Review of GAL

GAL (2006)
5/10
A journalistic investigative film with intrigue, thrills , suspense and plot twists
20 January 2023
Drama/Thriller about criminal events in Basque Country in which happened terrorism , kidnaps, threats and grisly killings . While assassinations committed by members of the terrorist organization , two journalists investigate a strange organization . Meantime, ETA brutally killed about one thousand people and acting similarly to Sicilian Mafia .Based on actual events, two journalists (José Garcia, Natalia Verbeke) investigate the Grupos Antiterroristas de Liberacion (GAL), a dark organization engaged in a conflict with the Basque terrorist organization Euskadi Ta Askatasuna (ETA) in the mid-1980s. Depicting two driven reporters who go after an essential new , at whatever cost , as they will stop at nothing to get the truth despite sometimes experiencing personal threats. They discover some tracks that lead to subcommissario Paco Ariza (Jordi Mollá) who's actually Jose Amedo and Marcel Molina (Tomás del Estal) pseudonym of Dominguez. And dealing with some failed acts committed by the Gal, such as : the kidnapping of the innocent Segundo Marey, the murder of people in a bar and other sad events.

Dramatic thriller with plenty of suspense , action , intrigue , delusions , twists , turns , politics and events about Basque Country . Despite being somewhat of a cinematic cliché , rarely has a feature been so aptly deserving of its description as a political thriller along with some elements from action genre , social critique , intense drama and bloody terrorism . Based on a true story , according to an interview to screen-writer and producer Melchor Miralles , in fact the movie was written and produced by this known journalist . Miralles is a well-known writer first from newspaper Diario 16 and later from El Mundo, where he wrote his poignant and compromising chronicles for trying to always seek the truth, no matter how prickly and compromising it was. The picture describes various historical events when the terrorists ETA proceed their most daring and shocking killing massacre as the Guardia Civil Headquarter and the Barcelona mail where died 15 people , and the safe refuge that the terrorists had in the so-called ¨French sanctuary¨ where freely planned their operations . That's is why was created the secret organization Gal to carry out secret crimes to avenge the murders committed by Eta in Spain. Finally , for these deeds the guilty people were judged and condemned the following ones : cop Amedo , cop Dominguez , Secretary of State Rafael Vera , General Galindez and Minister of Interior José Barrionuevo. It is an entertaining picture in which suspense is well developed from start to finish , though crammed with disjoined scenes and excessive interpretations . Nice acting by starring duo José Garcia and Natalia Verbeke , while Jordi Mollá gives overacting as Paco Ariza , Amedo-lookalike . The picture is acceptable , but it has conventional pitfalls and results to be overlong ; though also contains interesting scenes , suspenseful images and sensitive moments . Anyway , its is compensated with the acceptable performances from main cast , and notorious , familiar support cast , such as Ana Álvarez, Mercè Llorens, Abel Folk, Ricard Borràs, Manuel Galiana, Tomás del Estal, Mar Regueras, Bernard Le Coq , José Ángel Egido , Pedro Mari Sánchez Francisco Vidal, Alfredo Villa, Victor Clavijo , Blanca Marsillach , Miguel Hermoso Arnao , among others . This ¨Gal¨is a kind of sequel to ¨Lobo¨ by the same writer Melchor Miralles who said the real "Lobo" visited the set one day, but nobody knew who really was . He was actually an ETA infiltrator who , in the early 1960s , brought down a quarter of this terrorist organisation, including its upper echelons , even today , ETA members departing to execute attacks in Spain receive a spare bullet with Lobos name on it .

It contains atmospheric musical score by Francesc Gener who composes a stirring soundtrack . Colorful as well as evocative cinematography by Carlos Suárez , shot on location in Donostia-San Sebastián, Guipúzcoa, País Vasco, Madrid, Spain , Bayona , France. The motion picture was professionally directed by Michael Courtois and was dismissed both , critics and indifferent reaction for the public ; however , a similar film he previously realized titled ¨Lobo¨ achieved hit smash at box office . Other pictures dealing with Eta terrorist organization are the following ones : ¨La Fuga De Segovia¨, ¨Dias Contados¨, by Imanol Uribe , ¨La Voz De Su Amo¨ by Emilio Martínez Lazaro¨ , ¨Todos Estamos Invitados¨ by Manuel Gutiérrez Aragon and various documentaries directed by Iñaki Arteta as ¨Testigo Involuntario : Nicolas Redondo¨, ¨El Infierno Vasco¨ , ¨Trece Entre Mil¨ , and ¨Sin Libertad¨ .
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