Infiesto

(2023) Infiesta (In Spanish with English subtitles) THRILLER

It takes place during the year of Covid, and two homicide detectives of Samuel García (Isak Férriz) and Marta Castro(Iria Del Río) are assigned to the abduction case when a young ragged and disheveled girl reappears in the middle of the road before she is then put in a hospital. When the two detectives are coming up to see her, they apparently have their own problems at home, while Samuel is forbidden to see his mother at a care home, Marta's boyfriend has covid. By the time they got their first real lead a guy, Manuel Gomez known as "Dog Killer" somewhat owns a winery, only when he's found out he shoots himself.

The movie was involving for about a hour and 20 minutes up until the third bad guy was discovered, totally ignores proper police protocol. Like, the police had the photo all along and they do not investigate everyone in the photo immediately, how ridiculous! Netflix must have wanted them to wrap the movie up or something!

Entertaining movie but if this was lockdown why are the main characters not wearing masks? This is a disappointing aspect of this movie especially the hospital scenes.

The dubbing is unusual and slightly off putting, and possibly meant for a British audience rather than international. The landscape appears as a sepia visual possibly to denote the uncertainty of the covid lockdown anxiety.

It is surreal to see no one on the roads, as the main characters piece together the mystery of the abducted girl.

But it develops nicely along with the added bonus of good music to interpret the mood of the story telling.

This film opens on day one of the Covid lockdown in Spain. A young woman who has been missing, presumed dead, for several months turns up in Infiesto, a small mining town in the Asturian Mountains. She is alive but not speaking. Police officers Inspector Samuel Garcia and his sergeant, Marta Castro are investigating her kidnapping. It soon becomes clear to them that this was more than an isolated kidnapping by a lone culprit. The more they discover the more disturbed they are and the disappearance of another girl gives them a sense of urgency.

I thought this was a solid enough crime thriller, perhaps not a must see but a decent enough addition to the genre. It starts well and the tension escalates nicely as we learn more about the crimes and the perpetrators. Having it set against the backdrop of the enforced lockdown wasn't really necessary but nor did it detract; having so few people about added to the atmosphere. The atmosphere was already pretty good due to the remote location and overcast or rainy weather. The central story isn't the most original but there is only so much one can do in a popular genre. The cast is solid, especially Isak Férriz and Iria del Río, who play Garcia and Castro respectively. Overall a decent enough film for fans of Euro-crime dramas.

These comments are based on watching the film in Spanish with English subtitles.

The plot follows the investigative police thriller style. We accompany detectives Samuel and Castro around the municipality of Piloña, Spain, in their investigation. However, the plot itself is simple and devoid of twists. Its linearity becomes an issue when we reach the climax.

Part of the premise is that the investigation takes place at the time of the COVID pandemic, but that doesn't affect the plot. The pandemic is just a backdrop to the plot, present but indifferent. The plot tries to place the pandemic as a relevant factor, to the point of counting the days of confinement at the time when curfews and quarantines came into effect worldwide; the pandemic context seems to be just an artifice to attract an audience; the plot would remain the same without the pandemic.

In the end, the feeling is one of exploitation, a twist that feels forced. Nothing in the plot indicates that that would be the end, the plot just plays a trick, an Ex-Machina that connects all the points, leaving us with the bitter taste of disassociation. The insinuations, the theories, all falls flat.

The name of the film can only be premeditated. Infest.

With a linear and simplistic plot, marked by a meaningless and calculated twist, and appropriating a historical moment that does not interfere with the plot, Infiesto should only be proud of its sepia cinematography of a decrepit Spanish region. The atmosphere is tense and suffocating, but the story is thin.

It's not bad, it keeps exciting until the end, although I can't give it more than 5 stars.

Too much negligence by the police makes it more exciting and also more frustrating, the movie tries to copy the crime thriller genre of other good movies, but it doesn't reach the level, they tried.

It's poorly executed and some actors, like Marta Castro, one of the police inspectors, are not very convincing in my opinion. On the other hand the actor Luis Zahera, Marquina in the movie, is my favorite, he is a greeeat actor that I know from other movies and series. It's a pity that he only has a small supporting role.

The theme about the covid in Spain is the worst, once again remembering the trauma that was experienced during the confinements in Spain, nothing relevant to the theme of the movie, I almost did not see it just for this, although I must say they didn't pushed the issue too much. So in my opinion it cannot be called a covid thriller, a terrible way to classify it, but a thriller filmed in Asturias, green Spain, and the most attractive thing about this movie.