Holiness holds darkness
Manolo Caro’s Holy Family is not so holy, but definitely enjoyable
© Netflix
Although I had this series in my list since the very day it was released, last October – because: Created by Manolo Caro and starring Najwa Nimri – I only started watching it after the Christmas holidays. To be completely honest, Sagrada Familia, like so many other items in my packed Netflix list, was sitting there to either become my next furiously binged obsession, or melt into an ADHD-fueled oblivion abyss. Thankfully, the former occurred. Maybe it was the combination of the post-holiday lazy browsing with the note that it has been renewed for another season hanging under its title on Netflix, that made me go for it and, now, here we are.
The story follows a family that bears a dark secret and moves to Madrid to start over, but as they're trying to navigate their new lives, their past begins bleeding onto their uncertain future.
From the get go we are prepared for what this is going to be about. The absolute central topic of the series is motherhood, with a focus on the (super)power women possess and how they choose to devise it, be it for good or bad, in times of adversity. The narrative route bears referential similarities to that of Almodóvar’s from the late 90s, which is exactly when this series takes place.
Manolo Caro’s ensemble of colorful, at times caricature-bordering characters, again, reminiscent of those in Almodóvar’s body of work, opens with a very brief cameo by Cecilia Suarez (The House of Flowers) and unfolds gracefully from that point on. The entirety of the cast deliver gorgeous performances with that by Najwa Nimri being the jewel in the crown. Najwa Nimri is the matriarch of the family with Carla Campa and Iván Pellicer playing her teenage children. Alba Flores along with Macarena Gómez and Álex García portray some of the main characters that help unravel the story.
Even the tedious part of virtually every single series, ever since Lost, cursedly enough, made it seem a requirement for all shows: the flashbacks, are handled in a non-disruptive manner at just the right instances to assist the already swiftly flowing plot. The Holy Family recipe –naturally– could not, not have an assortment of cliché sex scenes, painted with the same certain awkwardness of sex scenes from the 90s.
This first season was a really enjoyable watch. With a sufficient amount of dark, dense in emotion, saturated in great, curated visuals and enough intention to pull anyone in for a second viewing before the second season. I'm only hoping that all of the above remain consistent for the second season, and that the story doesn't get stretched thin with unnecessary sub-plots. Those who watched the second, the (probably) unnecessary third season and the even more unnecessary movie of House of Flowers will know what I mean.
