The Girls at the Back (Las de la última fila) is a Spanish drama comedy series released on Netflix on 23 September 2022. The series is written and directed by Daniel Sánchez Arévalo and produced by Atípica Films. There are 6 episodes in total with a runtime of about 45 minutes.
The cast of the series includes Itsaso Arana as Sara, Monica Miranda as Alma, Maria Rodríguez Soto as Carolina, Mariona Terés as Leo, Godeliv Van den Brandt as Olga, Javier Rey as David, Macarena García, Michelle Jenner, Carmen Machi, Antonio de la Torre and Melina Matthews.
-The Girls at the Back Review Does Not Contain Any Spoilers-
The Girls at the Back is the story of five 30-year-olds, close friends since school, who organize a one-week getaway together every year without exception. This year, something has come up that will force them to invent new rules of the game – One of them has been diagnosed with cancer. There are trips that change your life forever but there are lives that change your trips forever.
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The series starts off with the leading ladies shaving off their heads, just before they get on the way to their annual vacation. Carol, Olga, Sara, Alma and Leo travel from Madrid to Cadiz, but before that, they take out the paper chit from the box which contains all their wishes or challenges that they want to achieve on this trip.
And things get frisky, right from the start when they tackle their first bucket-list challenge of the week. While many are apprehensive about the first challenge, it is also anonymous as to who wrote it, since nobody ever steps up to claim. At the same time, the 5 friends have decided that they won’t talk about cancer at all, or even who has it.
So while they try to complete the daring challenges throughout the week, which makes them face their own issues and confide in each other. The viewers have actually no idea till the end, about the person who will start chemo right after this trip. It makes you keep guessing about who is it, but the reveal is actually that you wouldn’t have expected.
The film is comedy for the most part which includes all the crazy shenanigans they go through to complete each challenge. Since they have been friends from school days, they know each other the best and what scares them, and that is reflected in the bucket-list wishes. Each challenge makes them realise their true feelings and themselves more.
Each character is different from the others and has its own backstory or history that made them the person they are, and this trip is where they resolve most of the things that they have been holding back. Be it contacting a long-lost friend or apologising to someone for your wrongdoing, in a sense they all are ticking off the things that they regret or sit heavy on their chest.
Summing Up: The Girls at the Back
Las de la última fila is a quick and sentimental watch, without being too drama heavy. Yes, cancer is a key plot element but the story is not centred around just that, it’s a beautiful tale of friendship, love and the relationships we have with our dear ones. Cancer is mentioned not as an emotional token but comes out in natural conversations, without being forced. The intention of the show is not to send a message, but it does help eliminate the taboo surrounding cancer.
An interesting element in the series is how the creators use time and space. They use resources that bring to life, the situations that only happen in the heads of the protagonists, representing them before the camera. Imaginary conversations that are shared with the viewer and also phone calls look as if they share the same space, instead of being on the other side of the line.
Not revealing till the end about which character has cancer, works very well in this case. It is worth highlighting the authenticity of that scene and its emotional power. Many times, such crucial revelations often feel dragged out but here, it brings everyone together and had more impact.
The Girls at the Back is currently streaming on Netflix.
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