Cité des ombres

A decent troubled detective series out of Spain. The show does a great job of using the stunning architecture of Barcelona to tell a part of the story. The characters had depth and were well acted. Admittedly I watched dubbed and was still able to feel the story and emotions. Great production and worth the watch.

We are witnessing a resurgence of the Spanish noir, and all the action takes place in Barcelona. This is a prime example. It's very well-researched, with a fast-paced and engaging narrative. Nevertheless I do find severe faults with it, the fact is, it weaves together too many storylines: Olympic Barcelona; Freemasonry; domestic abuse; political corruption; child abuse; and suicide bombers.

Ceo's of large companies are getting kidnapped and murdered in barcelona. So detective milo is brought back from suspension to work on the case. (does anyone except suspended cops or detectives about to retire actually work on difficult cases ?) and because this all takes place in barcelona, we tour and learn about the many buildings designed by gaudi. SO much time spent on milo's superiors working against him. Accusing him of leaking info or trying to get his partner sent back to her own office. Are they just idiots, or are the police involved in a cover up ? Or are the writers just trying to make it more dramatic ? Who knows ? Milo and his partner from the other office follow the few clues and try to find they killers before the pope arrives for a visit. It's pretty good! Not a lot new here, but for those not familiar with gaudi's history in barcelona, it was probably even more interesting. Directed by jorge torregrossa. Has won a ton of film fest awards.

I watched the six episodes of this breathtaking series almost non-stop. As others have already written, the chemistry between the two leading investigators is wonderful, and the silence of investigator Rebeca Garrido, played with great emotion by the beautiful actress Veronica Echegui, complements the tormented character of Milo, an investigator who is on suspension and is brought back to investigate the kidnapping and arson of the famous victims. It is chilling to know that Echegui died at the age of 42 on August 25 from the cancer she suffered from and kept it a secret from her acquaintances. This series refers to the cancer from which her mother died, and even shares with her partner Milo that she knows it is hereditary, and therefore performs tests and monitoring that so far have shown that everything is normal. In the previous series in which she starred, A Muerte for Apple TV, she plays opposite the character of a young man who was diagnosed with cancer. I didn't know her before watching this series, and definitely a loss of talent for Spanish cinema. R. I. P.

The two main reasons this series is appealing are the acting and the visuals. There are a number of weak areas, including the pace - it's a bit lopsided and choppy at times, with far too many flashbacks of Barcelona's architecture and layout before and after the Olympics. It's pretty clear that the upheaval and redevelopment of the city itself since the death of Franco has transformed everything from society itself to the how things have changed for the better in some cases to the worse in others. The acting is generally very solid, especially the two main detective characters. The writing could be a bit tighter but is quite believable and the relationships are developed authentically. There was a bit too much graphic violence for my liking, especially the fire close-ups. The last two episodes were irritating as the music became far too prominent and overbearing. It's not the best series of this genre, but has lots of tension, some twists and is worth watching.