What Is the Story About?
Infiesto is set in March 2020 in Infiesto, against the backdrop of the enforcing of the Covid-19 lockdown in Spain. The plot follows two inspectors arriving in the village to investigate about a recently found missing woman and eventually discover the mastermind behind these creepy and uneasy incidents
Performances?
The film doesn’t really boast of impressive performances from its lead actors. Be it Isak Férriz who plays inspector jefe Samuel García Or Iria del Río as Sub-inspector Castro, the performances don’t register well.
Analysis
Written and directed by Patxi Amezcua, Infiesto follows the template followed by many police procedurals we’ve seen over time, especially the True Detective series. The film follows the same template where a crime unveils in a mysterious village populated with mysterious natives and sinister motives one after the other.
Infiesto starts with the announcement of fifteen day lockdown by the Spanish government due to the coronavirus outbreak. Ofcourse, the coronavirus backdrop exists for convenience and not much has been explored with regarding to the setbacks and drawbacks during the outbreak that brought the world to stand-still.
The authorities are preoccupied with the threatening outbreak, and this is when a visibly scarred teenage girl named Saioa shows up on the streets. She was abducted months ago and with no whereabouts known was presumed dead shortly. As Saioa undergoes treatment for recovery at the hospital, Lieutenant Samuel Garcia and his female sub-inspector Castro get attached to the investigation of the case. The only clue the duo has is a sinister symbol tattooed on Saioa’s back. The investigation process heats up and leads them to the small town of Infiesto, where everybody knows one another and people are extremely secretive and borderline fake.
Now, this premise is nothing new to the ones used to british crime thrillers. Much like the recent small-town procedural thriller Mare of Easttown , the main protagonists are mowed down by their tumultuous real lives in Infiesto as well. But, little to nothing is done on the front of working on the personal angles of the protagonists by the writing department.
However, a can of worms open and things turntables when the duo discover the nefarious involvement of a mystery man called ‘The Prophet’ in a bigger network of crimes and not just a mere child abduction case. How the duo uncovers the truth and expose The Prophet, forms the crux of Infiesto.
Good things first, despite being a ‘been there seen before’ crime thriller, Infiesto is mostly engaging. Although one can predict where the film is heading to from a mile ahead, the crisp editing makes for a taut thriller. But, even the limitedly engaging part of Infiesto is marred by some very disappointing performances and some of the worst lit scenes ever. Except for Jose Manuel Poga, none of the actors leave a mark either. One would think Infiesto would’ve probably landed better with better set of actors.
In short, Infiesto can be watched once. What starts off as a typical repetitive police procedural takes sinister turns revealing nefarious ugly truths about a cult one by one and engages the target audience. If you do enjoy films of these kind where logic goes on a toss, may be just go in with minimal expectations and have a nice time.
Other Artists?
José Manuel Poga as el Demonio is the only watch-worthy performer in the film. He brings the right amount of unhinged acting weight and much required menace to the film despite its mostly bland writing. The rest of the cast doesn’t register enough.
Music and Other Departments?
Sergio Moure’s music for Infiesto is very disappointing. The score does nothing to aid or elevate the film unlike the heavyweights of this genre. Josu Incháustegui’s cinematography does evoke the covid-led apocalyptic feel well, but on the other hand has shot arguably some of the worst lit scenes ever in a film in recent times.
Highlights?
Editing
Duration
Core Story
Drawbacks?
Disappointing Performances
Bland Writing
Undercooked screenplay
Unimpressive Music and cinematography
Did I Enjoy It?
Yes. In parts
Will You Recommend It?
Yes. But with huge recommendations
Infiesto Movie Review by Binged Bureau
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