...your gag reflex kicks in again.
This anthology series from Argentina is the original of this name, based on the book by Marisa Grinstein. The cases are real, from Argentine police files. The killers' motives, methods, and mental states run the full spectrum. Some are sympathetic, others despicable, others pathetic. Most of the stories are compelling and all are played for maximum shock value.
Crime has been a popular subject for entertainment since ancient times and the brutality of the crimes in this series would please any audience that knew the Caesars. The presentations are formatted in one of two ways: a linear story told by a fly on the wall or with an investigation context as witnesses and perps talk to detectives. There is no single police precinct or regular cast of police characters, so the viewer doesn't quite know what to expect from week to week in this series. This is different from the Mexican version, which has a single police division and a regular cast of law-enforcement and forensic personnel.
Although the acting is good to excellent, the production values are flat. Unlike Mexican television, Argentine television is very studio- and backlot-bound, so the visuals feel almost two-dimensional. What compensates for this is the unpredictable nature of the stories to anyone encountering them for the first time. When you see "Margarita, la maldita", which is presented in linear fashion, you have no idea who her victim is or what the murder weapon will be. The Mexican version has forensic experts discussing this at the opening of the episode. What remains a mystery in the original is her motive for the crime while the Mexican version supplies at least a partial explanation.
I am not as familiar with Argentine television as I have only seen one novela produced there, but my feeling about the Argentine MUJERES ASESINAS is that the cast is mostly made up of people who don't get lead roles in novelas. Several actresses have played more than two of the killer women, where two has been the limit so far in Mexico; Cristina Banegas has done five episodes as the killer. This series therefore probably lacks the promotional hook of casting against type that helped make the Mexican series a hit. The majority of the episodes are set in working-class environments, with occasional episodes having middle-class characters. As in the Mexican version, all episodes end on the crime itself, followed by the crawl explaining the legal outcome of the case.
Since a significant number of these episodes concern women who kill abusive men, rape victim status is a frequent motive for murder. The general depiction of sex in this series is more than enough to turn viewers' stomachs. The episode "Ana, Sometida" shows a husband who begins the S&M married sex life in the honeymoon suite, followed by escalating scenes of humiliation that build toward motivating the crime. If a psychiatrist needed to use aversion therapy for sex addicts, this series could be a valuable tool.
This anthology series from Argentina is the original of this name, based on the book by Marisa Grinstein. The cases are real, from Argentine police files. The killers' motives, methods, and mental states run the full spectrum. Some are sympathetic, others despicable, others pathetic. Most of the stories are compelling and all are played for maximum shock value.
Crime has been a popular subject for entertainment since ancient times and the brutality of the crimes in this series would please any audience that knew the Caesars. The presentations are formatted in one of two ways: a linear story told by a fly on the wall or with an investigation context as witnesses and perps talk to detectives. There is no single police precinct or regular cast of police characters, so the viewer doesn't quite know what to expect from week to week in this series. This is different from the Mexican version, which has a single police division and a regular cast of law-enforcement and forensic personnel.
Although the acting is good to excellent, the production values are flat. Unlike Mexican television, Argentine television is very studio- and backlot-bound, so the visuals feel almost two-dimensional. What compensates for this is the unpredictable nature of the stories to anyone encountering them for the first time. When you see "Margarita, la maldita", which is presented in linear fashion, you have no idea who her victim is or what the murder weapon will be. The Mexican version has forensic experts discussing this at the opening of the episode. What remains a mystery in the original is her motive for the crime while the Mexican version supplies at least a partial explanation.
I am not as familiar with Argentine television as I have only seen one novela produced there, but my feeling about the Argentine MUJERES ASESINAS is that the cast is mostly made up of people who don't get lead roles in novelas. Several actresses have played more than two of the killer women, where two has been the limit so far in Mexico; Cristina Banegas has done five episodes as the killer. This series therefore probably lacks the promotional hook of casting against type that helped make the Mexican series a hit. The majority of the episodes are set in working-class environments, with occasional episodes having middle-class characters. As in the Mexican version, all episodes end on the crime itself, followed by the crawl explaining the legal outcome of the case.
Since a significant number of these episodes concern women who kill abusive men, rape victim status is a frequent motive for murder. The general depiction of sex in this series is more than enough to turn viewers' stomachs. The episode "Ana, Sometida" shows a husband who begins the S&M married sex life in the honeymoon suite, followed by escalating scenes of humiliation that build toward motivating the crime. If a psychiatrist needed to use aversion therapy for sex addicts, this series could be a valuable tool.