No Negociable (Netflix, 2024)
No Negociable is a Mexican thriller with both comedic and action elements, about a hostage negotiator sorting out the worst crisis in both his professional and personal life.
I think you’ve seen this type before. Alan Bender (Mauricio Ochmann) is very good at what he does, but his wife Victoria (Tata Alexander), gets short shrift. While she, a psychologist, claims to actually save more lives than he.
They agree to enter marriage therapy, but before too long Alan is called away on a matter of national importance, because it concerns the Mexican president Araiza (Enoc Leano). And by the time he arrives at the scene, the stakes have become much more personal too.
Because of that, Alan is immediately taken off the case, but since hostage taker Vicente (Leonardo Ortizgris) will only talk to him, he is quickly reinstated and so he will absolutely go on and try to solve the case, no matter what.
No Negociable is no masterpiece but I enjoyed it as a pretty decent movie. Ochmann is excellent as the negotiator and the rest of the cast give good game.
And Vicente has quite a motive: he holds the Mexican president responsible for all his broken campaign promises and is not only intent on torturing him, but also in sending money to schools and hospitals, thereby giving the movie a politcal edge you may not expect.
Writer and director Juan Taratuto keeps the mix of thriller, action and comedy moving along at a fair clip.
And even though there are plenty of twists and turns along the way, the movie doesn’t overstay its welcome and clocks in at under ninety minutes.
No Negociable fits in the mould of nineties movies like that old Sam Jackson & Kevin Spacey chestnut The Negotiator (1998), or even Eddie Murphy’s less liked Metro from the year before.
If that’s your bag, you’re probably gonna dig this one too.