Summary
A quirky trio causes chaos for the cartel while on a rescue mission. This film offers high-speed action and zany comedy.
Here is our review of the 2023 Prime Video film Medellín, which does not contain spoilers.
After his successful series Validated, French actor Franck Gastambide is back to directing films. In this highly anticipated movie, Medellín, he directs, writes, and stars in this action film set in Colombia. This film is Gastambide’s second venture with Prime Video, as he previously participated in the celebrity reality series Celebrity Hunted.
Medellín Review and Plot Summary
The story is a classic rescue mission, where our lead character Rèda’s (Ramzy Bedia) little brother appears to have been kidnapped and is now in the dangerous hands of the Narcos of the Medellín cartel. Rèda has a plan that is simple but insane: put together a team and raid Colombia!
Hilariously, this team ends up being three people, and it turns out his brother wasn’t really kidnapped, and now the trio has taken hostage the son of the most dangerous Nacho in Colombia.
This then causes Brahim (the brother) actually to be kidnapped, and things go from bad to worse.
The film stars Franck Gastambide himself, Ramzy Bedia, Raymond Cruz, Anouar Toubali, and the legendary Mike Tyson, all of whom give great performances.
There is excellent chemistry between the characters; they’re animated and have great comedic timing. All this, with the vibrant, colorful cinematography, makes this film an energetic experience.
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Rèda’s character is fiery and fierce, and his temper doesn’t help him or the guys at all. Mixed with the calm nature of his lifelong friend Stan (Gastambide), their totally opposite personalities bring out the best and worst in one another.
What I did find funny is how both Rèda and El Diablo keep sending videos and Face-Timing one another, showing off how they’re torturing and planning to hurt their captives. While El Diablo seems a seriously scary threat, Stan, Rèda, and Chafix are suburban men, and their plans go wrong and accidentally hurt El Diablo’s son by getting his legs bitten off by a shark.
I also loved how they rescue a dog on their travels. Unnecessarily cute.
I did wonder where the storyline was going and what the ending would be, as while it’s entertaining, it felt it lacked some substance, but I was still happy watching and going along for this ride.
With a thrilling and heartfelt ending, I was glad I watched.
What I will take from this film is if you’re a social media influencer, be careful what you post, and if you’re an older sibling, be chill if your sibling is kidnapped.
Is Medellín good or bad?
Overall, this is an adequate action film. It’s packed with dark humor, exciting action sequences, and decent acting performances from a well-known cast.
Is Medellin worth watching?
If you’re an action film fan, this is the film for you. With a star-studded cast, high action, and drama, this film makes for a perfect watch for a movie night.
It’s not exceptional by any means, but it’s a decent mafia/cartel film, and with a runtime of one hour and forty-four minutes, it’s one you should invest in.
What did you think of the 2023 Prime Video film Medellín? Comment below.
