Discover the best of Spanish cinema, film, and television
Discover the definitive list of popular and critically-acclaimed movies and TV shows from Spain. Find your next binge-watch, streaming on Netflix, HBO, Hulu, Prime Video, and other top services!
The cinema of Spain
Spanish cinema boasts one of Europe's most passionate and innovative film traditions, stretching back to the early 1900s with pioneers like Segundo de Chomón creating fantastical silent films. The industry truly found its voice during the 1960s with directors like Luis Buñuel crafting surrealist masterpieces that challenged conventional storytelling. The post-Franco era unleashed extraordinary creativity, with Pedro Almodóvar becoming Spain's most internationally celebrated filmmaker. His colourful, provocative works like "All About My Mother" and "Talk to Her" earned Academy Awards whilst defining a distinctly Spanish cinematic aesthetic that embraces both melodrama and social commentary. Alejandro Amenábar followed with haunting thrillers like "The Others" and historical epics such as "The Sea Inside." Spanish television has evolved from state-controlled programming to a thriving landscape of compelling series. Shows like "La Casa de Papel" became global Netflix sensations, proving that Spanish storytelling could captivate worldwide audiences. Earlier successes included "Cuéntame Cómo Pasó," which chronicled Spanish family life during political transition, and "El Internado," a supernatural boarding school mystery that ran for seven seasons. What sets Spanish screen culture apart is its emotional intensity and willingness to tackle taboo subjects. Whether exploring family secrets in Catalonian dramas or creating supernatural thrillers set in Madrid, Spanish productions blend passion with sophistication. The industry benefits from regional funding across autonomous communities, supporting both Castilian and regional language productions that reflect Spain's cultural diversity whilst maintaining universal appeal through their deeply human stories.
Best Spanish series
Money Heist 2017
To carry out the biggest heist in history, a mysterious man called The Professor recruits a band of eight robbers who have a single characteristic: none of them has anything to lose. Five months of seclusion - memorizing every step, every detail, every probability - culminate in eleven days locked up in the National Coinage and Stamp Factory of Spain, surrounded by police forces and with dozens of hostages in their power, to find out whether their suicide wager will lead to everything or nothing.
81
Elite 2018
When three working class kids enroll in the most exclusive school in Spain, the clash between the wealthy and the poor students leads to tragedy.
71
Alpha Males 2022
Pedro, Luis, Raúl and Santi are four friends who feel a bit lost in the new world of empowered women, each trying to adjust in their own haphazard way.
77
Berlin 2023
During his glory days, Berlin and a gang assembled in Paris for one of his greatest plans ever: stealing 44 million euros' worth of jewels in one night.
72
Locked Up 2015
Set up to take the blame for corporate fraud, young Macarena Ferreiro is locked up in a high-security women's prison surrounded by tough, ruthless criminals in this tense, provocative Spanish thriller.
82
The Innocent 2021
An accidental killing leads a man down a dark hole of intrigue and murder. Just as he finds love and freedom, one phone call brings back the nightmare.
76
Best Spanish movies
The Platform 2019
A slab of food descends down a vertical facility. The residents above eat heartily, leaving those below starving and desperate. A rebellion is imminent.
69
The Impossible 2012
In December 2004, close-knit family Maria, Henry and their three sons begin their winter vacation in Thailand. But the day after Christmas, the idyllic holiday turns into an incomprehensible nightmare when a terrifying roar rises from the depths of the sea, followed by a wall of black water that devours everything in its path. Though Maria and her family face their darkest hour, unexpected displays of kindness and courage ameliorate their terror.
76
A Monster Calls 2016
12-year-old Conor encounters an ancient tree monster who proceeds to help him cope with his mother's terminal illness and being bullied in school.
74
Society of the Snow 2023
On October 13, 1972, Uruguayan Air Force Flight 571, chartered to take a rugby team to Chile, crashes into a glacier in the heart of the Andes.
79
The Invisible Guest 2017
Barcelona, Spain. Adrián Doria, a young and successful businessman accused of murder, meets one night with Virginia Goodman, an expert interrogation lawyer, in order to devise a defense strategy.
80![Poster for [REC]](https://image.tmdb.org/t/p/w342/5XsVGgo8I12v3KlPcD0r1CNHMC6.jpg)
[REC] 2007
A television reporter and cameraman follow emergency workers into a dark apartment building and are quickly locked inside with something terrifying.
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