The premise sounds awfully to similar 2008's Roger Donaldson - Jason Statham flick 'The Bank Job'. A heist at a bank. Safe deposit boxes are targeted. A political conspiracy is involved. But the thriller works better when it sticks to the perspectives of the (rather small-time) perpetrators led by Uruguayan (Rodrigo de la Serna) and Gallego (Luis Tosar), than the Spanish secret-service or the Press office of the Prime Minister.
I'd say that the director Daniel Calparsoro struggles to maintain the tempo during the latter portions of the film, largely due to the introduction of too many characters (in the form of negotiators, PRs and the like, not adding a great deal to the central plot). As a result, the movie engages when the ever-reliable Tosar and fiery De La Serna take center-stage. The problems never seem to cease for the burglars: the weather is giving them a hard-time plotting their escape; the negotiators are mercurial, their plans keep changing with the advance of time and there's an "idiot" (in the form of Loco) in the group, persistently screwing things up.
There are quite a few factors worthy of applause - like the way Tosar's character finds a soft-corner for the good-looking manager, how they manage to hold themselves together in spite of various instances of mismanagement, the treatment of Loco's character (who's having the hots for a lady employee at the bank, to the point of gifting her some of the spoils from their burglary), the exciting phone conversations and face-offs between Uruguayan(& Gallego) and the negotiators.
Yet, the grand finale looks stretched and overstuffed with too many angles taken into account. The characters who represent the secret- service and the Press office unfortunately do not carry a sense of urgency and always come up short whenever they share screen-space with De La Serna and Tosar. As such, the climax is not one that awes. While I'd hoped for an intrinsic fall-out to occur within the gang, the director only teased hints and shoved the idea soon after. The twists required to make a film such as this pulpier, are lacking (especially towards the climax portions).
Verdict: Worth seeing for Tosar and De la Serna!
I'd say that the director Daniel Calparsoro struggles to maintain the tempo during the latter portions of the film, largely due to the introduction of too many characters (in the form of negotiators, PRs and the like, not adding a great deal to the central plot). As a result, the movie engages when the ever-reliable Tosar and fiery De La Serna take center-stage. The problems never seem to cease for the burglars: the weather is giving them a hard-time plotting their escape; the negotiators are mercurial, their plans keep changing with the advance of time and there's an "idiot" (in the form of Loco) in the group, persistently screwing things up.
There are quite a few factors worthy of applause - like the way Tosar's character finds a soft-corner for the good-looking manager, how they manage to hold themselves together in spite of various instances of mismanagement, the treatment of Loco's character (who's having the hots for a lady employee at the bank, to the point of gifting her some of the spoils from their burglary), the exciting phone conversations and face-offs between Uruguayan(& Gallego) and the negotiators.
Yet, the grand finale looks stretched and overstuffed with too many angles taken into account. The characters who represent the secret- service and the Press office unfortunately do not carry a sense of urgency and always come up short whenever they share screen-space with De La Serna and Tosar. As such, the climax is not one that awes. While I'd hoped for an intrinsic fall-out to occur within the gang, the director only teased hints and shoved the idea soon after. The twists required to make a film such as this pulpier, are lacking (especially towards the climax portions).
Verdict: Worth seeing for Tosar and De la Serna!