100 Best Foreign Shows on Netflix Right Now

Releasing a documentary and a mini-series on the same case on the same day, Netflix understands how compelling Rosa Peral’s story is. Burning Body dramatizes the case’s events, but it does so in a way that questions the police as an institution. With the case, it’s clear that the ones assigned to protect citizens from crimes are trained enough to hide their own. However, the series also underscores the blatant sexism in their ranks, from higher ups taking advantage of new recruits, to spreading revenge porn on their fellow colleagues. With Money Heist’s Úrsula Corberó on the helm, Burning Body paints a double sided look of a multifaceted woman.

The real-life Tapie may be more or less interesting than the Tapie Laurent Lafitte brings to life in Class Act, but that doesn’t really matter. The series introduces the French tycoon as if he were a completely new character, which is helpful to those of us going in the series blind. There is drama, there is scandal, and since Tapie is so tied to French life, there is also history. But more than anything else, there is business. Tapie is by no means perfect, but he is a smart businessman, and Class Act’s sharp and strong writing brilliantly conveys the addictive highs and soul-crushing lows of commerce. Narrative cliches are inevitable, but that doesn’t make this well-crafted series any less enjoyable.

Capturing the craziness of a political campaign, Wave Makers portrays a behind-the-scenes look of a fictional campaign team as they work to get their party elected. While branded as a political drama, the Taiwanese Netflix series focuses on the dynamics of its team members, starting with their day-to-day work – how they deal with on-the-spot PR issues, budget cuts, and negotiations – and ending the first episode with the personal issues that affect them, such as work-life balance, career growth, and personal revenge. Focusing on the team makes for an interesting approach in portraying how the personal affects the political, and the show easily balances these two through its well-written sequences and careful direction. It’s no wonder it’s already inspired a #MeToo wave in Taiwan.

Full of twists and turns, Queenmaker is a corporate turned political K-drama where a corporate fixer plays campaign chess against her former employers and retail conglomerate the Eunsung Group. Centered on her and the earnest human rights lawyer she’s trying to get elected, the show has Do-hee mentoring Kyung-sook in the art of PR, this time for the good. Even as the show reuses the genre’s classic tropes, the series’ plot points are entertaining, with each new twist naturally occurring as each side tries to dig dirt on the other and use it for political clout. It’s one of the most intriguing K-dramas we’ve seen this year.

Life never goes the way we expect, especially for those who don’t have plenty of options. Because of this, parents strive to create a path for their kids to the best possible future they can manage, even if it causes some resentment. The Good Bad Mother portrays this, with some melodramatic flair, but the way the series tells its story is complex, layered, but totally compelling – as Jin Young-soon tries to reconnect with her son while also seeking justice for her husband, and Choi Kang-ho looks for family in any way he can. And it’s balanced with lighthearted humor and slice-of-life sequences that celebrate the lives of the ordinary people.

After the ending of the show Suburra: Blood on Rome, it had seemed like there was nowhere else for the franchise to go, with plenty of the main cast dead. But after three years, the world of Suburra is back on Netflix in Suburræterna, and despite the chaos that reigns in Rome, there are still opportunistic survivors circling over remaining scraps of control. One survivor is Spadino Anacleti, who, after he had left for a more tolerant Berlin, is now forced to return home, with no other suitable heir for the family. While new viewers might be lost with the names referencing previous characters, fans of the franchise would enjoy the way Suburræterna unfolds, as the Suburra story, inspired by the real life Mafia Capitale, takes on a life of its own.

From the fantasy-powered folktales to superhero-like depictions, ninjas have captivated the world, but seem to be a relic of the past, with modern day warfare and weaponry turning them obsolete. House of Ninjas imagines a world where ninjas still exist, centering a clan stuck between wanting to abandon the old ways but also having skills that seem wasted in contemporary life. Because of this, the show at first seems boring– the family is severely demotivated, with some members acting out through petty theft, and with out-of-place jazzy musical tracks that undercut the action of the first few episodes. However, House of Ninjas gets better as the Tawara clan gets its act together, revealing the hidden heart each of them has for each other, one that’s been hidden because of the grief that struck the family. The show may be less action-packed than expected, but House of Ninjas comes across as an off-kilter family drama with just enough heart to work.

The family dynamics at the heart of this show are given plenty of room to breathe, with many tender moments baked into the frequent little conflicts. Then, it’s terribly heartbreaking when it needs to be, ripping apart what you latch onto. Pablo Derqui is incredible in his nuance between his public face and his private face, embodying all the strands of a torn up heart. The mysterious woman he later meets is dodgy in a way that bleeds through her kind eyes and mannerisms. This series has strong performances all around in scenes that get time to shine, and a pace that answers enough questions that lead to new ones, leaving you wanting a bit more.

It takes some time for the action to pick up, with the off-putting atmosphere and various character dynamics being opted to be slow-cooked. The choice certainly pays off with an ecosystem of concerning little stories slowly crashing into each other like dominoes, and creating drama that you have to pursue in the next episode. There’s an uneasiness about the whole story largely carried by the settings alone—the rain, the houses, the nearby establishments, etc. It can be a little difficult to pick up on the intricate details at first, and the prodding pace certainly isn’t for a lot people, but for those who stay, there is an intriguing story that awaits.

Three kids from a poor neighborhood win scholarships to the best high-school in Spain and later find themselves at the center of a murder. There is a lot that comes to the surface from the working-class kids clashing with the wealthy. Themes of money, power, religion, and even sexuality make this show so compelling that I never felt like I needed a murder to keep watching.