How do you unhinge a prejudice? How do you talk about patriarchate, toxic masculinity, to overcome the obstacles of a millennial culture without slipping into the obvious? He tries, lightly, Real malesthe new Italian series of Netflix arriving on the platform on May 21st.
Remake of the famous Spanish series Machos Alfa, Real males Explore how four middle -aged men raised under the influence of the patriarchal culture of the 80s and 90s find themselves forced to question the beliefs that have always taken for granted, such as virility, the denial of emotions and superiority over the other sex.
This series, which may seem like a reflection at traits uncomfortable, actually proves to be a fresh and ironic narrative. The protagonists are four forties who, confronting their companions, colleagues and daughters, realize that what they believed was “normal” may not be absolutely. The patriarchal culture that forged theirs male identity begins to crumble, forcing them to review themselves and their roles in society. Panic.
Maurizio Lastrico, Matteo Martari, Francesco Montanari and Pietro Sermonti carry a comedy on the screen that, while having fun, does not spare criticism of the retrograde vision of virility, the one that still permeates and alasses our culture very much. The series, written by Furio Andreotti, Giulia Calenda and Ugo Ripamonti, and directed by Matteo Oleotto and Letizia Lamartire, offers a feminist reading of society, but through the eyes of men who must confront their certainties and the need to evolve.
And then let’s take it as an opportunity, this new Netflix series, to reflect at least a little, also with a pinch of irony, on the need to unhinge a culture that has imposed a rigid and harmful masculinity model for too long. It is not only a challenge for men alone, to be clear, but for the whole society: it would be time to start to overcome our limiting beliefs and welcome a more inclusive and authentic vision of the genre and its roles.
