GREEN FRONTIER is a new miniseries on Netflix. This limited series is in the crime thriller genre and hails from Colombia. The original title of the Netflix series is Frontera Verde and it covers everything from magic to Nazis and murder. Read our full Green Frontier review here! 

Green Frontier is a new Netflix series in the crime thriller genre, but it is also so much more. For one, it has a lot of supernatural elements which are obvious from the very first episode.

Overall, it’s very much about the power of Mother Nature. Or rather, in Green Frontier it’s Mother Jungle. The crime, however, is also a very important element since the story begins with four women being murdered.

While it’s a bit of a slow burn in some ways, this Colombian Netflix series (org. title Frontera Verde) has a very interesting and important story.

Read why it should be worth checking out in the rest of our Green Frontier review below.

Green Frontier is Avatar in the jungle

Very quickly, you will realize the importance of nature in Green Frontier. Also, the supernatural elements are an important part of the storyline as is superstition. The latter can obviously be a problem, when a crime needs to be solved, and there are rituals for burying a body quickly. 

The more supernatural elements are all about giving yourself to Mother Jungle and being part of the circle of life. In some ways, the way this is showed reminded me of James Cameron’s Avatar. However, where that particular story is set on another planet, Green Frontier simply takes place in the Amazon.

Then again, both the jungles and oceans of this planet can easily seem as foreign as a different planet. This part of the storyline works for me, but I do recognize that it might not be everyone’s cup of tea.

Green Frontier – Frontera Verde – Netflix Review

The difference in dialogue

This very different setting of following both people in the modern world and people living in traditional tribes in the jungle highlights many differences. One of the most obvious is actually in dialogue or simply rhytm of language.

When we’re following the people, who seem almost straight out of Avatar, the language is almost poetic. Everything is spoken softly and in a quite symbolic manor.

Our main protagonist from the modern world, Elena, is working on solving the crime of the four murders. This isn’t easy when you’re the only woman in law enforcement in the area, but she manages just fine. Elena is portrayed by Juana del Rio who does a really great job. She has the most fascinating deep voice, while being very feminine in appearance.

This is definitely part of the reason why she is able to handle herself so well. Clearly, she’s used to being confronted with being the only woman making decisions. Also, she has a past that we get glimpses of from the very first episode. No doubt it has lots to do with the scars on her body and her past of being from the jungle herself.

Watch Green Frontier on Netflix now!

The new miniseries on Netflix was directed by Laura Mora (Pablo Escobar: El patrón del mal), Ciro Guerra (Birds of Passage) and Jacques Toulemonde Vidal (Anna). 

Green Frontier (or Frontera Verde) was created by Diego Ramírez Schrempp, Mauricio Leiva-Cock and Jenny Ceballos.

Both Leiva-Cock and Ceballos previously worked on the TV series Distrito Salvaje (2018) in various capacities. Also, Mauricio Leiva-Cock adapted the TV Series Falco (Amazon Prime Video). This was a series that also had Green Frontier creator Diego Ramírez Schrempp onboard as an executive producer.

What I’m getting at is this; The creators all knew one another from past projects. And now they’ve come together to create this limited series for Netflix. No doubt making this production the one with the widest reach by far. 

It’s difficult to say too much about Green Frontier without spoiling it for you, so just give it a chance. For me, it is well worth watching and I always have a lot of things I need to watch. Yet, this one caught my attention right away.

Green Frontier is out on Netflix worldwide from August 16, 2019.

Details

Stars: Nelson Camayo, Juana del Rio, Miguel Ramos

Plot

When a young Bogotá-based detective gets drawn into the jungle to investigate four femicides, she uncovers magic, an evil plot and her own true origins.

I write reviews and recaps on Heaven of Horror. And yes, it does happen that I find myself screaming, when watching a good horror movie. I love psychological horror, survival horror and kick-ass women. Also, I have a huge soft spot for a good horror-comedy. Oh yeah, and I absolutely HATE when animals are harmed in movies, so I will immediately think less of any movie, where animals are harmed for entertainment (even if the animals are just really good actors). Fortunately, horror doesn't use this nearly as much as comedy. And people assume horror lovers are the messed up ones. Go figure!
Karina "ScreamQueen" Adelgaard
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