Wetland (film)

2021 Spanish film

Wetland

Poster

Spanish| El lodo
Directed by| Iñaki Sánchez Arrieta
Screenplay by| Iñaki Sánchez Arrieta
Produced by| Ramiro Acero
Starring|

* Raúl Arévalo
* Paz Vega
* Roberto Álamo
* Joaquín Climent
* Susi Sánchez

Cinematography| Guillem Oliver
Edited by| Marta Salas
Music by|

* Xema Fuertes
* Amadeo Moscardó

Production
companies

* Sunrise Pictures
* El Lodo la película AIE
* Telespan 2000

Distributed by| Vértice 360

Release dates

* 15 October 2021 (2021-10-15) (Valencia)
* 12 December 2021 (2021-12-12) (Spain)

Country| Spain
Language| Spanish

Wetland (Spanish: El lodo;[1] transl. 'The Mud') is a 2021 Spanish thriller film directed by Iñaki Sánchez Arrieta which stars Raúl Arévalo and Paz Vega alongside Joaquín Climent, Roberto Álamo and Susi Sánchez.

## Plot

[edit]

A biologist returns to his native land amid a dire drought episode and tries to protect the environment, but he meets opposition from the locals.

## Cast

[edit]

* Raúl Arévalo as Ricardo[2]
* Paz Vega as Claudia[3]
* Joaquín Climent as Eusebio[2]
* Roberto Álamo as Tomás[2]
* Susi Sánchez as Francisca[3]
* Juan Gea [es] as Inspector Baños[2]
* Daniela Casas[3]

## Production

[edit]

The film was produced by Sunrise Pictures alongside El Lodo la película AIE, in association with Telespan 2000, with participation of À Punt Media and support from the Institut Valenciá de Cultura.[4] It was shot in the natural park of La Albufera and its surroundings.[5]

## Release

[edit]

The film screened as the opening film of the 36th Mostra de València [es] in October 2021.[6][7] Distributed by Vértice, it was initially slated for a 29 October 2021 theatrical release in Spain.[5] The release date was eventually postponed to 10 December 2021.[4]

## Reception

[edit]

Toni Vall of Cinemanía rated the film 3½ out of 5 stars, underscoring it to be a "magnetic tale of scattered violence and social criticism".[8]

Manuel J. Lombardo of Diario de Sevilla scored 2 out of 5 stars assessing that the film gets bogged down in its own redundancies amid dramatic effects and a sensationalist drift.[9]

Elsa Fernández-Santos of El País considered that the film contributes nothing to the environmental dilemma posed by Susi Sánchez' character and "remains in the trite and superficial metaphor of the muddy waters, of the primitive men of the countryside versus those of the city".[10]

Raquel Hernández Luján of HobbyConsolas scored 68 out of 100 points ("acceptable"), writing that the film "works well as a wake-up call on environmental issues and manages to exploit the landscapes to create an unsettling atmosphere", while citing as negative points that the thriller side of the film works in fits and starts and that there are overacted secondary characters detracting from the story.[11]

## Accolades

[edit]

Year  | Award  | Category | Nominee(s)  | Result | Ref.

|
|
|
|
|

2021 | 4th Berlanga Awards | Best Actress | Paz Vega | Nominated | [12][13]
Best Actor | Joaquín Climent | Nominated
Best Supporting Actress | Susi Sánchez | Nominated
Best Supporting Actor | Roberto Álamo | Nominated
Best Original Music | Xema Fuertes, Amadeo Moscardó | Nominated
Best Production Supervision | José Jaime Linares | Nominated
Best Editing | Marta Salas | Nominated
Best Cinematography and Lighting | Guillem Oliver | Nominated
Best Sound | Dani Navarro, Iván Martinez Rufat | Nominated
Best Costume Design | Giovanna Ribes | Nominated

## See also

[edit]

* List of Spanish films of 2021

## References

[edit]

1. ^ Niola, Gabriele; Tabbara, Mona; Mitchell, Wendy; MacNab, Geoffrey; Cabeza, Elisabet; Dalton, Ben (12 October 2021). "The buzz titles from European sellers at MIA 2021". ScreenDaily.
2. ^ a b c d "El lodo" (PDF). Madrid: Cines Renoir. Retrieved 11 June 2022.
3. ^ a b c Úbeda-Portugués, Alberto (4 December 2021). "Los estrenos del 10 de diciembre. 'El lodo'. Tensión entre arrozales". Aisge.
4. ^ a b "'El lodo' – estreno en cines 10 de diciembre". Audiovisual451. 6 December 2021.
5. ^ a b Silvestre, Juan (7 September 2021). "'El lodo': póster, en primicia, del thriller de Raúl Arévalo y Paz Vega". Fotogramas.
6. ^ ""El lodo" inaugura la Mostra de Valencia, que homenajea a Jean-Pierre Jeunet". La Vanguardia. 15 October 2021.
7. ^ Barbeta, Amparo (10 December 2021). "Paz Vega: "Que te dejen de querer es terrorífico. Es la nada"". Levante-EMV.
8. ^ Vall, Toni (7 December 2021). "Crítica de 'El lodo'". Cinemanía - via 20minutos.es.
9. ^ Lombardo, Manuel J. (12 December 2021). "Antidepresivos, cañas y barro". Diario de Sevilla.
10. ^ Fernández-Santos, Elsa (10 December 2021). "'El lodo', otro 'thriller' español que se enfanga". El País.
11. ^ Hernández Luján, Raquel (9 December 2021). "Crítica de El lodo, un árido thriller de trasfondo ecologista". HobbyConsolas.
12. ^ "'Lucas', 'Las consecuencias' y 'El lodo' se imponen en las nominaciones de los Premios Berlanga 2021". Europa Press. 18 November 2021.
13. ^ "'Espíritu sagrado', 'El cover' y 'Las consecuencias' triunfan en los Premios Berlanga 2021". Cine y Tele. 5 December 2021.

*[transl.]: translation
*[Ref.]: Reference