“Instinto” wants to be a thriller about a man trapped by his own emotional limits, and it mostly succeeds. Marco Mur, played by Mario Casas, runs a tech company while hiding a secret past that keeps him from forming real bonds with women. He finds release in a private club where no one knows each other’s names, and the series spends most of its eight episodes tracking how that past catches up with him.
Trailer, via Movistar Plus.
Marco’s Closed World
Marco is the engine of the show. His business success hides a deep wound from his past, one that makes him retreat from intimacy. That tension carries the early episodes, even as the series piles on additional conflicts — a new employee joining the firm, a friend who works beside him, a brother with autism, and a psychologist who watches over him.
Casas plays Marco with a controlled stillness that suits the role. He is handsome and composed, which makes his fear of connection feel real rather than staged. The supporting cast fills out the world around him, with Silvia Alonso as the ambitious newcomer, Ingrid García-Jonsson as the woman who connects with his brother, and Jon Arias as his business partner.
The club scenes are the show’s clearest weakness. They are meant to be erotic and tense, but the series leans too hard on spectacle rather than psychology. The club exists mostly as a way for Marco to act out his desires without consequences, and the show treats those scenes as set pieces rather than character studies.
What Works and What Doesn’t
The show’s best moments come when Marco’s past and present collide. His relationship with his mother, played by Lola Dueñas, and his bond with his brother anchor the emotional core of the story. The show also does well with the business side of Marco’s life, showing the pressure of running a company while hiding a personal secret.
Where it falters is in its handling of the erotic content. The club scenes feel forced and repetitive, and they slow down the momentum the first half builds. The pacing suffers in the back half, where the series stretches its material across several episodes without adding much new information.
The show also struggles with its tone. It wants to be a serious drama about Marco’s inner life, but the erotic elements keep pulling it toward something more sensational. The result is a split identity that never quite resolves itself.
Key Facts
- Title: Instinto (2019)
- Creator: Teresa Fernández-Valdés, Ramón Campos, Gema R. Neira
- Network: Movistar Plus
- Episodes: 8
- First aired: 2019-05-10
- Last aired: 2019-05-10
- Score: 7.2/10
Cast
- Mario Casas as Marco Mur
- Ingrid García-Jonsson as Carol
- Silvia Alonso as Eva
- Jon Arias as Diego Berna
- Juan Diego Botto as Pol Garrido
- Óscar Casas as José Mur
The show is at its best when it stops trying to be everything at once. The character work, particularly around Marco’s relationships with his family, is strong enough to carry the series despite its flaws. The erotic content, meanwhile, feels like a separate show trying to fit inside the same one.
“Instinto” is a mixed bag, but its strengths outweigh its weaknesses. Marco Mur’s journey is worth following, even when the show around him stumbles.
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