Review: The demonic possession Euro-horror of ‘Luz’ will rattle your soul

As if exhumed from a tenebrous archive of unholy secrets not meant for a layperson’s eyes, German writer-director Tilman Singer’s succinctly horrifying first-feature, “Luz,” chronicles the passage of a demonic entity across multiple bodies in search of its legitimate host. A dynamically engineered hypnosis session, conducted in a police station echoing Lars von Trier’s “Dogville,” brings him to Chilean taxi driver Luz Carrara, who’s just been involved in an accident connected with her past of religious defiance. Bookended by static wide shots boasting sly bureaucratic normalcy and paved by an entrancingly atmospheric score distilled from audible nightmares, this retro-inspired genre morsel exploits its modest concept magisterially. ‘Luz’ In German and Spanish with English subtitles Not rated Running time: 1 hour, 10 minutes Playing: Starts July 19, Laemmle Monica Film Center, Santa Monica; Laemmle Playhouse 7, Pasadena