The director, J.M. Cravioto, does justice to the comedy mystery thriller A Deadly Invitation, with a story revolving around a high-society murder. Starring well-known actors Maribel Verdú, Stephanie Cayo, Manolo Cardona, and Aarón Díaz, the movie is replete with elements that would engage audiences throughout. The plot focuses on a deadly invitation sent out by Olivia to some of the people she knew and shared a bitter-sweet relationship with. Will the invitation lead to a gathering of merrymakers or end in a catastrophe? Let us see what happens when all the characters come together!
Spoilers Ahead
What Happens In The Film?
After receiving an invitation from her half-sister Olivia, Agatha goes over to Los Cabos, Mexico. That is where she meets the other characters of the film: Carlos, Cary, Sonia, Naram, and Figue. They have also been invited to the mysterious party, and nobody has any clue as to why they have been summoned. Slowly, the events start unfolding before the characters as Olivia enters the scene on a yacht. Rather than being cordial to her guests, she says that everyone on the boat has a motive to kill each other. She says that her sister Agatha would receive all her fortune if anything happened to her, stating that Carlos, her ex-husband, might have a reason to kill her. She also reveals some other secrets about others, as she says that Sonia could be planning to kill her because she had once stolen Carlos from her. She says that Carry owed some debt to Carlos, which could be cleared off if he killed him. She also tries uncovering some secrets of Dr. Figue at Carlos’ hospital, but is stopped midway by Carlos. The murderous events begin after they all try settling on the yacht after such a straining welcome from the host.
That night, Agatha has a conversation with Olivia about the tragic loss of her daughter Elisa. They also talk about the lives that they have left behind, and after a heartfelt conversation with Olivia, Agatha feels relieved. She goes out to smoke when she overhears Carlos and Sonia talking, but they see her before she is able to hear anything more. After some events, all the characters hear a loud noise only to discover that Olivia has fallen off or has been pushed off a high railing. After returning to the villa with the body, the characters are trapped there for further investigation. The cell tower had also exploded, leaving them without any options to return. Since Agatha runs a podcast show related to true crime investigations, the young Llieutenant Julian lets her take the lead and help him with the investigation. She starts investigating the other people, and a lot of secrets are unveiled eventually. In the meantime, another incident occurs in which Naram gets shot in the arm. Upon further investigation, Agatha finds a secret tunnel in Naram and Sonia’s room.
What Intentions Did Naram Have? What Was His Real Identity?
With a lot of new twists unfolding, it is important to state that Naram has hidden his identity from the others for a specific reason. Agatha, with the help of his partner Ibis, sheds light on the fact that Naram’s real name was, in fact, Ramiro Manuel Godoy, the brother of Renata Godoy. Renata was a young teenage mother who had given birth at Munoz Hospital and was told that her baby was dead, which made her commit suicide. However, the truth was that the baby had been adopted by Olivia as her own daughter. Upon Elisa’s tragic death, when Ramiro saw her picture on a magazine cover, he knew instantly that the girl was his niece. He had then taken up the disguise of Naram, a yoga teacher who had returned from India. He got close to Sonia to get in touch with Olivia so that he could find out more about his niece. Upon confronting Olivia, he was shocked to learn that Olivia had no clue about the child’ origin and thought that she was adopting an orphan.
What Was Christina’s Motive?
Christina, supposedly the housekeeper of Carlos, was actually a social worker who was working for the Munoz Foundation. She knew all the dirty secrets about Carlos and the story of Elisa’s adoption. Agatha further reveals that she had overheard Christina and Carlos discussing matters of providing the governor and his infertile wife, Clara, with a baby through the same illegal process. She tried to cover up all the incidents associated with the dirty business of illegally giving away babies to the affluent people in the Munoz hospital. Being an accomplice of Carlos, she recognizes Naram immediately and thinks that he has come in disguise to uncover their business. In order to bury the illegal activities she tries killing Naram at the very first chance that she gets. The secret gadgets of Agatha, such as the recording clock and the pen with a microphone, somehow managed to capture all the incidents, providing them with proof.
What Did Olivia Hide From Everyone And Why?
Olivia had a lot of secrets that she wanted to take to the grave. She was suffering from terminal cancer, which she had hidden from everyone, but before dying, she wanted to stop Carlo’s illegal business. She wanted to stop him from stealing another baby and giving it to the governor and his wife. By inviting them all to the party and committing suicide, she had bought more time so that the business procedure would be delayed and so that things would come to light. She had only confided in Dr. Figue and Gustavo about her plan. She had asked Dr. Figue to give her a high dose of morphine so that she could end her suffering. Agatha brings this up to the doctor himself at the end, but respecting her sister’s last wishes, she doesn’t reveal it to anyone. Olivia had given a message to everyone through the purple flowers at the beginning. The flowers signified the love that she had for her daughter Elisa, justice for the criminal activities committed by her ex-husband, her final goodbyes to all, and the freedom that she was seeking.
Final Thoughts
Despite having a tragedy associated with it and a somewhat confusing storyline, the film is entertaining! There is a good social message against the illegal trafficking of children associated with the narrative, but with comic twists in it. The storyline could have been better and more well-knit, but it chose to focus on the elements of comic relief. Some of the characters, such as Gustavo, Cary, Sonia, and Ibis, have not been explored much. Elisa’s death has not been explored, even through flashbacks. The main character, Agatha, also lacks a full-fledged description. We only get to know her as a character who miraculously gets to know everyone’s secrets. What if she was the one who had pushed her sister? Is there a possibility that she had killed Elisa to become Olivia’s heir and gain her property? There are so many possibilities that the film could have explored.
