Between Father and Son Review: In the Netflix microseries Between Father and Son, a lot of melodrama and mystery await viewers who enjoy short-form, quick content that delivers the thrill and shock factor without going too deep into anything. Following a successful lawyer who falls for her fiancé’s son at their family estate, the series is more about generational secrets and shocking truths than forbidden passions.
Created by Pablo Illanes, the ~2-hour show is quite the divisive watch that is both entertaining (to a degree) and mind-numbingly silly.
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Between Father and Son Netflix Cast
Pamela Almanza, Erick Elías, Graco Sendel, Natalia Plascencia, Ivanna Castro, Carmen Delgado
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Between Father and Son Series Creator
Pablo Illanes
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Original Title
Entre padre e hijo
The microseries has 20 episodes, each with a runtime of around 10 minutes.
Between Father and Son Review
A Short Thriller That Wastes No Time
With only 10 minutes to spare for every episode, sometimes even less, the series makes for an interesting watch on Netflix. For viewers who have fallen into the micro story trap on Facebook over the last few years, this one will be quite a familiar format. And, much like those shows, this one, too, has zero depth or logic and simply pushes forward on sheer melodrama and shock value.
The series follows the tumultuous relationship between Barbara, a seemingly hotshot lawyer who somehow has no control over herself, her fiancé Alvaro, who is clearly still traumatised by his wife’s disappearance, and his son, who likes the outdoors and doesn’t understand boundaries. It’s a recipe for disaster, one that feels a bit guilty to watch while scrolling Facebook. On Netflix, it makes you question yourself more often than not.
The story flows quickly from one insane detail to the next, to the point where it’s hard to keep track of who is doing what. But, at the same time, it’s also sparse and without any depth. It thrives on surface-level tension without exploring any layers of these dysfunctional relationships. We never learn why everyone is so quick to follow Margarita’s words or what keeps Gaby held to her mother. We also don’t explore the emotional connection between Barbara and Iker beyond the physical parts, and thus, their coupling doesn’t seem believable.
The series also doesn’t explore the father-son rivalry that could’ve been such an interesting and psychologically compelling. However, the writing doesn’t go beyond impulsivity and love at first sight, both of which only sound like flimsy excuses. The series’s only goal is to attract audiences with the shock factor rather than creating tension that lasts beyond the episodes. The imbalance ends up feeling rather exhausting after a while.
The Micro-Series Format Works in its Favour
Between Father and Son does nothing with the father-son dynamic, instead sending Barbara on a wild goose chase about a random dead woman. And to make it less glaring, it employs the micro series format. As a result, the dramatic episodes almost always end with a dramatic reveal, seductive stare or manipulative cliffhanger, but rarely does it ever explore why any of it matters beyond that. Scenes jump from attraction to confrontation to revelation without earning those transitions.
Since the episodes are so short, viewers, too, would just move on to the next episode instead of getting the time to mull over everything that is happening. In a way, this lack of attention might just work in its favour, since viewers expect less from these shows and are simply happy to move on to the next episode.
Performances Try to Hold the Chaos Together
Pamela Almanza tries her best to bring some substance to the story with her performance, but everyone and everything is just so dramatic that it feels unnatural and silly. The actors, in general, do a good job, but it’s the characters that have little to no depth and thus have little impact. The characters don’t feel real because they lash out and talk about these big emotions, but beyond that, it doesn’t seem to be a part of their lives. Viewers don’t believe Iker or Alvardo’s trauma because, despite them screaming about it, we are not shown the depth of their feelings at any point. This is clearly simply a scandal-driven drama that keeps any depth on the back burner.
Style Over Substance?
The series looks and feels exactly like the badly-made microseries that audiences can catch glimpses of on social media platforms. TOt embraces the glossy thriller aesthetics, but the polished exterior isn’t able to make up for the lack of depth or nuance in the story. The problem is that audiences have probably seen similar shows in the past, and, thus, just another bland thriller doesn’t cut it anymore. The stylish sequences remind viewers that more exploration of these complex situations would’ve made for an impactful watch. Alas, that’s not what we get here.
Final Verdict
Shows like Between Father and Son suffer from trying to constantly escalate situations without giving proper payoff. As a result, by the end the ending comes around, the tension doesn’t build, and the impact gets lost somewhere. It’s an empty provocative piece that might be interesting due to its format, but if you look closer, there’s hardly anything of note that will stand out in any way. Overall, this one’s a melodramatic affair that never really makes any impact.
What are your thoughts on Between Father and Son on Netflix? Let us know in the comments below!
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