Film critic Carlos Boyero has praised "Cronos," the new film recreating the 2017 jihadist attacks on Las Ramblas in Barcelona, calling it a story that gives viewers chills. Boyero made the comments during his appearance on "La Ventana," a program on Spanish radio station Cadena SER.
The film opened in Spanish cinemas on Friday, September 4, 2026.
Boyero said the film is well told and works, noting that terrorist attacks remain among the events that most deeply move and unsettle society. He explained that when a story is based on a real event that strikes so close to home and generates such collective panic, seeing it depicted on screen gives you chills.
What the film depicts
"Cronos" reconstructs the 127 hours of anguish that gripped the country during the police operation launched after the attacks, a tense period marked by uncertainty and a coordinated response from security forces.
The film is directed by Fernando Gonzalez Molina, a filmmaker known for titles including "El guardian invisible" (The Invisible Guardian) and "Tres metros sobre el cielo" (Three Meters Above the Sky). The project has drawn strong interest from Spanish audiences because it tackles one of the most shocking episodes in the country's recent history.
The 2017 Las Ramblas attack
On August 17, 2017, at 16:53, a white van drove into crowds on Las Ramblas in Barcelona, traveling more than 500 meters at high speed. The attack killed 16 people and left 131 injured.
Authorities later linked the attack to an explosion the previous day in Alcanar, which involved several young men of Muslim origin living in Ripoll.
In the days that followed, the violence continued to escalate. One of the attackers killed a young man during his escape, while others left several people injured as they passed through the town of Cambrils. The film's title refers to the name of the police operation deployed to hunt down those responsible in a race against time, known as the Cronos operation.
The official synopsis
The film's official synopsis states that in the days that followed, security forces led a race-against-time operation while the population responded united with three words: "no tinc por" (I am not afraid).
The synopsis reflects the spirit of unity and resilience that characterized Catalan society in the aftermath of the attack. "Cronos" opened in cinemas across Spain on the day of publication.
