niccobates

Got through this in two sittings. If I'd gone by the IMDB score I might have given it a miss but that would have been a mistake. It's cleverer than it seems at the outset, it's fun, it's a little bit tense and everyone looks great. Oh, and it's set in Barcelona so what could go wrong. I enjoyed it more than the 'other' Diplomat which probably had a much bigger budget. Scenario is straight forward - the charming young British consul in Barcelona helps out troubled British tourists ably assisted by her two offsiders especially Alba who mixes Catalan and West London spunk. Then along comes a murder of a young English man working a bar and the action ramps up. I wish there was another series because it's a successful formula and at only six episodes it doesn't drag things out unnecessarily which has become the norm elsewhere.

This may be Kidman's worst performance. And worst wig. Otherwise it's an expensive looking telemovie with a hackneyed script, laden with cliches and rich people problems. I'm wondering if Kidman's kids encouraged her to do this film so they could hang out with Zac Efron? But seriously her agent is encouraging her to do rubbish like this? It's embarrassing. From winning an Oscar for The Hours to this? Her production company was involved? It's a step forward for women in cinema? No, it's a step backwards. And the wig!! Zac Efron is weirdly the most likeable thing in this ill conceived straight to video/Netflix outing.

I definitely wasn't sure where this was going at the beginning, especially giving some gratuitous porn at the films opening. But soon enough we get an idea that we are aboard a Mexican film noir train transposed to Barcelona, all the better to reflect on the continuing legacy of post colonialism. The film has a lot to say but does it by telling the story of the hapless hero sucked into a ruthless world of organised crime, an insidious aspect of modern Mexico and from which there is no escape. I liked the way the film stays small and personal to tell a bigger story. The acting is great and the direction is steadied and assured.