Sadly Over-hyped

It's hard to see any effort in the film. There's no comedy to speak of, no real drama and, worst of all.

It's easily one of the freshest, sharpest and most enjoyable films of this year.

It's simply great fun, a winsome film and an occasionally over-the-top luxury fantasy that never flags.

What could I add more than the other users have already done? They told everything about this authentic gem from Spain, dark, bleak, violent, speaking of a brutal, borderline cop for whom the audience may although feel empathy, no matter the evil side of this character. The first sequences of the killing in the bar are astounding. I won't repeat the scheme, but this could have pleased to Olivier Marchal, William Friedkin or David Ayer. The brutal cop character reminds me the film SHIELD FOR MURDER, starring Edmond O'Brien, made by Howard Koch in the fifties. In the future, I will watch out for further films from this director

One day, a drunken police officer callously guns down two bartenders who refuse to serve him any more alcohol because he was already drunk. He does this after showing them his badge. One of them manages to get away. No real explanation is given at that time why he goes around killing people who would not let him have more alcohol. Later on, it is explained that he might have some psychiatric problems, though nobody is sure why he is then allowed to continue on the force, particularly after it is alleged that, prior to this, other persons may have been killed or seriously wounded by him.The movies then plods on, slowly and confusingly while this crooked officer searches for the witness ostensibly with the aim of removing him. At this point, it is brilliant why this witness did not just go to the police and ID him. It is because the witness was himself involved in illegal activity. Why not continue on this predictable path is beyond me. For some strange reason, the movies veers into an unnecessarily complicated direction, multiple characters introduced and disposed of without explanation. Thereupon, it stumbles onto right-wing red meat territory. There are Arab terrorists bent on blowing up people on the streets to protest the upcoming G-20 summit. The connection is tenuous, at best. First of all, it is like Arabs have nothing better to do but go around blowing up people. Secondly, G-20 summits don't usually attract Arabs. It is the domain of young people fighting inequality. But no matter. The silliness continues to where this cop stumbles upon the bombing plot, and kills three of the terrorists. Movies have plot twists all the time. The best of them challenge you or leave you in amazement because you don't see them coming. This one is a gratuitous shot at an easy target. In the end we are left with this unsatisfying feeling that a murderous cop is a hero because he gunned down the would-be terrorists. This confused maelstrom of a movie won awards alright because it panders to a predictable constituency. Much like fast food makes money even though there is no real nutrition, just sweeteners.

I was just partially prepared for this gritty thriller, so I am warning you in time to get ready for it to maximize your enjoyment. This is another gut-buster coming to us from sunny Spain, in case you missed it the first one is Mientras Duermes, and this just goes to show you that no matter what Hollywood decides to do to cinema, there will be always other countries to step up. This vibrant noir movie is just too cool, and the reason for that is Santos Trinidad masterfully played by José Coronado. While the American take on your average alcoholic, corrupt and dangerous detective set the standards, Jose took it to another level with his believable acting, right appearance and that crazy look in his eyes is the thing that completes the whole image. These are the guys that you don't wanna see or have anything to do in real life, but secretly fantasize about being them or hanging out with them.The director did not hold back, and once again we can enjoy in this glass of whiskey that is not watered down or with ice. The taste that this movie leaves is that one of bitterness of life, wrong choices and the those moments of perfect clarity where you can actually feel alive and meaningful. Just beautiful.... And gripping, from the beginning to the end, this movie will hold your attention and let it go just for brief moments that are to be used to light up another cigar or pour another shot of whiskey (well, I guess any alcohol will do). One more thing I found very interesting and that is that upon viewing this movie Sylvester Stallone immediately bought the rights and expressed desire to make an American version (with him in the lead role, no doubt)Using the actual events of 2004 Madrid train bombings, No Rest for the Wicked further develops this story, from the eyes of one Santos Trinidad. Santos Trinidad is a bad man, a police detective who likes to drink, gamble, misuse his authority and all the fun things that we would do, if, of course, life was a video game. He comes alive at night and as an alcoholic vampire prowls the streets and strip clubs looking for trouble, life and death. One of those visits, will prove to be a very important one as he accidentally stumbles on something much, much bigger than the usual sleaze that you would expect in a nightclub. Not to reveal too much (again, but what can I do when the movie is that good...), I will leave you with this, enjoy this phenomenal movie...Movie recommendations Rabbit-Reviews.com - Only movies worth watching

This movie is so good; that I will start with the bad things. The only reason I did not give this movie a 10/10 is because somewhere in the middle, the pace slows down and drags for about 10 minutes. I assume the director was aware but wanted this in order to set up a particular mood. In my opinion he could get there another ways, achieving the same effect.The story is different from what you usually expect. A very drunken cop in what apparently is a personal crisis, kills three people in a moment of rage; but a witness gets away. As the victims are from Colombia, the case is related to drugs and an ambitious judge tries to get to the bottom of the issue which soon is also linked to terrorism. In the meantime, our drunken cop is dealing with his internal demons while looking for the witness that can recognize him and avoiding the judge (and his companions) to relate him with the crime.Jose Coronado plays Trinidad. He is almost every scene in the movie. He is so good and his presence so strong that when he is not in the scene, is like something is missing. He is not a good person but we are never clear if he really is bad. We get glimpses of his past but never a clear account of what happened. It is to the viewers to figure it out and make the proper judgments.The rest of the cast is not bad but no character has a deeper development than Trinidad so they are all just secondary characters within his tale.This is not the American thriller. There is no redemption, not even a will on doing a good deed. This is a tale of survival within a society and a justice system which is just a big mess. The action is located in Spain but could apply to USA and in many other countries.