FOur years of plans, diagrams, bullets, explosions, anti-capitalist fables, extraordinary contingency plans, and very unwise workplace romances will end on Friday, and the last five episodes of the Netflix blockbuster Spanish series will be released on Friday. Money robbery.
Called “Money Robbery” by English audiences, the show tells the adventures of a group of inevitably messy robbers, dressed in red overalls and Salvador Dali masks, looting the Royal Mint, and then the bank Spain.
With courage, resentment, maze-like plans and strange heavy machine guns, robbers robbed, fell in love, quarreled, played cat and mouse games with the police, and in some way made themselves averse to austerity, corruption, and Spanish society Favorite of the public. Political elite.
The first series was broadcast on the Spanish TV network Antena 3 in 2017. In the same year, it was included by Netflix and soon became a global phenomenon. The platform’s Most watched non-English series.
And win a game International Emmy Awards for Best Drama In 2018, La Casa de Papel (literally translated “Paper House”) was touted as the socioeconomic fable of our time, and even became the Halloween costume inspiration for many Spanish kids in red overalls marching from house to house, demanding candy at the end of a plastic assault rifle.
However, despite its success, even its creators found its appeal difficult to determine.
“It’s really complicated because you never know what will happen-just look Squid game,” Alex Pina said. “But I think there are a few things that can explain it: You have very pure entertainment, and the personal and emotional connection of the character is almost as important as the robbery itself.
“The robbery is like a football game, because two teams are playing, one must win and the other must lose. You really want to know how this will end: will they withdraw the gold from the Spanish bank?”
Pina’s other hits include Sky Rojo and White Lines, and he suspects that the failed protagonist of the show resonated with Spanish audiences after experiencing pain, anger, and austerity. 2008 financial crisis.
But he pointed out that in the past few years, the world “has a genuine suspicion of all institutions, central banks and governments.”
Natalia Marcos, who wrote about the TV show for the Spanish newspaper El País, agrees that the social and political background of the show may appeal to viewers living in difficult times in Spain, Latin America and the Arab world. But she owes its success largely to “a narrative rhythm very suitable for carnival”, word of mouth and its design.
“This is a very visual show, with its own images,” she said. “It appears in Netflix In the menu, you will immediately see the Dali mask and red jumpsuit, and you will be attracted to it. “
According to Pina, La Casa de Papel also appeared when viewers began to move away from fantasy shows in the United States and Europe, and the desolation of northern European black wool.
“This is great for Spain-we have seen a three-fold increase in previous production, and our production level is close to that of the UK,” he said. “This was unthinkable before-just like the idea brought by Netflix Spanish production center. “
Diego Ávalos, vice president of content for Spain and Portugal at Netflix, described La Casa as “one of the first shows that truly open up and elevate the level of novels from a global perspective.”Not only did the series “consolidate Spain’s position as a true leader in the audiovisual sector-especially in the field of fiction,” it also helped Lupin Play with squid.
Ávalos said that these three programs all show that “people’s needs for content can be loved and consumed all over the world regardless of language and country of origin.”
All three people examine privilege and power in their own way. “Lupin can’t be more France, Squid Game can’t be more South Korea, La Casa de Papel can’t be more Spain,” he said. “But these three are for the general audience, and all three are for the greatest number of people in these countries to enjoy.”
Or, as Pina said, people always desire something new and unique.
“The world of fiction is a bit like a bubble, but there was a feeling last year or the year before that everything was somewhat similar,” he said. “If you manage to do something different, then people will be very grateful.”
