Once the officials finish their business and the quarantine commences, it doesn’t take long for panic to set in. Coco and Pipi remain relatively calm and collected and try to mind their own business. Other occupants quickly make that impossible.
Lange (Abian Vainstein) and Guglierini (Carlos Bermejo) suspect that Zanutto (Federico Luppi) is sick and dying. They want to move him to an empty unit and watch him until he dies. Horacio (Jose Guridi) determines that they only want to raid his apartment.
Alliances are formed. Coco, somewhat unwillingly, partners with his neighbor Horacio, who is somewhat unstable and keeps a huge arsenal in his apartment. They keep tabs on Lange and Guglierini, following them around the stairways while acting like spies.
And suddenly, without warning, there is a moment of shocking violence that changes everything. An unexpected villain emerges and a game of cat-and-mouse begins, only this game involves firearms and charges and large knives and murder.
Meanwhile, Coco does his best to keep Pipi in the dark about what is going on. She isn’t happy about being left alone in their apartment, and he isn’t exactly thrilled about carrying a gun while searching the building for a certain individual or individuals.
Believably conveying paranoia and suspicion and communication breakdowns, Phase 7 generates considerable tension by effectively utilizing its location. You never quite know who is around the corner or outside your door, or what their intentions are. Gunfire might erupt at any moment. No one in the building is safe. The idea that what’s inside is more dangerous than the virus slowly and powerfully creeps in.
It helps that Coco and Pipi are developed just enough to make us care about their fate. They feel like a real couple, and both Hendler and Stuart give strong performances. There’s also a healthy amount of humor, like when Coco does not understand Horacio’s hand gestures as they attempt to silently approach someone’s apartment.
Writer/director Nicolas Goldbart has crafted a low-key and efficient tale that nonchalantly sneaks up on you, likely causing viewers to pay a little more attention to their neighbors.
