Casa de Papel

Being in quarantine lends itself to a lot of boredom (despite efforts to be productive), and Netflix luckily is a fantastic solution. Recently, I finished two seasons of the show Casa de Papel, Spanish for the House of Paper, and known in the US as Money Heist.

The show follows a team of criminals, each taking the name of a large city, and the Professor, who plans the Heist, an extravagant plan to steal over 2 billion Euros from the Mint of Spain. Despite the end goal of taking the money, it is revealed that the Heist serves a much greater purpose. The heist ironically doesn’t involve any direct theft, as they simply occupy the Mint and print money, technically stealing from no one. It is also a key motif of the Heist that no one is killed, to retain support of the public. Thus, it is simultaneously a revolutionary message against a government that bails out banks instead of its people, and cares more about its rich than its poor, as well homage towards the Professor’s father (purported to have come up with the Heist), who himself died in a bank heist trying to procure funds to care for his sick son.

In these trying times with COVID-19, the recession, and protests against police brutality, Money Heist is a refreshing reminder that even in difficult times, it is important to retain our own humanity as much as possible, and maintain clear goals when protesting and fighting against the system. We must realize that we determine our own fate and future, and we must fight for what we believe in, and being complicit to tyranny and injustice is unacceptable. Money Heist is a modern day Les Misérables, echoing much of the same themes, and it is a must-watch for anyone who enjoys an extremely well-written, intelligent drama that will make you rethink the role of government and politics.

Enjoy Bella Ciao, the fantastic Italian theme from the show, which is an age old Italian revolutionary song.