The Baztan Trilogy

The first movie 'The Invisible Guardian' begins with the killings of several teenage girls and elaborate staging of their bodies by the river in the damp valley of Elizondo. Amaia Salazar, our protagonist, returns there, her hometown, as the Chief Investigator for the case. She heads the homicide department. The serial killings seem aimed at young girls who don't uphold the traditional norms and have begun exploring their sexuality. Through the case, Amaia grapples with her own demons, her relationship issues and traumatic memories of abuse from her past. We get to know that her mother had abused her, being seemingly senile herself, and was then admitted to a facility.

The setting of the damp valley where it rains all hours of the day, the cloudy scenery, the fog covered thick forest maintain a sinister vibe throughout the movie. It is an apt backdrop for a crime thriller, with supernatural undertones. The mythical beast  basajaun, the big hairy beast of the forest, seems to be the Guardian angel or protector of the valley and its presence is evident throughout. The feel and theme kept me on the edge throughout.

The small town is associated with its own bakeries, the flavors of cakes and flour-made sweet delicacies. It adds so well to the setting. An off-map locale, a small township with its own secrets. The victims have a cookie like local cake on them, as a staging ritual by the killer. And Amaia seems to be sleepwalking to their family bakery in the middle of the night. She has bad memories in there. Her sister Flora runs it now. That spooks me a bit - that bakery. Amaia's aunt was such a delightful character. Her vibes were so homely. She read tarot cards to Amaia when she couldn't find an answer. 

The second movie, 'The Legacy of Bones' is even more sinister with the mystery of a hell lot of bones found in a cave, a long history of witchcraft in the valley, and suspected female infanticides. This is my favorite movie from the series.

We see that the psyche of the people in the valley is deep rooted in traditional beliefs- like burying a baby deceased after birth, unbaptized, beside the house for luck. The minor happenings from the first book are a part of something big in this one. Someone's provoking the convicts in the medical facility to kill themselves, leaving a one word message. Amaia discovers dark deeply buried secrets about her birth, her childhood and her mother. Something she had a hunch about through her dreams, but the truth was way darker, harder to digest. The mythical, the good and the evil coexist in the valley. The final scene was nerve-wracking- as the climax happens in the dead night in the cave with the entire town flooded with the river, due to incessant rains.

In the third movie, 'Offering to the Storms' there's a new discovery of secret sects, societies with damnable practices, who made offerings to the devil mythical being Inguma, for a life of prosperity. It connects all the loose ends slowly. All the deaths in the valley are connected in one way or the other. Amaia's friends are targeted, the one's unsuspected is the culprit. Personal relations take a toll. And the presence of a powerful evil spirit is felt vividly.

I can see why this is such a well received series, translated over 30+ languages. It's just so twisted and hard hitting. The supernatural elements. So mysterious. The best thing about this series is that it starts off with reality, crime thriller, slowly seeps some supernatural into it. And that builds up over the time, so much so that every criminal action, has an evil dark ulterior motive. The mythical and supernatural coexist with the reality. Side by side. They cannot be separated. The references to decades-old history, myths of the land, practices and rituals make it an interesting read. Religion coexists in the land with sectarianism, secret societies and black magic.

Thanks to some awesome bloggers' recommendations- I have enjoyed watching this series so much. So thrilling and unforgettable a story. Available on Netflix.

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