Excellent series, written and directed by Alex de la Iglesia for HBO, starring Eduard Fernandez, Miguel Angel Silvestre and Megan Montaner.
Father Vergara, a priest who performs exorcisms and practices boxing, was in prison for a while and is now assigned to a parish in a deep Spanish village. He hides dark secrets that he wants to forget, but a powerful group within the Vatican is collecting the 30 coins that Judas received for betraying Christ, which will give them absolute power over the fate of the world. One of those coins is in the town, which will bring supernatural consequences there. Evil forces will start acting in that village, only Father Vergara, whom a group of people wants to expel from the village, with the help of Paco, the village mayor, and Elena, a veterinarian whose husband is missing, will work together to fight phenomena, creatures and the whole supernatural arsenal with which the village will be attacked.
30 Coins is another excellent Spanish series this year, this time entering the genre of terror and fantasy, created by the prestigious Álex de la Iglesia, who in addition to directing all the episodes, wrote the script with Jorge Guerricaechevarría.
I am a follower of Álex de la Iglesia's cinema since I saw his short film Mirandas Asesinas, and then he made a crazy movie called Acción Mutante, which has become a cult movie. On an international level he had great success with El Día de la Bestia, one of his best films, opening the doors of Hollywood to him, where he directed Perdita Durango.
But each new film of this director, made me more fan of his style. Muertos de Risa, La Comunidad, 800 Bullets, Crimen Ferpecto, La balada triste de Trompeta, Las Brujas de Zarragamundi, Mi Gran Noche, El Bar, all of them I liked very much. Maybe it is La Chispa de la Vida, the film that I have liked the least from the director, but it is one of the references of the current Spanish cinema and I always recommend it to all those who have not discovered the films of this Spanish filmmaker.
The series has all the elements that distinguish the cinema of this Spanish filmmaker,for better and for worse, for those of us who are fans of horror and his cinematic style, we are happy with the series, I love all the excesses of Alex de la Iglesia, it is what draws my attention to all his projects, a host of situations and characters, which are always pushed to the limit. With any of his productions, we will always enjoy the universes he creates, with characters full of nuances and scenes where the great imagination of the director is captured.
The construction of really fabulous characters, depending on the story he tells us, is one of the great talents of the filmmaker and 30 Coins will be no exception.
My favorite character, definitely is Father Vergara, that man of God, who has lost a little faith, who had to spend two years in jail and who is to blame for the death of a child during an exorcism. He was assigned to that distant village in Spain, where some people, like Merche, the noble mayor's wife, distrust him and want to expel him from the place. Vergara spends his days fulfilling his duties at the church, while he practices boxing and keeps an arsenal of weapons inside the church, because he knows that at any moment the powerful forces of evil will arrive at the town.
Paco, is the naive mayor of the town, he also owns the meat company and a hotel in the area, he is married to Merche, but in reality he is madly in love with Elena, the veterinarian. He is a man who will always try to solve the problems that arise in the village, he will be one of the main witnesses of the presence of evil in that place, but he will keep the secret with Vergara and Elena so as not to cause alarm in the village.
Elena is the beautiful veterinarian of the village, whose husband has not returned for several years, everyone thinks he abandoned her, some believe she is dead. One of the coins will arrive in her hands, turning her into a target of supernatural forces that need her. She does not get along with Father Vergara, because she feels he has not been sincere and has not told them the truth, but she will have to work as a team every time something happens that has no logical explanation.
These three characters are the heroes of the story and will have as their counterpart a very powerful enemy, who will be represented in different ways and creatures.
But the great villain is Cardinal Santoro, he is this man who is behind everything, and nothing will stop him until he has the 30 Judas coins in his possession. Santoro and Vergara have known each other for many years, when they were studying to become priests. Those who one day were friends, now are enemies, every one of them on one side, good and bad.
The series screened its first episode in the Official Section of the Sitges Fantastic Film Festival, where most of the opinions were very positive, highlighting the excellent production work, starting with some fabulous credits, where the Judas betrayal, the crucifixion and then the suicide are told, with the bag of coins falling on the floor and being picked up by different hands. The initial credits are already a work of art.
The visual quality of the production is another strong point, the filmmaker has relied on the director of photography Pablo Rosso, who has experience in horror films, being the creator of the atmosphere of films like While you sleep in 2011 and the films of the saga REC. which was a success, and in Hollywood they made a remake. Last year he worked on the Spanish film A quine Hierro Mata.
The cast is always something that stands out in any Alex de la Iglesia production.
The Spanish actor Eduard Fernandez plays Father Vergara, being the main character of the whole story. The actor has prepared himself physically very well, he has lost many kilos, but he also uses some prosthesis to emphasize the muscles. Even worse is that I lose weight to play the character. The actor brings character and strength, which makes him an unforgettable character and my favorite. Fernandez is one of the best Spanish actors today, where he has a great career in film and television. Among the awards he has won, he has a Goya for best supporting actor. I recommend seeing the film Al hombre de las mil caras, based on real events and where I play Francisco Paesa.
Miguel Angel Silvestre plays Paco, the mayor of the city, and is a well-known actor in Spain for his work on the television program Terciopelo. He has also worked in telenovelas in Latin America, such as a version of Sin Tetas no hay Paraíso, which also appeared in one of the seasons of Narcos. His character in 30 Coins has a lot of comedy, which makes it fun and enjoyable for the viewer.
Megan Montaner plays Elena, the strong woman who has suffered these years because she does not know where her husband is, although deep down, she also seems to have feelings for Paco. Elena will keep one of the smonedas and will have to be strong to face all the supernatural events that will happen in the city. Megan is a well known actress in her country, for her work in the series El secreto de Puente Viejo, Gran Hotel and Sin Identidad. Her character irritates me at times, but she has a strange beauty that later captivates me.
The prestigious actress Macarena Gomez plays Merche, Paco's wife and enemy of the priest. Her character will take on importance as the episodes unfold and will be used by the forces of evil as an ally. The actress has been successful in both film and television, was well known in Spain for her work in the comedy La que se avecina and has had an extensive career in film, addressing different genres, drama, terror and comedy. She and ahabi worked with Alex de la Iglesia in the film Las Brujas de Zarragamundi.
The actor Manolo Solo, winner of the Goya as best supporting actor in 2017, for the film Tarde para la Ira, is in charge of interpreting Cardinal Santoro, the villain of the story who pulls the strings of power from inside the Vatican. Little by little we will discover things about this character's past and his relationship with Father Vergara.
There are other characters, but there are too many, I can't name them all, but I will say that the actor Pepón Nieto plays Sergeant Lagunes, the town's civil guard, who seems to know nothing. He is an actor who has previously worked for the director. The excellent Carmen Machi, appears in the first episode, as always, does a great job, she is another actress who has worked in previous films of the director.
30 Coins is a series that all Alex de la Iglesia fans will enjoy very much. If you like terror, supernatural fantasy stories, with battles between the forces of good and evil, this series will please you.
I am enjoying every episode that airs weekly, hoping that in its final part it will surprise me, pushing all the situations and characters to the limit, exploiting the imagination of the filmmaker to create a madness of events.
It airs on HBO and consists of eight episodes.
My Ranking: 3.8/5
