God's Crooked Lines

The Mystery concept is on full display in this film, though unfortunately it is not a new, refreshed, or novel mystery. Here we have the typical madhouse film that questions the sanity of the protagonist mixed with the story of the typical crime story without a clear culprit.

But don't get me wrong, this movie is good and entertaining, despite its slow pace and excessively long footage. It is somehow a good mystery that if you plunge into the plot, you will fall into the confusion that the story presents and you will be motivated to unravel this mess with the smell of old parchment. The last plot twist can be felt a little bit forced, but after all, it's expected.

I watched this with little expectations other than a mix of negative reviews and one about 'a movie for intellectuals.' If you enjoyed Shutter Island, I highly recommend as this is of the same genre, well made, characters develop at a comfortable pace and the crooked lines in the plot are well played, done with thought and til the end.

I look forward to watching this again as I know I will pick up something new with each watch. I didn't recognize any of these actors, but was very impressed by all. Any movie set made to be in an insane asylum can go one of many ways. The characters here were intriguing, make you laugh, cry, and want to be their friends.

Psychological thriller/drama-mystery film directed by Oriol Paulo (the man behind the original versions of Balda/Dobaara/Blurr)

I went into the film not knowing anything about the film, (you should as well; I'll spare the plot here) and halfway in, it had me like "what is the world is going on here?" as it is the case with most of this director's films.

The plot slowly unravels and makes you go "Ooooooohhhh...! Innterestinggg" and the end makes you question everything you've watched. Hella twists and turns throughout!

If you enjoy the joy of looking for answers, this one is surely for you. For the rest of you thriller junkies, this will be worth your time as well.

The movie starts with a bird's-view of a mountainous landscape. A car drives down a road. We know our heroine is going to be alone in this journey.

Alice is a private detective set to investigate the events that lead to the death of the son of her client. Her client does not agree with the final report: suicide. She decides to enter sanatorium where her client's son was institutionalized to conduct her investigations on the source. Once there, who can judge sanity over insanity?

The plot follow two storylines: we see Alice's perspective and investigation, and then we shift into a breakout event that led to the death of one of the sanatorium's patients. The story keeps us hooked until the very end, a great who-and-whydunit story that leaves us guessing until the very end.

The ending is good too, although people who read the book where screenwriters based this movie's story on can argue which ending is the best. I personally think both takes are good.

For a mystery story, it's possible to defend that the movie is too long, dragging a bit. I feel that this is not true; the movie is long, but the story is good. I don't mind being hooked for over 2 hours if the story is good.

At the end, I felt rewarded: the movie delivered. One could debate that there are some really messed up stuff that happens, and that the police seems a bit lost in this whole mess, but you need to remember this story happens in 1979.

If you are a fan of mystery dramas and don't mind the time spent on this movie, God's Crooked Lines is recommendable.

Another great movie by one of the top Spanish directors nowadays. As his other projects you get a fantastic dosis of suspense and will keep asking questions throught the film. A difficult book to adapt but the director manages to do it perfectly well. Really entertaining movie with quality. Eduard Fernández and Oriol Paulo are always a guarantee for movie lovers.. My advice is not to read a lot about the film. I also recommend checking the director's previous films. This has been the best year in Spanish cinema in a long time. Mistery, good acting and entertainment, enough for me. Turn on the tv and Enjoy...