Last month in Austin, Texas, the Cine Las Americas International Film Festival kicked off its 27th year on May 14. TVR’s Liz Lopez and I attended the fest. For anyone unfamiliar with CLAIFF, the festival organization programs and screens films over five days every year. The event showcases films from Spanish-speaking countries and Portuguese-speaking countries, as well as films by American Latin and Hispanic filmmakers and those from indigenous and native peoples.
On the second night of the festival, I screened an intense and stress-inducing thriller from Spain. Titled La Infiltrada, the film follows the experiences of an undercover cop in Spain who infiltrates the ETA, a Basque separatist organization responsible for violent terrorist acts from 1959 until 2008. Carolina Yuste stars as Arantxa, the female cop who spends several years of her life and career posing as an ETA sympathizer. During this period, she has managed to safely and secretly leak information about the ETA’s activities to her superior officer, Angel (Luis Tosar).
When Arantxa makes a significant breakthrough in the case, it may be the break she needs to get out of it with her life intact finally. However, as she becomes more immersed in her ruse, she becomes romantically involved with one of the terrorists and finds her life in danger when one of her lover’s superiors grows suspicious of her.
Written and directed by Arantxa Echevarria, who co-wrote the film with Amelia Mora and Maria Luisa Gutierrez, La Infiltrada is a taut and riveting thriller that can be so stressful that it is an absolute relief when the film is over. Although I have watched similar stories unfold in either American or Asian cinema, Echevarria does an exceptional job of developing her protagonist well and consistently building tension within her and around her. As with other undercover stories, it once again questions the mindset of anyone undertaking this type of covert police work. At what point does someone so deeply involved in pretending to be someone else that they eventually become that character? Arantxa Echevarria and actor Carolina Yuste do exceptional work in presenting the psychological torment that comes with this work, also showing the physical toll it takes on the person.
The entire supporting cast is also fantastic. The filmmakers and the actors manage to take what could have been another redundant take on the undercover thriller and infuse it with relatable stakes. The storytelling here is outstanding. I highly recommend this movie, but as of this moment, I am unaware of any release dates in the United States or future streaming options.