB from a much smaller base of about one hundred fifty votes. The higher average from fewer viewers on TMDB, set against the broader but slightly lower score on IMDb, suggests a film whose strongest following comes from viewers who seek out Mexican horror of this period, while it remains well regarded among a wider audience.