Cell 211

Juan Oliver is about to start a new job as a prison guard. He arrives a day early to make a good impression, and the timing could hardly be worse: a riot breaks out, and because nobody recognises him, he pretends to be an inmate in order to stay alive. It works well enough that he is able to get close to Malamadre, the prisoner leading the uprising, while trying to steer events toward his own survival. The situation changes once members of ETA are taken hostage inside, giving the mutiny a political dimension that draws the government in.

Daniel Monzón directed and co-wrote the screenplay with Jorge Guerricaechevarría. It is the first of five features Monzón has directed, followed by The Kid, Yucatán, Outlaws and Pray for Us. Alberto Ammann plays Juan, with Luis Tosar as Malamadre; Antonio Resines, Marta Etura, Manuel Morón and Carlos Bardem are also in the cast, which numbers twenty-nine credited performers.

Made for about six million dollars and released in 2009, the film earned roughly nineteen million worldwide. On IMDb it holds a 7.6 rating from around 74,000 votes, and on TMDB a 7.4 from some 1,300 votes. A critics' rating of 7.6 from forty-seven reviews places it in close agreement with general audiences.