Common Sense Media Review
By Melissa Camacho
,
based on child development research. How do we rate?
Dramatic murder story has violence, curses, drugs, drinks.
Parents Need to Know
Why Age 16+?
Any Positive Content?
Where to Watch
Videos and Photos
Past Lies
Parent and Kid Reviews
What's the Story?
Based on the Spanish book, Las largas sombras by Elia Barceló, PAST LIES is a six-part Spanish thriller about a group of women from Alicante whose lives are disrupted when the remains of a former high school classmate are found. In 1988, soon after her 18th birthday, Rita Montero (Elena Anaya) and her friends Teresa (Belén Cuesta), Lena (Lorena López), Sole (Marta Etura), and her love interest Candela (Itziar Atienza) were on a class trip to Mallorca when their classmate Matilde, a.k.a. Mati (Laura Wedel) went missing. It was assumed that she had run away, but her younger sister Paula (Irene Escolar) never believed this to be true. Twenty-five years later, when Rita, now a film director living in London, returns to Alicante to clear out the family home and put it on the market. she and her former school friends learn that Mati's remains were discovered in a cave not far from the hotel they stayed at during that trip. As Rita and the other women process this information, Paula, now a police investigator, is convinced that they know more about what happened than they are letting on.
Is It Any Good?
This melodramatic, women-centered Spanish murder mystery reveals how an investigation into a missing person leads to disclosures of life-changing secrets. As Paula pushes Rita and her childhood friends about Mati, most of the women's lives unravel in a different way, revealing past lives and current hardships that are more far-reaching than one would expect. However, the various plot lines can be a little hard to follow at times, and some of the dramatic elements are so commonplace that they're boring. Nonetheless, Past Lies does contain some surprises, which will appeal to Spanish drama fans.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about Spanish dramas. What are some of the common tropes used in Spanish produced melodramas? Are there similarities between U.S. dramas and Spanish ones?
How far reaching is the impact of Mati's death on the main characters in Past Lies? Are all their secrets a consequence of Mati's death?
TV Details
- Premiere date : May 10, 2025
- Cast : Elena Anaya , Irene Escolar , Belén Cuesta
- Network : Hulu
- Genre : Drama
- Topics : Book Characters , Friendship , School ( High School )
- TV rating :
- Last updated : October 30, 2025
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