It was 2019 when Netflix announced for the first time that it had acquired the rights to bring one of the greatest masterpieces of literature to the screen: One Hundred Years of Solitude by Gabriel García Márquez. News that caused a sensation and which, on the one hand increased the curiosity of fans of this timeless story written in 1967 by the Nobel Prize winner for literature, and on the other hand turned up the nose of those who have always considered this book so iconic that any film adaptation or serial would have been impossible or at least a failed attempt to do justice to such a masterpiece of literature.

Netflix, however, loves challenges and with the series One Hundred Years of Solitude it wanted to demonstrate to everyone that, with the right respect, a pinch of courage and adequate writing, directing and casting work, not only could one try to to really create a series based on the novel but which could have been made so that this was exemplary. And so it was.

Produced by the same sons of the Colombian writer, Rodrigo García and Gonzalo García Barcha, and shot in Colombia, the series that adapts One Hundred Years of Solitude is the example that some stories are so universal that they can make a difference in any era they are told and by whatever means you do it.

One hundred years of solitude, the plot in brief

One Hundred Years of Solitude tells the story of a family, of a people, of a generation of people who built a future from nothing by creating a village that would become their home and then their condemnation. At the center of the story are José Arcadio Buendía and Úrsula Iguarán, two cousins ​​who fall in love and, against their parents’ wishes, run away to create a better future for themselves. So they embark on a long journey in search of a new home and decide to settle in the middle of a swamp, creating the village of Macondo which will become their home. From absolute poverty, the two built the first houses and then the first shops until Macondo became a real town. They will have several children who will grow up and fall in love in turn in a story that embraces several generations of the Buendía lineage and speaks of love, war, power, religion, science, humanity.

A very successful adaptation of a timeless story

What Netflix managed to do with the serial adaptation of One Hundred Years of Solitude is one of the best surprises of this December 2024 which gives us a series that from the first episode proves, like the novel from which it is based, universal and timeless. The direction of this story is beautiful and the photography has an impact, giving the public a story so engaging that it takes them on a real emotional and imaginary journey in space and time between injustices, the fight for freedom, a thirst for knowledge and that sense of family that binds each of the stories told in the series.

Once you have entered this world you will never want to leave and each of the characters in this story will remain with you with all their mistakes, heroic deeds, follies, regrets, becoming part of you and of your own memory.

Don’t be scared by the length of the episodes of One Hundred Years of Solitude, after all, to be able to tell such a broad and complex story, time is necessary and it is necessary to focus on every detail of each of the characters involved, from the main ones to the secondary ones.

With a perfectly chosen cast, a very strong narrative structure, impeccable attention to the emotional sphere of the story, this series is an incredible journey and proves not only to be one of the most successful Netflix titles of 2024 but already a great classic, just like the novel it is based on.

Rating: 7.8