Daniel Monzón's Cell 211 is a gripping, suspenseful thriller, as well as a political commentary on the situation in Spanish jails today. While the film hits several notes popular to the prison film genre, it also questions the extent to which the violence characteristically bred within these facilities is due to the “untameable” disposition of the prisoner.
Juan Oliver (Alberto Ammann) wants to make a good impression at his new job as a prison officer and reports to work a day early, leaving his pregnant wife, Elena (Marta Etura), at home. His destiny is forever changed by this fateful decision, as during his tour of the prison, an accident occurs that knocks him unconscious. He is rushed to the empty but visibly haunted walls of cell 211. As this diversion unfolds, inmates of the high-security cellblock strategically break free and hijack the penitentiary. Aware of the violence that is to come, the prison officers flee, leaving Juan stranded and unconscious in the heart of the riot. When Juan awakens, he immediately takes stock of the situation; in order to survive, he must pretend to be a prisoner.
Juan develops a dialogue with the violent leader of the riot, Badass (an incredible Luis Tosar, who also played the villain in Michael Mann's Miami Vice), and the two begin a partnership, Badass fully believing that Juan is a new inmate. Negotiations go smoothly until the rioters take three ETA (the militant Basque separatist organization) prisoners hostage. When this hits the news, it triggers a stream of prison riots throughout the country as well as demonstrations in the Basque Country.
Juan quickly realizes that he is on his own as the situation becomes more politicized and the government gets involved, afraid of potential ramifications in the Basque community. As the drama heightens, unexpected shifts in character both within and without the prison occur. Tinged with social undertones, Cell 211 offers an entertaining yet provocative reflection on the moral grey zones that continue to riddle the socially abject space of the state penitentiary.
Diana Sanchez
Daniel Monzón was born in Palma in Majorca, Spain. His directorial debut,
Heart of the Warrior (01), earned him a 2001 Goya nomination for best new director. His other films include
The Biggest Robbery Never Told (02),
The Kovak Box (06) and
Cell 211 (09).