Remédio Amargo

The Paramedic is reminiscent of better movies such as Rear Window and Misery, but without sufficient character development, it just feels like an exploitation film, heavy on violence and narcissism. A great deal of the tension generated here is sustained by the fact that the director establishes early on that Angel (an ironic name) is without morals, a guy in the healing professions who routinely steals from the injured and dead. We know that no internal ethics will interfere with his revenge scheme. He won't hesitate to murder anyone who gets in his way. He won't feel remorse or mercy, or change his mind about the evil he is doing, so nothing he does, no matter how vile, surprises us. Implausibility is high as people keep warning Angel they're going to call the police instead of just going ahead and calling them. Most implausible is that Angel, like a Mafia boss, has his own crime cleanup squad on call for getting rid of pesky bodies. All of this leaves little room for nuance and doesn't allow the mounting tension to ever let up, making this simply unpleasant and difficult to watch rather than engrossing, as a thriller ought to be.

I don't regret watching, many things did make sense, but some details are quite funny - especially the end of ending, which feels like of another movie. But at the same time, it's not an open ending that leaves with a question "wtf just happened". Watch it, judge by yourself.

At a normally comfortable 94 minutes, this one felt much longer. I can't put my finger on any one reason, because the pacing was ok, which usually is the issue.

There's a lot going on, almost too much that I feel is unnecessary, and there just isn't enough suspense until the last quarter of the film. The tittle, The Paramedic, really doesn't suit the story, and even being one in this film was really just filler. I'd rather some emerg doctor cross the street, get hit by a car, and then get the ball rolling with the main acts.

The casting and performances were quite good, and the directing was decent, but this thriller needed more thrills. It's a good one-time watch if you've nothing else to watch.

After weeks of trying to find a good film on Netflix (having watched almost all the decent ones) I finally came across this gem. A hugely enjoyable Spanish psychological thriller that I was glued to throughout - and a few unexpected plot twists along the way. Really enjoyable movie (there are actually a few really good Spanish thrillers on Netflix if you take the time to find them). Disturbing, creepy, suspenseful, good acting, good camera work and a fantastic ending. At times disturbing to watch, but that's why we enjoy psychological thrillers, isn't it? I give it 8 out of 10.

I wasn't sure what I should expect with this but it ended up being ok. There are a a few tedious moments but for the most part I stayed engaged. The acting was good but I think it could have benefited from a bit more depth into the characters back stories. There were some things going on that could've used a bit more explanation.

Decent watch though.