‘Mentiras, La Serie’ is a playful television spin on Mexico’s longest-running musical

In my 20s, I gravitated toward superior television. I couldn’t get capable of arthouse dramas, documentaries and obscure black-and-white films. Sure, similar everyone else, I besides enjoyed mainstream comedies – “Broad City” and “Girls” were staples of my aboriginal adulthood. But I preferred headier content. Maybe it was a absorption to increasing up connected unserious, though beloved, Mexican telenovelas, absurd speech shows and raunchy comedies. My sensation swung the different way.

That shifted successful my 30s. With regular quality cycles already serving up endless drama, and astatine times trauma, I mislaid my appetite for bleak documentaries oregon dense films. Instead, I began seeking retired lighter shows. So erstwhile I saw the trailer for “Mentiras, La Serie,” I was delighted. Not lone did it prima my puerility icon Belinda, but it besides featured a lineup of Mexican endowment including Luis Gerardo Méndez, Regina Blandón, Mariana Treviño and Diana Bovio. The bid premiered connected Amazon Prime successful June, which successful today’s infinite-content world doesn’t precisely marque it “new.” But astatine MND, we similar to item large Mexican movies and television shows, careless of their merchandise date.

A passionateness project 

A promotional poster for Amazon Prime’s “Mentiras, La Serie.” (Amazon Prime)

“Mentiras, La Serie” springs from “Mentiras, el Musical,” Mexico’s astir palmy signifier show. Since its 2009 debut, the jukebox philharmonic built astir 1980s Spanish-language popular hits has logged implicit 4,000 performances. Written by José Manuel López Velarde, it combines melodrama, drama and nostalgia successful a communicative of 4 women caught successful a deadly emotion quadrangle, each played retired with the era’s astir beloved songs.

For “Mentiras, La Serie,” Luis Gerardo Méndez not lone played Emmanuel but besides served arsenic enforcement producer, teaming with López Velarde and manager Gabriel Ripstein connected the adaptation. Ripstein described the task arsenic some a tribute and an expansion. A accidental to revisit beloved characters portion widening their beingness done a caller ocular style. He noted that much than 30 of the astir iconic songs from the 1980s would anchor the story, brought to beingness by a formed and unit helium called “spectacular.”

The euphony rights posed a large hurdle, dragging negotiations retired for 4 years. Some iconic hits didn’t marque the chopped owed to licensing costs. Still, Méndez held steadfast connected what mattered most: preserving the playful, campy vigor and casting endowment that could transportation it. He pursued actress-singer Belinda for Daniela from the commencement and brought backmost Mariana Treviño, who had originated Lupita connected stage.

Méndez has besides cited “Moulin Rouge,” “La La Land,” and adjacent “Barbie” arsenic inspirations for the show’s hyper-stylized tone. And that power is casual to spot. The bid is bold, theatrical, and not acrophobic to thin into excess.

Campy, colorful and amazingly layered

The eight-episode bid is simply a ocular feast: over-the-top ’80s aesthetics, from large hairsbreadth to agleam costumes to exuberant philharmonic numbers. The theatrical transportation is evident successful intentionally artificial sets –cardboard trees, painted backdrops, stage-like spaces –that punctual viewers this is show archetypal and foremost.

But beneath the camp, there’s sneaky depth. Some of the characters yet face the biggest lies of all. The ones they’ve been telling themselves. And portion the amusement thrives connected melodrama, it besides exposes the assumptions nine projects onto women – assumptions that successful 1980s Mexico, with its heavy traditionalism, weighed adjacent much heavily. That operation of playful excess with undercurrents of critique is what makes “Mentiras, La Serie” much than conscionable a glossy adaptation.

Why the philharmonic struck specified a chord

“Mentiras, el Musical” endures not lone due to the fact that of nostalgia but besides due to the fact that it reimagines the euphony and sensibility of the ’80s successful a mode that feels affectionate and exaggerated, similar a telenovela with creation numbers. Its occurrence stems from the vigor of campy paired with the affectional resonance of songs embedded successful Latin American fashionable culture.

That look has proven durable, spawning tribute concerts, day editions, and the resistance parody “Mentidrags.” For many, the philharmonic isn’t conscionable a nighttime astatine the theater. It’s a reminder of the taste temper of the ’80s, erstwhile Latin popular and powerfulness ballads offered some amusement and catharsis.

Songs and scenes that soared 

The adaptation recovered caller beingness done its soundtrack. Belinda’s mash-up of “Él Me Mintió / Mentiras Mentiras” climbed to No. 1 connected Spotify’s Viral 50 Global chart, portion the Mentiras medium debuted astatine No. 6 connected Spotify’s Top Albums Debut Global list. Overall, the soundtrack racked up implicit 2.4 cardinal streams successful conscionable days. The occurrence besides boosted the archetypal singers. Daniela Romo’s streams jumped 170%, Amanda Miguel’s by 94% and Yuri’s by 75%.

The bid itself fueled online buzz, with Belinda’s numbers and respective campy scenes going viral connected TikTok and X (formerly Twitter), wherever fans dissected everything from the costumes to the cheeky dialogue.

More than conscionable escapism

When I archetypal watched “Mentiras, La Serie,” I didn’t recognize the signifier show’s taste weight, truthful I came successful fresh. Some longtime fans criticized the changes to the plot, but I recovered the bid fun, layered, and astatine times poignant. It near maine funny to spot the philharmonic live.

I don’t truly question dense contented due to the fact that the satellite already feels dense enough. Mentiras, La Serie gave maine the benignant of playful diversion I was craving, but it besides offered thing deeper. A reflection connected love, lies and the roles women were boxed into during a much blimpish Mexico. That premix of campy and commentary is what makes the bid worthy watching—and wherefore it’s much than conscionable airy entertainment.

Rocio is simply a Mexican-American writer based successful Mexico City. She was calved and raised successful a tiny colony successful Durango and moved to Chicago astatine property 12, a bicultural acquisition that shapes her lens connected beingness successful Mexico. She’s the laminitis of CDMX IYKYK, a newsletter for expats, integer nomads, and the Mexican diaspora, and Life of Leisure, a women’s wellness and spiritual community.