The Ultimate Streaming Guide For The Weekend in Latin America
14 April, 2023In the past couple of years, streaming platforms have slowly caught on and expanded into the vast viewership of Latin America. In this increasingly heated streaming war, there are just too many options for TV and movies available from too many different services. As a result, we have decided to make things easier by compiling everything worth a watch at https://www.crazystreamers.com/, so do check it out.
Because of the widespread elimination of cinematic barriers brought about by streaming services, seeing a variety of cultures through television shows from different parts of the world, especially South America, is easier than ever. Below are six Latin American films from Brazil to Mexico that you should definitely watch. From a Brazilian crime thriller highlighting flaws in the country’s criminal justice system, to a Mexican dark comedy that satirizes the telenovela genre, there’s something for everyone.
The Queen of Flow
This captivating Colombian soap centers on the once-promising singer-songwriter Yeimi Montoya (Mara José Vargas), and her struggles to maintain her popularity. After 17 years in prison, she is finally out, and she plans to get her revenge on reggaeton star Charly Flow as soon as possible (Carlos Torres).
Yeimi, as a child, is shown in flashbacks singing and dancing in her once-thriving but now violent and impoverished Medellin neighborhood. Juancho, a 17-year-old whose mother abandons the family to care for her boyfriend, and Yeimi’s parents, humble bakers who are being blackmailed by a drug lord, are just two examples of the working-class characters depicted at the heart of these stories.
The House of Flowers
This soapy Mexican comedy takes place in a bright flower store and offers a reprieve from the gloom. The seemingly perfect life of a middle-class family is disrupted when the mistress, Roberta, commits herself by hanging herself in the family’s flower shop. Then, the family’s financial woes, the children’s individual issues, and the whole extent of the father’s parallel existence, which includes a cabaret company called, get this, the House of Flowers, are all exposed.
Celia
Celia Cruz was a Cuban salsa singer who passed away in 2003 at the age of 77. She was famous for her high energy performances, colorful wigs, and outrageous wardrobe. But, this biographical series shows us a more reserved Celia (Puerto Rican actress Jeimy Osorio) before she gained fame as an international celebrity with an infectious personality.
The synopsis follows Celia, a young Cuban woman in the 1950s who lives with her parents in Havana and works as a teacher while having star-making aspirations. Her father is a rigorous yet imperfect man who is her toughest challenge because he fiercely opposes her artistic goals. The plot drags at times, but seeing Celia’s dogged persistence pay out is wonderful.
Brotherhood
This Brazilian crime thriller combines societal critique, family drama, and adrenaline-pumping action for an edgier viewing experience. The story follows Cristina and Edson, two separated siblings living in 1990s Sao Paulo, as they navigate the moral uncertainty brought up by injustices in the criminal justice system (Naruna Costa and Seu Jorge).
Unlike Cristina, whose brother is a convicted felon serving time in prison, no one has ever heard of him. Once Cristina risks her career to help Edson, she finds herself in the middle of a plot to destroy the Brotherhood, a criminal organization he created. The situation becomes unclear at that point. Cristina’s advancement within the corporation causes moral ambiguity. The most interesting thing about the show is how it contrasts the harsh abuses in prison with the less severe but equally life-altering injustices that Brazilians face on a daily basis.
‘La Reina del Sur’
If you liked “Narcos,” you might like this series based on the same book, which also takes place in the realm of drug trafficking but includes a strong cast with complex female characters. Teresa Mendoza’s husband is murdered by a cartel lord, and she is forced to flee for her life. She gets away to Spain and eventually becomes the head of her own drug business.
The first season of this show premiered on Telemundo in 2011, and its second season, which picks up eight years later, premiered the following year. By putting the spotlight squarely on women and providing a nuanced portrait of a bisexual lady in the form of Patricia O’Farrell (Cristina Urgel), “La Reina del Sur” (“The Queen of the South”) offers a unique take on the drug cartel genre.
‘Nicky Jam: El Ganador’
Enjoy a nostalgic trip down memory lane with this biopic of reggaeton star Nicky Jam. Los Cangris, the Puerto Rican duo consisting of Nicky Jam and Daddy Yankee, are well-known to fans of “Gasolina”-era reggaeton and their catalog of hits, but this show dives deeper to explain how drugs and violence nearly derailed their climb to prominence.
The series follows Nicky Jam’s life as he navigates the aftermath of his troubled background through flashbacks to his early career and his childhood as a boy whose mother battled drug addiction. Back then, Nicky (played by Darkiel as the young artist and by Nicky Jam as an adult) was trying to find a happy medium between his love of music and the temptations of the street life by numbing himself with drugs and sex before going onstage. “Nicky Jam: El Ganador” is raw, heartfelt, and honest in its depiction of the seemingly insurmountable obstacles that its protagonist must overcome to realize his aspirations.
Conclusion
Most streaming services already have a considerable presence in North America—85% of homes have a VOD subscription—and now have been showing interest in expanding into other global territories where vast numbers of potential subscribers eagerly await local and global content.
For this reason, Latin America, the world’s second-fastest-growing streaming market, is highly sought after. Speculation is rife that prospective subscribers would reach 131 million by 2026 (with streamers like Disney+ predicted to expand 260 percent), and the ultimate growth potential is huge.
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