Días de gracia

The basic idea of this multi-layered Mexican crime-thriller is the notion that during the 30 days of the World Cup both police and criminals drop their guards but this can sometimes end very badly indeed. The film is set during the days of three World Cups – 2002 (Japan/South Korea), 2006 (Germany) and 2010 (South Africa) – and the action takes place in the streets of Mexico City. In truth, it's not immediately obvious that the time-line is staggered in this way and it's quite easy to get mixed up. Events are so inter-linked and similar it would be quite easy to think everything was occurring simultaneously. But one of the best things about this impressive film is how everything comes together by the end. It's a very clever conceit to stage the film in this way (although an obvious drawback would be that someone who is not familiar with the way the World Cups fall chronologically might be forgiven for being somewhat confused!).

It's got a real mean energy to it. I won't reveal plot details as I think it's best to discover this one with as little prior prompting but suffice to say there are kidnappings, a tough cop, a prostitute gang-leader and lots of corruption. The mean streets of Mexico are utilised to great effect with some very kinetic camera-work, one particularly audacious shot travels up from ground level and into a first floor window, through a couple of rooms and out another window and back down to ground level where it then follows a chase between a policeman and a criminal. The soundtrack, which also includes music from the likes of Massive Attack, has a very energetic Mexican vibe as well that provides barrow-loads of atmosphere to proceedings too.

This one has that very specific Latin American energy that is so seductive. There have been several such films since the millennium and this is another in this cycle. It's a very impressive and thrilling movie that may take a little time to take hold of you but bear with it and the ride is well worth it and by the end you will see how intelligently the whole movie has been designed. You'll probably want to watch it again to see it in a new light. Recommended.

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Giving a favour, expecting a favour.

A policeman who believes in his job and wants to carry it out with integrity, faces a massive enemy which is corruption in the police. His partner, his boss are all on the take from drug lords which they are employed to fight.

His life story and struggles join the paths of an impressionable kid who aspires to becomes a boxer as well as a kidnapped actor who tries to stay alive whilst the bargaining for his life goes on.

Well jointed, visceral with plenty of rawness this gem of a police action film is fast paced that unearths emotion but ultimately remains a study about principle, trust and corruption, displaying the fight of a simple man against a Lernaean hydra.

This is a story about a young policeman, Lupe (Tenoch Huerta), who tries to fight crime and corruption in his hometown Mexico City, where drug-cartels and criminal gangs have taken over completely.

All of Lupe's partners are apparently either rotten cops or simply cowards, who are afraid of sticking up to the gangsters that run the city, so he pretty much has to fight all the bad guys himself.

All this happens during the football world cup from 2004-2008. During the 2012 world cup, we follow a dramatic kidnapping, where an unfortunate businessman (Carlos Bardem - brother of Javier) is taken for ransom by a gang of ruthless thugs.

One of the thugs is a young man/boy Doroteo (Kristyan Ferrer), who is standing on the edge of becoming a hardened criminal, but after a previous run-in with the law (in the shape of Lupe), he is still unsure about his place in life. The kidnapped man and Doroteo form a secret alliance, and their relationship evolves greatly during the world cup, of which they both are fans and followers of.

The story is told with a lot of cross-cutting between the three world cups, and it can be a little hard to follow at times, but if you pay attention, it shouldn't be too difficult.

It's a very violent and brutal story, but it is filmed beautifully, with lots of creative camera-angles, so there's always something to find an interest in on-screen. It's a highly entertaining, but also very sad story.

Recommended for those who enjoyed City of God and/or Tropa de Elite, and similar movies about gangs in South and Middle-America.