Box 314: La rapina di Valencia

I went to the cinema to watch this movie as soon as I knew that Luis Tosar was in it, since he is hands down the best Spanish actor these days. My expectations were not too high about the movie itself, but I was pleasantly surprised to find a good thriller with a hint of comedy. Actually, the acting in this film is so good that the comedy moments fit naturally, without being too artificial nor relying on corny jokes. The actors are so natural and the script is so well written, that in some scenes you just need to laugh out loud.

About the actors, Luis Tosar is great as always, but Rodrigo De la Serna is absolutely superb. He nails every scene he's in. I hope to see much more of him in the near future, since for me, both actors are the main reason why I liked this film so much. It is so easy to empathize with these two bank robbers. Joaquin Furriel also stands out, giving a brilliant performance. The rest of the cast was very good in general, with the only exception of the female lead. In my opinion, her acting was mediocre at best; I would have loved to see Marian Alvarez doing her part instead. But that is basically the only flaw in the casting, in my opinion.

As to the plot, I found it very solid (I was not specifically looking for plot holes; there might be some, but they go unnoticed). The movie is thrilling, and it's entertaining.

Will I watch this movie again? Absolutely.

An armed robbery of a bank goes badly wrong on a rainy day in Valencia. The fallout ends up revealing high level political corruption.

This Spanish crime-thriller is one which twists its genre framework around the all too real Spanish economic recession, in which many people are still suffering. As such, it has a few political points to make while delivering a muscular crime story. It possibly is a little too dialogue heavy for its own good at times and consequently it does lose a bit of momentum as it goes forward but its overall a pretty solid bit of genre film-making with a conscience. It features an animated Rodrigo De la Serna (The Motorcycle Diaries (2004)) in the role of the lead thief, The Uruguayan.

In Spain, there is the belief that corruption is an everyday occurrence (not only there, of course). "Cien años de perdón" uses this as the MacGuffin in a heist movie that starts OK but ends making no sense and with too many stupid twists.

Six thieves get into a bank in Valencia, in the East of Spain, and take 30 people as hostages. Pretty soon we discover that money or jewels are not the reason behind the heist, but a hard-drive with information about some high-ranking politicians. The police, the politicians, the thieves, the director of the bank... all their interests will intertwine while the tensions rise.

The idea is simple, and it could have been a good action/mystery movie. However, the plot twists are risible, the pace too slow and shaky, and the direction lifeless, wasting a good bunch of actors along the way, like the always reliable Luis Tosar. The characters keep lying to each other for no reason, but not only so, they keep taking silly decisions based on whims, and the moments that the plot uses to raise the tension are poor and make for the typical: turn-the-car-around! situations.

A disappointment.

I was excited to see the film because of Tosar in one of the main roles. Wasn't disappointed. Even when he isn't the main pivot point of the story (in this case, it was Rodrigo De la Serna), he manages to give an outstanding performance.

Onto the film though: I thought it was a solid, fast-paced drama flick with a hint of action and some occasional comedic touches, but don't get me wrong - it's thrilling right to the very end. My criticism with it is that I can divide the film into three sections: fast, slow, and fast. The middle part felt a little out of place, with excessive dialogue.

Nonetheless, the acting was superb from the main characters, the photography and color schemes were on point, the dialogue was quick and snappy, without clichés, and the lead roles are very well thought and portrayed. Magnificent acting by Rodrigo De la Serna and Luis Tosar. Solid 7.5 out of 10.

Just accidentally found this movie while aimlessly browsing the TV guide and decided to give it a chance. It seems this movie is the initial "Money Heist".

Bank robing - both Nicknames as countries - both There are more similarities but essentially "Money Heist" is better as it has more time to evolve the complex story and a lot of improvements have been made. Still, if you need something similar to "Money Heist" while waiting for next season - this should quench your thirst for a bit.