| International romantic dramas usually prove to be very popular on Netflix. Perhaps due to the saying that love transcends language. However, there is a big difference between sex and romance and I’m not convinced these filmmakers know the difference. Through My Window has plenty of sex appeal but drops dozens of metaphorical red flags throughout the movie. | | 2022
Directed by: Marçal Forés
Screenplay by: Ariana Godoy, Eduard Sola
Starring: Clara Galle, Julio Peña
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The premise is actually good. Raquel lives in a modest house, with a mother on the lower end of the income spectrum, and she works an after school job. She’s also in love with the boy in the house across from her window. But here’s the twist, he’s in a completely different world than she is. The area surrounding Raquel’s family home was bought up over the years and developed into an estate for a rich family-business empire.
This rich family as three sons all destined to work for the family business and all named after Greek gods: Artemis, Ares and Apolo. Just gloss over the fact that Artemis was a Greek goddess, there are much bigger problems to get to.
Raquel is in love with Ares. He knows and loves the attention that she gives him, along with every other girl on the planet. (I’m not entirely sure why, he looks like a vampire). Their relationship gets sexual fast. He seduces her, only when he decides to, and with him constantly telling her that he does not like her, and telling her that he’s only doing this because of her crush on him. He’s an egotistical, controlling, lying asshole right from the get-go and he really doesn’t get any better.
Most people have a sexual coming-of-age movie, mine was Stealing Beauty. I remember very little about it other than how hot it was. As much as I dislike the central relationship in Through My Window, I can’t deny the sex appeal. It’s hot and that probably explains the movie’s popularity.
But let’s get back to how awful Ares is. He seduces after his drunk brother causes problems and is sleeping it off in her bed, and there’s Ares fingering her mere inches away from his sleeping brother, while repeating to her that he does not like her. Dude, you are sick, you have a problem, get help and please never talk to a girl again.
Ares also likes hooking up with other girls in front of Raquel. This is of course a common pattern among abusers who need power and control in their relationship. Just further highlighting how dysfunctional this relationship is. There is no doubt this was made by a straight male director. One who has an obsession with women’s nipples and doesn’t understand that there’s already a massive power imbalance in their relationship and everything Ares does only makes it worse.
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