Monday night was the premiere The invisible evil, the new dose of murders and gruesome events to compensate for the end of CrimesThe new series chronicles the police misery of a Barcelona confined by the pandemic while investigating the serial murders of homeless people. The story is inspired by true events, a label that seems obligatory for selling any audiovisual product.
The best ofThe invisible evil It's the fortune they've saved on hiring extras. Portraying an empty city also has a lot of visual power and connects us with a time and a reality that now seems like a nightmare. The series' key element is its lead cast: David Verdaguer, Ángela Cervantes, and Àlex Brendemühl as the central trio are a good selling point. But, unfortunately, it's just that: a selling point. In practice, everything flounders. A terrible script and poor direction have condemned the actors to a very fragile performance. There are castings that can save a mediocre series. But there are also bad series that can bring down good performers. And that's the case. There's a problem of tone and pretense. The series aims to imbue itself with darkness and an oppressive and murky emotional atmosphere in order to nourish itself with mystery. But they've blamed the leads for this burden. Verdaguer, Cervantes, and Brendemühl must force this restless attitude, dragging them into an affectation that doesn't work in their favor. The dialogues top the job. They're full of clichés, and you can hear the sound of the screenwriters' computer keyboards typing them. The actors seem to be waiting their turn to speak. And the supporting cast is so stereotyped that it makes the series look dated before it even premieres. The screenwriters have made it impossible for the viewer to establish empathy with their characters. Their lives mean little to you. The story of the chief inspector's son and his dancing neighbor is utterly ridiculous. Their effectiveness as wall painters is one of the most delirious virtues we've seen in teenage plots. There are absurd and naive script approaches that turn homelessness into a Dickensian tale adapted to modern times. In addition, there is an obvious problem with the sound system that makes it difficult to understand some of the lines.
The script is failing. The use of the flashbacks It's as simple as it is botched. It's the only way they've found to give the protagonists substance, plans, and slumbers. You don't feel any concern about knowing who the murderer is because you shouldn't suspect any of the characters you've been introduced to. Quique's divorce is so justified that it poses no dilemma. The supposed sexual tension between Quique and Marga would be there at that Christmas dinner, because it later disintegrates thanks to the depressing atmosphere. And even the millionaire inspector Quim Vilana seems indifferent to his own plot. Contradicting the title, the evil in the series is quite visible.
