El mal is a 2025 Spanish thriller film written and directed by Juanma Bajo Ulloa. It stars Belén Fabra, Natalia Tena, and Tony Dalton.
Contents
Plot
The plot follows writer Elvira, who is approached by serial killer Martín to write about them, prompting her to question her own ethics.
Cast
Belén Fabra as Elvira Nous
Natalia Tena as Martín
Tony Dalton as Thomas
Fernando Gil as Elías
Maria Schwinning as Sandra
Aritz Kortabarria as Chaz
Natalia Ruiz
Production
According to Bajo Ulloa, the first draft for the story dated from 2006. In 2011, the project received a €40,000 funding for development. In 2020, RTVE purchased rights to the film for €700,000. It was also acquired by EiTB. The film was shot in late 2024 in Álava. The film is a Frágil Zinema and El mal la película AIE production.
Release
El mal premiered at the Mar del Plata International Film Festival, included within the 'Hora Cero' programming. The film was released theatrically in Spain on 16 January 2026.
In February 2026, Bajo Ulloa attended the Iker Jiménez-hosted television show Horizonte and claimed that his film was a victim of the "woke dictatorship". The statements were hailed in right-wing media. At that point, the film had grossed €22,907.
Reception
Pablo Vázquez of Fotogramas rated the film 3 out of 5 stars, describing it as "decidedly misanthropic, twisted and autarkic", highlighting "its incorruptible suicidal soul and an imperial Belén Fabra" as the best things about it.
Carmen L. Lobo of La Razón gave the film a 3-star rating, singling out "its claustrophobic atmosphere" and the fact that "it is not politically correct" as the best things about the film, while resenting "several bits of dialogue that sound repetitive and a bit pompous".
Juanma González of Cinemanía rated the film 3½ out of 5 stars, declaring it "a fable about narcissism that does not give a hoot about anything and lacks any sense of the ridiculous".
In a 2-star rating, Manuel J. Lombardo of Diario de Sevilla observed that the film may be interesting "not so much as a reflection on the lack of empathy, but rather as an exercise in style".
Javier Ocaña of El País assessed that, as in Butterfly Wings, El mal displays "the audacity of one who owes nothing to anyone and is unbothered by moral constraints".