The Infiltrator

The Infiltrator continues TV and film's ongoing obsession with the 'War on Drugs.' A portrayal of Robert Mazur's amazing, true-life, undercover mission to infiltrate the American workings of Pablo Escobar, it arrives coincidentally with Narcos' wildly popular version of the story reaching series two and stars the darling of the fictional drug world; Bryan Cranston.

Mazur's tale is quite extraordinary. The depths he plumbed to puncture the inner workings of these notorious criminals is quite remarkable and, although this is a true story, it's harder to believe than a fictional film in parts.

There's so much to get through that, other than Mazur, we don't get too many character introductions. We sympathise with some but are left too long wondering who people are and desperately trying to remember who they work with and where they fit in. Narcos overcame this issue with a voice-over and that would have worked here, or perhaps an onscreen bio' for each new piece of the puzzle.

It's clear, though, that Director Brad Furman wanted to ramp up the realism and decided to go for a grubby look with low-angle camera and the threat of danger round every corner. It suits a film of this type but hardly passes for originality these days; it's not a film to reward repeat viewings.

Having said that, it's a terrific performance from Cranston; indeed we should expect no less, and a tale worth telling. Interestingly, despite being billed as a movie intrinsically about Escobar, we only catch a glimpse of him in one scene and we focus more on his American associates and money launderers.

A good watch and a worthy movie adaptation (unlike some true stories that have come out recently) but not as good as Narcos, or Breaking Bad. If you want your fix of Escobar's story or the drug underworld stick to the small screen.

3 stars ***