Caught Review
Director: Miguel Cohan and Hernán Goldfrid
Date Created: 2025-03-26 17:08
1.5
Caught Review: Directed by Miguel Cohan and Hernán Goldfrid, Atrapados is the latest Harlan Coben adaptation on Netflix. It is a six-episode long series and stars Soledad Villamil as Ema Garay, a journalist who makes a name for herself by exposing criminals. The story takes place in Bariloche, Argentina, where Ema begins to investigate the disappearance of a 16-year-old girl. The search takes her to suspect Leo Mercer (Juan Minujín), a good social worker. And as the case develops, Ema must confront her own past. Sounds interesting, right? Well, not really.
Caught Review
I typically like the adaptations of Harlan Coben’s works, but really, Netflix is pumping them out way too quickly. We just had Missing You and Just One Look a couple of months ago, and now Caught. It feels like Netflix didn’t even want us to have time to miss these types of shows. You can have too much of the same thing in too short a period of time, and things stop feeling special. That’s precisely what took place here. I was not excited — I was like, “Oh, one more? Haven’t we just seen something like that?”
One of the biggest problems with Netflix’s Caught is Ema Garay. Now, I love flawed characters, but they need to be somewhat interesting or likable at all. Ema, though, is simply reckless and annoying. She leaps to conclusions far too quickly, makes terrible choices, and doesn’t seem to worry about the consequences. I understand the series is trying to depict her growth, but the issue is that by the time she becomes in any way redeeming, I had already stopped caring. A protagonist should inspire you to cheer for him or her, but I just kept feeling annoyed here.
If you’ve watched a few Harlan Coben adaptations, you’ll notice the pattern — mystery, twists, shocking secrets — that will soon emerge. Usually, that’s all well and good, for that’s what makes thrillers fun. But Caught doesn’t do anything new with the formula. It’s all so familiar. You see the twists from a mile away. I was stunned, and others might have been surprised, but I kept saying, “Oh, of course, that’s what’s going on — of course, that’s what’s going on.” It sucks the fun out of the viewing experience.
As if that’s not enough, the storytelling is frustrating. It keeps flipping back and forth between past and present, and not in a good way. Rather than enhancing the mystery, it just bogs things down. At times, I felt like the show was just treading water rather than progressing. It was a spectacle but more exhausting than exhilarating.
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I wish I could say the acting saved the show, but that really isn’t the case. Soledad Villamil, as Ema, does a good job under the circumstances, but her character is so poorly conceived that it’s difficult to connect with her. The lead, Juan Minujín, as Leo Mercer, is fine but not a standout. The supporting cast? Forgettable. From their performances, I didn’t feel any extreme, deep emotions. It all felt incredibly flat and uninspired.
If I were forced to say something nice about the Caught series, I would say its the location. The show takes place in Bariloche, and the cinematography does an excellent job of capturing the beauty of the Argentine landscapes. The wide shots of mountains, woods and lakes are gorgeous. But if we’re being honest, beautiful scenery can’t make up for a bad show. If I wanted to look at pretty landscapes, I’d just watch a travel documentary.”
Summing Up
The caught series is another weak Harlan Coben adaptation. The story is cliched, the mystery unfathomable, the protagonist annoying, and the pacing deliberate. Not even the performances do much to hold you. If you’re a big fan of Harlan Coben’s work, you may want to take a gander at it, but don’t expect anything fabulous. If you’re just seeking a solid mystery thriller, I’m not sure I’d send you here; best to find something else.
Argentina’s series Caught is now streaming on Netflix.
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