Midnight Family

We have some iconic medical dramas like Dr. House, some once upon a time good ones like Grey's Anatomy (no shade, but it should have ended like by the tenth season)... and a bunch from mediocre to very bad medical tv shows, so to find one different was a nice surprise.

Midnight family focus on the point of view of a paramedical family (based on a true family from the awarded documentary of the same name).

The cast is great in their roles, and the characteres deeper, everyone figthing their own individual problems.

Production is good, and the story keeps interesting without overreacting where many tv shows have failed on.

I'm a UK viewer who watched in original version soundtrack with English subtitles.

This felt a little weak to start with in Episode 1 and was quite gritty and gory and I was questioning whether to stick with it. However, it quickly developed into a really excellent show.

The characters and the individual challenges that each of the 4 family members quickly became the focus of the drama with the life as paramedics / ambulance crew providing the backdrop to their stories.

Episode 3 to the backdrop of real life earthquake events was a very strong episode as were the final 3 episodes where the stories of each of the main characters reached climaxes. The ending was perhaps a little weak leaving lots of openings for a further season although I felt satisfied if there are any more episodes.

The social backdrop of the ambulance and medical services in Mexico is another interesting aspect of the show.

The series is a pale and simplistic version that utterly fails to capture the authenticity and depth of the marvelous documentary "Midnight Family" by Luke Lorentzen, which it supposedly draws inspiration from. With an overly contrived language and a clumsy attempt to replicate a "chilango" idiosyncrasy that feels superficial and almost naïve, the production comes across as a prefabricated spectacle rather than a genuine portrayal of the life it aims to depict.

One of the most striking aspects of the documentary is its masterful use of the camera, which is always on, capturing the raw, unfiltered life of this family. The director skillfully removes any visible influence, allowing the viewer to experience one of the most compelling documentaries I've ever seen. In contrast, the series lacks this authenticity and instead delivers an artificial narrative.

It's particularly revealing that the series' director admitted to never watching the documentary to "avoid influencing his version." That statement alone explains the enormous gap between the two works and the resounding failure of the series. What we get instead is mediocre casting, highlighted by the youngest character's performance, which is devoid of charm, grace, or the basic talent needed for the role.

The real drama, spontaneous humor, and authenticity that make the documentary an unmissable masterpiece are completely absent here. It's a shame that such rich material was reduced to a commercialized version that betrays its essence. My recommendation is simple: skip the series and watch the documentary, where reality far surpasses this poor attempt at fiction.

Just watched the first episode, and here's my review:

Positives: The direction is good, the characters are likable, and the concept is interesting. The first episode feels very realistic, with every scene coming across naturally.

Negatives: It's too long. The first episode is over 50 minutes, and there are nine more of the same length, which feels excessive for such a simple story. The show revolves around a family of four who run a private ambulance service. They face challenges in their work, competition from other ambulances, going from the scene of emergencies to hospitals to save lives, while also dealing with personal issues. But, I didn't find anything in this episode that truly hooked me. In this episode, they reached the location of two emergency calls and saved lives. I assume the other episodes will follow a similar format-going to different locations, saving people in various settings and situations. The movie that inspired this series is about as long as just two of this show's episodes, so I don't understand why they stretched it into 10 episodes, each around 50 minutes long.

The overall tone is sad and emotional, but I think they should've added a few light or comedic moments, or at least ended the first episode with a cliffhanger to make it more engaging. The episode didn't have that kind of ending. If you compare it to Netflix's Maid (also based on a real story), Maid was emotional too but had that "what will happen next" element, which is why it became one of my favorite shows. I didn't get that feeling with this show. There's also some abusive language used which wasn't needed.

Overall: Good concept and touching story, but the long episode durations are a huge downside. It's such a big negative that I'm not sure if I'll watch the rest-I'll probably skip it. I haven't watched the documentary, so I can't compare, but I might give that a try. If you're okay with hour-long episodes, liked the trailer, and are interested in the story, you might enjoy it. For me: 2.5/5.

Responding the the review From below:

"It's too long."

It's a standard format.

"The first episode is over 50 minutes, and there are nine more of the same length, which feels excessive for such a simple story. "

You've only seen the first episode. What do you mean a simple story? You don't know what else it contains.

"The show revolves around a family of four who run a private ambulance service. They face challenges in their work, competition from other ambulances, going from the scene of emergencies to hospitals to save lives, while also dealing with personal issues."

What is this? A ChatGPT description of the trailer?

Anyway first episode was really well done and touches on important societal issues. Excited to keep watching.