A Body in the Woods (1996)

While chasing boars in the woods, hunters discover the body of a woman. They all know her. She was Montse (Nuria Prims). They call the police. Police Lieutenant Cifuentes (Rossy de Palma) takes charge of the case. Police Lieutenant Cifuentes is a woman and she's working in a conservative small town in Catalonia, Spain (a woman as a police lieutenant!), but she is a tough woman and knows what she's about, so no problem here. Her investigation will unveil (for us, the viewers) the ugly side of the community – racism, cruelty, brutality… and we will also get to know something more about her.

The film begins with a boar chase, and unless I'm totally mistaken it is a real chase, the film crew brought the actors, cameras and equipment, and the chase is really happening. In "Cuerpo en el bosque", nature, houses, human beings and animals mix naturally. Men x Women, Whites x Blacks, Human beings x Animals - sometimes violence and brutality. "Cuerpo en el bosque" shows things as they are, there are no good or bad characters – just human beings. The film abstains from judgement, it paints a fresco of a small Catalonian town and nature, people and animals (that are used as symbols in the story).

Going back to the story of the film. The body of a woman was discovered in the woods. She was called Montse and the hunters knew her. As a matter of fact, all the town knew her. Sometimes she came from Barcelona and stayed some time there. She had some boyfriends and was very easygoing in her way of life. Police Lieutenant Cifuentes, starts the investigation, Montse's closer friends are interrogated – there's a hippielike guy, nervous and unstable, and another one is the leader of the local rock band and his father (a respectable and prominent citizen of the town) is also on the list, and we should not forget an African immigrant. Are there others?

But there's still an unknown darker stream flowing underground that is weaving it all together. A conscious design beyond good and bad is at work…..

"Cuerpo en el bosque"/ "Un cos al bosc" is an interesting Catalonian/Spanish film. Recommended for people who like surprises in their films. Those who like edifying films with clear-cut messages should stay away from "Cuerpo en el bosque".