Xtreme (Xtremo in Spanish) is a crime thriller film that centres around gang wars. It is often seen in narratives that the smooth functioning of organized crime is disturbed by a selfish man trying to climb the ladder. The Spanish film Xtremo is no different. A cold blood antagonist sets out to rule the crime syndicate, but in his pride, he messes up with the protagonist and you can very well assume what happens next.
You might be curious about certain intricate plot points/ information that you might have missed. If your reasons for reading the article coincide with our purpose for writing it, then without much ado, let’s ponder.
‘Xtremo’ Summary
Lucero’s father is one of the members of the Spanish Crime Syndicate, often referred to as “The Conclave.” The other members of the organization comprise Columbians and Russians. To run the business peacefully, each member must comply with specific rules and regulations that generally require them to pay their partners. Lucero is handed a job to deal with Colombians and give over half a million dollars to their leader. Instead of money, Lucero delivers the leader’s son’s head packed in a box. His gestures mess up the whole deal, leading to a bloodbath. Finally, Lucero and his hitman, Maximo, wipe off the Colombians.
But it’s not the end of Lucero’s ambitions. Eventually, he kills his annoyed father and takes the throne for himself. Then, Lucero plans to kill his adoptive sister Maria and his most trusted hitman, Maximo, to secure his new empire. Unfortunately, Maria runs away. Lucero’s hired gun, Finito, kills Maximo and his son and burns down the house. Finito believes that he has killed Maximo, but 2 years later, Maximo shows up, burning from within to take revenge.
Why did Lucero try to kill Maximo?
From the beginning, Lucero showed signs of narcissism. He wanted everything for himself. His father, Ricardo, favored Maximo more than his son. Ricardo even considered handing over the gang’s command to Maximo because he was a leader with values and morals, unlike his son Lucero, who had none. In his jealousy, Lucero not only killed his father but also Maximo.
Lucero hired a hitman named Finito to kill Maximo. Finito shared a personal enmity from Maximo, who kicked his brother out of the gang and was responsible for his death (suicide in the jail). So to take revenge from Maximo, Finito killed him and his son.
Too many revengers in one movie alone.
How did Maximo survive the blast?
Maria, the adopted sister of Lucero, ran away when she sensed danger. In a flashback, it was revealed that she saved an injured Maximo from dying by dragging him out of the burning house. Later, the two teamed up against Lucero to stop him from taking over “The Conclave.”
Why did Maximo steal the money from Urquiza?
In the first scene, Lucero was ordered by his father to pay off Colombians, which would eventually make his father the president of the Conclave. A similar stance was taken in Lucero’s case as well.
When a bloodthirsty Lucero finished off Colombians, he ignited an uninvited hostility from the Conclave members. For the same reasons, Lucero was compelled to leave Barcelona, and he managed his underworld business from outside the country.
Two years later, Lucero had planned a comeback. To reunite the Conclave, he was required to pay back to the Russians. It would make him the commander of the syndicate and provide him immense power and protection.
Lucero’s men, Finito and accountant Urquiza, were arranging for a heavy load of cash to pay off the Russians and to end the conflict. But before Lucero could achieve invulnerability, Maximo stole all the drug money from Urquiza, disrupting the plan of action.
Was Maria working for the Russians?
Before Maximo infiltrated Urquiza’s club (Seven Rain), Maria called Russian mob boss Dimitri to protect Maximo. For a brief moment, it was deceitfully exhibited that Russians were playing from both sides. But they were actually setting a trap for Lucero. They wanted him to visit the country and come to the Conclave so that Maximo can take his revenge.
The last phone call between Dimitri and Maria was to dilute the suspense. The conversation underlines that Lucero was expecting the Russians to show up and to strike the deal for the Conclave. But the Conclave was scheduled for the next day. So then why did he arrange for a meeting with Lucero a day before? In reality, it wasn’t an actual meeting but a trap. The Russian boss leaked Lucero’s location to Maximo, to take revenge and end the chapter.
In short, the whole climax sequence was a setup to save the Conclave from being headed by a senseless monster.
‘Xtremo’ Ending Explained
Like most cliche endings of all revenge action films, the protagonist killed the antagonist. Maximo and Maria pierced Lucero’s heart and head, the parts Lucero often gambled with other people, before killing them. Thus, a poetic justice, of sorts.
Maximo, Maria and Leo decided to leave the city for good. They took the drug money Maximo stole from Lucero for their secured future life. Before leaving, Leo left one bag at his girlfriend’s door. The ending of Xtremo suggests a new life for these three fugitives on the run.
Xtreme (Xtremo) is a Spanish Crime Drama Film directed by Daniel Benmayor.
