Feliz Martes, everyone! You are probably wondering why we are greeting you Spanish, but you see, we have caught the Spanish bug after watching the latest season of La Casa de Papel — or Money Heist— that just came out this past weekend. After watching such a delicious series about our favorite robbers, we began to wonder about what other Spanish movies and shows we were possibly missing out on.
Much to our surprise and delight, we discovered that there are a ton of highly-acclaimed and entertaining titles from Spanish geniuses available on Netflix. If you are in the mood for a good old fashioned Spanish drama rife with heavy accents and serious background music, look no further than titles like The Motive, Cable Girls, Elite and many more. And if you want a funny movie or show that you can laugh along to, then be sure to check out My Big Night and Yucatán.
The list goes on and on, so we have gone through the trouble to narrow down the best of the best (thanks to our friends at Rotten Tomatoes, of course) and have put together a listicle of the top Spanish titles for you to explore. We won’t keep you waiting any longer, here are the top 13 Spanish movies and shows on Netflix based on their Rotten Tomatoes scores.
‘Elite’
- RT Score: 100%
Elite centers on a group of students at Las Encinas, the most exclusive private school in Spain. But this Gossip-Girl-eque series takes a dark twist when a natural disaster causes the prime school to let in students from lower socioeconomic backgrounds. The clash between the haves and the have nots creates the perfect storm that ultimately ends in murder. But who is behind the crime? Find out in this delicious murder-mystery series.
‘Locked Up (Vis a Vis)’
- RT Score: 100%
Perhaps the Spanish-language version of Orange Is the New Black, Locked Up follows one woman who, after being framed by her lover for a crime, gets locked up in a high-security women’s prison. However innocent she may be, Macarena Ferreiro suddenly finds herself surrounded by tough, ruthless criminals and must do whatever it takes to survive and clear her name. This series is intense, gritty and altogether just badass!
‘Money Heist (La Casa de Papel)’
- RT Score: 100%
Money Heist, or, La Casa de Papel, follows the life of Tokyo (Úrsula Corberó): a young woman who is a member of a high-level criminal club that lives by the Robin Hood code of ethics: steal from the rich and give to the poor. But of course, they give a lot more to themselves. Do you have your mask and red jumpsuit ready?
‘Retribution (El Desconocido)’
- RT Score: 100%
Retribution — or El Desconocido — is a high-stakes action thriller film that sends an average Joe on the nightmare ride of his life. The film centers on a father and bank executive named Carlos who, after loading his kids into the car to drive them to school, gets an anonymous message that the car has been rigged to blow up if anybody leaves it before a large sum of money is wired to a certain bank account. What is Carlos to do, and why is this stranger demanding money from him? Find out in Retribution.
‘Your Son (Tu Hijo)
- RT Score: 100%
This Spanish-French drama film takes family duty and fatherhood to a whole new level. Starring José Coronado and Ana Wagener, Your Son — Tu Hijo — is about a surgeon who takes the law into his own hands when he learns that his son was beaten to a pulp outside of a nightclub. There is not much Jaime Jimenez (Conorado) won’t do for family, that is made pretty clear!
‘The Fury of a Patient Man (Tarde Para la Ira)’
- RT Score: 100%
In Raúl Arévalo’s directorial debut, a man loses his family during a violent robbery and is left without anyone. As time passes and solitude takes its toll, he gradually becomes consumed by his resentment and anger and begins to plot his vicious revenge against the criminals responsible. You’ll quickly get swept up in the passion, determination and twists that make up The Fury of a Patient Man.
‘My Big Night (Mi Gran Noche)’
- RT Score: 90%
Ever wonder what it is like to film those New Year’s Eve celebrations, the ones they stage and tape weeks before the actual event? Well, in My Big Night, you get a look into the proposed insanity that one group of Spanish extras experience during a television special set in Madrid. Although the night they film on is not on the holiday itself, the chaos and hilarity that ensues may as well take place on News Year’s Eve!
‘Palm Trees in the Snow (Palmeras en la nieve)’
- RT Score: 86%
Palm Trees in the Snow is a romantic drama about one woman’s journey to self-discovery and how she falls in love along the way. As Clarence (Ugarte) uncovers secrets from her family’s mysterious past and ties to former Spanish Guinea through an old letter, she embarks on a journey to learn more about her family, her past and herself and falls in love with a certain native along the way.
‘Who Would You Take to a Deserted Island?’
- RT Score: 83%
This soapy Spanish drama about a group of twentysomethings may not be the most innovative films in history, but it is enjoyable nonetheless. Based on a popular Spanish play by Jota Linares, Who Would You Take to a Deserted Island? follows a group of friends who, on their last night together in Madrid, decide to stay up into the late hours of the night and play a game of Who Would You Take to a Deserted Island. This obviously-bad idea is met with approval and soon these friends are up to their ears in bad secrets, betrayals and so…much…drama.
‘The Invisible Guest (Contratiempo)’
- RT Score: 67%
When a man wakes up in a locked hotel room next to the dead body of his lover, he is obviously suspected of the crime that killed her. So, he hires a prestigious attorney to prove his innocence and together, they work over night to figure out what really happened.
