There’s a beauty in simplicity. Something that can be clearly seen with how Netflix’s latest Latin American action-adventure movie, Counterstrike (Contraataque) manages to do great amounts with relatively little. In many ways it does exactly what it says on the tin, but in doing so, much like its main characters, it exceeds expectations by being damn good at what it does.

Set in the midst of Mexican cartel country, it tells the story of an elite team of five ‘Murciélagos’ (a fictional branch of Tier 1 operatives), led by Captain Armando (Luis Alberti). After being ambushed while on leave, they find themselves cut off from support, and being hunted across the borderland wilderness by a legion of sicarios and mercenaries. Delving into the modern paradigm of military vs cartel, the film tries to balance a fairly stripped back action movie plot with moments of world building, and characterisation that more often than not land with a slam-dunk. What sets the story apart from the run of the mill action b-movies is that it takes its time to set the story up, introduce the players, establish the stakes and give the audience just enough to hold onto. Even though, at it’s core, it’s a solid, unpretentious piece of action entertainment.

Fans of action movies, and military thrillers will find themselves on familiar ground with a lot of the material here. The military engagement scenes hark towards Denis Villeneuve’s Sicario, and the team’s frantic escape through the forests feels heavily influenced by Peter Berg’s Lone Survivor. Yet despite feeling like it’s inspired by bigger films, Counterstrike never makes itself feel small. Even the climactic shootout as the beleaguered soldiers hold the line against the cartel’s hired guns, a scenario so stock that you might expect it would ruin the movie, pays off entirely because the film has worked so hard to endear you to the characters and situation. 

That’s not to say there’s anything breaking the mould here. It’s a certified B-movie, with a fairly modest budget, but one where the money has been spent in the right places. The film has decent acting with a functional, if barebones, script that fits with the nature of a military team’s working banter. Establishing characters thinly but firmly, but also takes the time to establish the familial ties, and a reasonable personal stake in the Cartel boss Dámaso’s (Leonardo Alonso) vendetta against them. It’s all capably directed by Chava Cartas, who ensures that nothing swings into melodrama, while maintaining the story’s momentum even through the quieter moments.

This is around 85 minutes of well put together boys own, shooty-bang-bang fun of the sort which frankly rarely gets made this skilfully by Hollywood, and certainly not at this price point. It’s a testament to the filmmakers all round that this flew straight into Netflix’s top 10 on release, and it would be a crying shame if plans for a sequel aren’t being prepped for this brave little ‘soldado’ of a movie.

Available to screen on Netflix now