Usually, new Netflix shows and movies that chart in its top 10 have a moderate (or a lot) of chatter. Even the worst Netflix originals (such as 365 Days: This Day) spark a lot of reviews. And this is what makes one of the latest popular Netflix movies interesting enough to merit conversation. Intimacy (a Spanish drama originally titled Intimidad), just hit Netflix on June 10, and we just saw it crack the Netflix home page’s top 10 movies in the U.S. list. Last seen on the list at No. 7 (with The Lincoln Lawyer ahead at No. 6 and Ozark season 4 at No. 8), Intimacy is an eight-episode drama about the aftermath of a politician’s sex tape being released to the public. And somehow, it starts off a bit more dramatic than that. Gorgeous shots of beachside water show a sad story: a body is floating in the ocean. A narrator says “don’t look at me like that.” She then speaks of betrayal and wasted trust, as we see her walk and then swim to her fate. “We’re all hiding something,” she notes.
What is Intimacy?
Intimacy begins by introducing us to Bilbao’s deputy mayor Malen Zubiri (Itziar Ituño), who is doing very well for herself — and is going to get the chance to run for mayor in the next cycle. Unfortunately for Malen, though, footage featuring herself and a man who is not her husband hits the internet not long after we meet her. Malen is (rightfully so) confident that nothing bad should happen to her based on this. She and her husband aren’t even together anymore (though they haven’t explained that to their daughter Leire). But when the press pushes Leire (played by Yune Nogueiras) for answers, and everyone’s tempers flare up, her party leadership pushes Malen to drop out. Meanwhile, a teacher named Bego (Patricia López Arnaiz) has to sort through the suicide of her sister Ane (Verónica Echegui), that was who we saw earlier. She intertwines with Malen when local inspector Alicia Vazquez (Ana Wagener) has interest in both of their cases. It turns out Bego’s sister and Malen have similarities in their stories.
What do critics think of Intimacy?
Intimacy doesn’t exactly have a mob of critics lined up to explain their thoughts. Rotten Tomatoes (opens in new tab) only has three reviews for it, and we didn’t find many more when we were poking around online. ReadySetCut (opens in new tab)’s Daniel Hart argues that “Intimacy deserves far more recognition than its limited marketing. Let’s hope the lack of marketing does not hurt its efforts and word-of-mouth spreads. The Spanish series is an insightful but exhilarating watch.” Joel Keller for Decider (opens in new tab) explained that fans of The Good Wife may like protagonist Marlen, as the show “reminds us of the early years of The Good Wife, mainly because Marlen is like Alicia Florick: Not capitulating, and trying to keep her career going because she was a victim, not a perpetrator.” He also notes that “The storytelling method … [used] here might seem muddled at first, going back and forth between the present and the past for both Malen and Bego,” but there’s some good reason for it. He concludes that you should stream Intimacy because it has “smart writing and good lead performances.” On the down-vote side, Greg Wheeler writes for The Review Geek (opens in new tab) that “The problem with [Intimacy] comes from the ending. Now, I won’t spoil anything here but those sticking it out and waiting to find out what’s happened with the tape will find themselves a little disappointed. The conclusion to this is a bit rushed, especially with Malen’s storyline, and although there is a satisfying resolution to everything, it does feel like more care could have been made around this.”
Outlook: Should you watch Intimacy tonight?
If you’re trying to find a show to watch, Intimacy (which is around 6 hours in total) may be exactly the show you will spend each night of this week devouring. Or it could be your Saturday or Sunday. Intimacy looks like a capable and traditional mystery drama show, as its heroines hunt for answers and justice in a world where revenge porn and sex tape leaks can ruin lives. All the audiences who want a strong and empowered female protagonist should probably give it a shot.
