'ZeroZeroZero': Harold Torres' Manuel Contreras is the deadliest cog in the global cocaine wheel
Spoiler alert for Amazon Prime Video's 'ZeroZeroZero'
The first time that you see Harold Torres on screen, you don't see him. Hiding underneath a mask, Torres is in stealth mode moving with the crafty caution of a soldier.
However, there is something about the armed soldier that simply doesn't sit right — his presence on the screen fills you with a strange uneasiness that you cannot place yet can't shrug off.
So when he stops to read final prayers for a dying kid ruthlessly shot on the streets, you think this might be a good guy, this might be a guy you can root for. However, it takes no time for this uneasiness to convert to sheer terror.
Torres plays the role of Manuel Contreras, a sergeant in the Mexican army. However, Manuel is more than a mere soldier in the army. His covertly designed plans implemented with brute force affect the course of the story to a large extent.
A massive shipment of cocaine sets sails from Mexico, where it is produced and is set to travel through the Atlantic Ocean to Europe, where a powerful cartel of Italian criminals is eagerly waiting to commence worldwide distribution.
This cargo would have been intercepted by the law early on had it not been for Manuel, who has one clear agenda — the shipment must reach Europe by hook or by crook.
However, is not entirely easy to read Manuel. What is this man driven by? His dependent relationship on God presents the question again and again — is Manuel god-fearing or does he rely on his piety to escape his conscience?
Manuel has beliefs but acts without any moral sense, which is why it is so baffling that he would stop in his tracks to share last words with a dying little girl yet not flinch before gunning down a loyal, innocent soldier from his own squad.
Conversely, Manuel could be fully aware of his deadly actions and clings to God in a desperate bid to hold on to any sanctity that could redeem him in death. Being a soldier there is one thing Manuel knows for sure, death is just around the corner.
If anything, what makes Manuel the most interesting character of the show is, in fact, his relationship with God. It seems like Manuel likes to believe that he is clean of all his sins by kneeling in front of God or looking to him in dire times. However, it doesn't conceal the fact that Manuel wishes he were a better person.
Manuel plays dirty and Torres is a simply mystifying in a performance that is raw and true. Torres' character is corrupt through and through breaching the trust citizens put in the law with each appearance on the show.
It is Manuel who, by his involvement in this story, shows the audience how international cocaine trade has its roots in the fragile network linking powerful organizations and corrupt people.
Only after the initial shock of his atrocities wears off is when one begins to see Manuel for who he really is — a God-fearing man without a moral compass not hesitant to utilize the brute force of his instruments to make ends meet.
All episodes of 'ZeroZeroZero' are currently streaming on Amazon Prime Video.