7 Spanish Movies and Shows on Netflix for Beginners
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There are many reasons why you might want to watch Spanish-language TV shows on Netflix. You may be a beginner in the language, or perhaps your goal is to become fluent.
Either way, watching Spanish-language shows can help you reach your goal by exposing you to natural language in ways that other mediums cannot. In this article, I'll give an overview of seven popular Spanish shows on Netflix and explain how they also contributed to turning me into a proficient Spanish speaker in a few months.
So if you are a beginner Spanish speaker or are simply looking for recommendations for easy Spanish movies on Netflix to watch, you’re in the right place.
WHY WATCHING SPANISH SHOWS ON NETFLIX IS THE BEST WAY TO LEARN SPANISH FOR BEGINNERS?
It’s cheap
The best way to learn a language is to immerse yourself in it. Netflix is an excellent resource for doing this, but you should be mindful that watching a movie or TV show shouldn't feel like work. Instead, your goal should be to enjoy the movie and practice Spanish at the same time.
When I first moved to Spain, I signed up for some expensive intensive Spanish courses. My hope was that I’d become fluent in 3 months. Needless to say, I didn’t, and I quickly gave up.
The good thing about watching Spanish movies on Netflix is that it requires little commitment. As a beginner, I think it’s the most convenient, effective, and cheapest way to get started.
2. It will improve your accent
As a native French speaker, my Spanish pronunciation is NOT my forte. I struggle rolling my r’s in Spanish, and in general, my accent is very French.
Yet, watching Spanish movies really helped me with this. After hearing some words pronounced over and over again, I’ve slowly managed to get the hang of it.
3. You’ll learn street Spanish
One thing I always hated about learning languages at school was that most of the expressions we’d learn were just not being used by locals. In most Spanish movies I have watched on Netflix, I was able to pick up lots of colloquialisms that I could use in my day-to-day life in Spain.
Read this: Want more tips to discover how to improve your Spanish without going to Spanish classes, here are 5 suggestions for you.
4. It’s a quick win
Nothing tops the instant gratification from finishing a Spanish movie and actually getting it.
The more you watch, the more comfortable you will feel. Start by using movies with subtitles in your native language. Next, use movies with subtitles in Spanish. Finally, you can move on to movies/TV shows without subtitles.
5. It teaches you to be more persistent
It is not necessary to understand everything. If you are watching a movie in Spanish, the main goal is to enjoy it and practice your understanding of the language. You can use subtitles in your native language as a guide if there are words or phrases you don’t understand.
Watch it again and again until you start understanding more! Sometimes, even after seeing something for several times, it may take another viewing before we begin to really grasp what is going on (this is especially true with movies).
Watch with friends! Seeing movies with someone who speaks Spanish can help you learn new vocabulary words faster since they will tell you what certain words mean as they appear on screen.
7 spanish movies and shows to watch on Netflix for beginners
1. Merlí
This has got to be one of the best TV shows I have seen so far. It’s set in Barcelona and it tells the story of a philosophy teacher and his students. It’s a Catalan TV show, but it’s also available in Spanish. I have been watching it in Catalan with Spanish subtitles.
The reason why I recommend it is because it uses fairly simple vocabulary, it’s funny, lighthearted, relatable, and somehow reminds me of my school days.
2. cable girls (original title: Las chicas del cable)
Initially, I was quite skeptical about this show. Turns out, I couldn’t have been more wrong. I literally got hooked from the first episode. I fell in love with the characters and really liked all the intrigued around the main protagonist.
The vocabulary is not as easy as other shows but with subtitles and a bit of patience, I am sure you will love it too.
3. Elite
Anyone out there familiar with Riverdale or Beverly Hills 90210?
Well, this is kind of the Spanish equivalent. Imagine a group of rich kids, and 3 outsiders, all studying in a Madrid-based posh school, well that’s basically Elite.
It’s cheesy as hell, but I am not ashamed to say that I watched season 1 in a record-breaking 2 days! It was addictive, and again even if you do not speak a word of Spanish, the good news is, it’s all more or less predictable. Would definitely recommend if you have some time to kill on a Sunday afternoon.
4. Contratiempo
Two words: Amazing and amazing. This is a movie about a guy who cheats on his wife. During one of his gateways with his mistress he gets involved in a car accident and the nightmare begins. I won’t say anything else, other than this is the best Spanish movie I have seen so far. Also fairly easy to understand, and quite frankly worth watching.
5. Perdiendo el Norte
I really liked this movie. It’s about two friends who are both over-qualified but yet struggling to find jobs in Spain. After watching an advert on TV of a Spanish guy making it in Berlin they both decide to take the plunge to seek a better life in Germany.
This was a very relatable movie and in my opinion, very well put together. I laughed a lot and really got attached to all the characters. The Spanish here is fairly easy too, so would recommend it to people with an intermediate level.
6. Valeria
Valeria was this super cool Spanish sitcom on Netflix. It tells the story of 4 thirty-something friends who live in Madrid and are going through some life and relationship crisis.
The good thing about this shows is that the dialogues were super easy to understand. The storyline is quite obvious so even if your Spanish is not up to scratch this is a great show to get you going.
7. El desorden que dejas
This was a great Spanish thriller which I’d also recommend to Spanish beginners and intermediate. One thing worth mentioning is that show is set in Galicia so some of the characters have strong Galician accents. However, this didn’t really bother me or made it harder to understand the storyline.
Last but not least, here are some extra Spanish movies and shows on Netflix I didn’t watch but were highly recommended to me:
Alguien tiene que morir
La casa de las flores
Pablo Escobar
Volver
Vis a vis
La casa de papel
8 apellidos vascos
3 metro sobre cielo
I hope that this article has given you some ideas for how to get started with Spanish movies and shows on Netflix. The best thing to do is just start by watching a movie or show that looks interesting, and then keep trying until you find something that works for you.
If possible, talk to someone who can help answer questions as they come up along the way! And remember: learning a language takes time—there's no need to rush things too much.
