Nothing reels you in quite like a locked-room mystery. Throw in a web of lies, deceit, and a race against time, then you’ve got something that truly keeps viewers on the edges of their seats. In a nutshell, that’s what The Invisible Guest — or Contratiempo in its original Spanish title — delivers. Directed by Oriol Paulo, the master of layered and intricate storytelling, the film promises to be a murder mystery. However, it doesn’t just stop there, it dives into puzzling realms and creates a narrative where every single piece counts. At the center of it all is Adrian Doria (Mario Casas), a not-so-shabby businessman who’s found locked in a hotel room with the lifeless body of his lover, Laura Vidal (Bárbara Lennie). All fingers are pointed at him considering the damning evidence of a sealed room with no extra entry/exit points.

That’s where razor-sharp defense attorney, Virginia Goodman (Ana Wagener) comes in. Using her talent for dismantling lies, she chips away at Adrian’s version of the truth and in the process kicks off a high-stakes cat-and-mouse chase. Using an expertly patched-together set of flashbacks, shifting perspectives, and red herrings, The Invisible Guest proves that a good mystery isn’t just about finding out who did it, but figuring out who’s lying.

How ‘The Invisible Guest’ Capitalizes on a Web of Secrets and Expert Storytelling
Image Via Warner Bros Pictures

Your run-of-the-mill murder mystery reveals the truth, The Invisible Guest, on the other hand, makes you work for it. In Paulo’s usual fashion, right at the moment when viewers think they’ve cracked the case, the movie flips the script… again. The Invisible Guest wastes little to no time reeling you into its intricately spun web. From the very first moment, there’s the locked room set up, but that’s just the tip of the iceberg as Wagener’s Virginia Goodman claws away at Adrian’s story. The fascinating thing is how it’s not simply about what transpired but about how each revelation leads further into a maze of lies and unexpected plot twists.

A standout moment comes in the form of a fateful car accident that changes everything. While driving through a snow-covered area, Adrian and Laura end up hitting a young man’s car. Unfortunately, the entire ordeal ends in his death. Then, panic sets in and instead of reporting things to the authorities, they cover up the accident. Unexpectedly, another driver happens on the scene of the accident, leading Adrian and Laura to pretend to be exchanging insurance information. However, from this point on, the story spirals as Adrian hides the victim’s car and body in a lake. Later, a local automotive engineer, Tomas Garrido (José Coronado), offers to help Laura repair the damaged vehicle — Adrian’s car, but in a shocking twist, Tomas happens to be the actual victim’s father. The tension in these scenes is nothing short of electric and creates the perfect cocktail of guilt, revenge, and betrayal. In a nutshell, this is how the film delivers reveals within reveals that are everything but linear or one-note.

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The Thin Moral Lines in ‘The Invisible Guest’ Make for an Unforgettable Narrative

One of the most fascinating things about The Invisible Guest is how quickly morality becomes a moving target. In this film, no character walks away unaffected by the myriad of choices they make as the story runs its course. It all begins with the central characters, Adrian Doria and Laura Vidal, whose situation kicks off a string of ethically questionable decisions. It’s made clear early on that the moral compass between the couple is weak, from their affair to their calculated self-preservation at the accident scene. But it’s not just the hit-and-run that muddies the waters, there’s Adrian’s penchant for lying and manipulating everyone around him in a bid to control all versions of the truth. The combination of their questionable judgment ripples outwards which ends up pulling other characters, like Tomas Garrido and his grieving wife into their web of lies.

Even the moral compass of the film, defense attorney Virginia Goodman, operates in gray areas, laying psychological traps to coax the truth out of Adrian. At the end of the day, The Invisible Guest proves it’s more of a mystery as it weaves a tale that challenges viewers to consider how far they’d go when their backs are against the wall.

Release Date January 6, 2017 Director Oriol Paulo Cast Mario Casas , Ana Wagener , José Coronado , Bárbara Lennie , Francesc Orella , Paco Tous , David Selvas , Iñigo Gastesi Runtime 106 Minutes Main Genre Crime Writers Oriol Paulo , Lara Sendim Expand

The Invisible Guest is available to stream on Netflix in the U.S.

WATCH ON NETFLIX