# Money Heist (2017) Review: Cliffhangers in Red Jumpsuits > Money Heist is Spain's global hit about the Professor and a crew in Dalí masks taking over the Royal Mint. Pulpy, addictive and overstretched in its later parts. Canonical: https://celluloidscore.com/reviews/money-heist-review/ Published: 2026-07-08 Last updated: 2026-09-24 Author: Kaiser Khan — Founder & Editor Language: English Review basis: direct-viewing Spoilers: none Rating: 4/5 ## Verdict Yes, with reservations. It is gloriously addictive heist television for thriller fans who love cliffhangers, though the later parts grow repetitive and far-fetched. ## Is Money Heist worth watching? **Yes, with reservations. Money Heist is one of the most purely addictive thrillers ever made for streaming, a heist saga engineered so that almost every episode ends with a reason to keep watching.** Its first two parts, set during a siege of Spain's Royal Mint, are a near-perfect mix of clever planning, hostage drama and operatic emotion. The reservation is that the show kept going well past its natural ending, and the later parts become louder, less plausible and more repetitive. ## What is Money Heist about? A mysterious criminal mastermind known only as the Professor (Álvaro Morte) recruits eight people with nothing to lose, each given a city as a code name, for the most ambitious robbery in Spanish history: occupying the Royal Mint of Spain, taking hostages and printing billions of euros of untraceable money. Dressed in red jumpsuits and Salvador Dalí masks, the crew follows his meticulous plan inside, while he directs them from outside and matches wits with Raquel Murillo (Itziar Ituño), the police inspector leading the negotiations. The story is narrated by Tokyo (Úrsula Corberó), an impulsive fugitive, and Pedro Alonso plays Berlin, the crew's arrogant, unpredictable leader inside the Mint. [Money Heist](https://celluloidscore.com/shows/money-heist/), known in Spain as La casa de papel, was created by Álex Pina. It is a Spanish series in Spanish that became one of Netflix's biggest international hits. This review covers the complete story: five parts released between 2017 and 2021, adding up to more than 40 episodes. The story has ended, though it has since spawned a spin-off and a Korean remake. ## Cliffhanger engineering at its best Money Heist's great skill is momentum. Pina structures the story around plans that go wrong, flashbacks that reveal how the Professor anticipated the problem, and new crises that erupt just as the last one is solved. The show switches constantly between the siege inside, the police operation outside and scenes from the crew's past, and the cutting is designed to leave viewers perpetually off balance. It is manipulative, but it is brilliantly executed. The show also created unforgettable iconography. The red jumpsuits, the Dalí masks and the use of the Italian partisan song "Bella Ciao" turned a Spanish crime drama into a global symbol of rebellion, copied at protests and parties around the world. ## An ensemble that sells the melodrama The robbers are drawn broadly, but the cast commits so fully that it works. Álvaro Morte makes the Professor an unlikely hero, awkward and bespectacled but always thinking several moves ahead, and his cat-and-mouse relationship with Itziar Ituño's Raquel is one of the show's best threads. Pedro Alonso gives Berlin a chilling, theatrical charisma that makes him the series' most compelling character, and Úrsula Corberó's Tokyo is impulsive and exasperating by design. The romances, rivalries and loyalties within the crew provide the emotional stakes that keep the heists from feeling mechanical. The first season also won the International Emmy for best drama series, a sign of how quickly its appeal crossed borders. ## When the heist overstays its welcome The later parts, made after Netflix turned the series into a global franchise, have bigger budgets and bigger action but weaker discipline. A new target raises the stakes, yet the show repeats its earlier formula, with plans unravelling, characters making reckless decisions and the police behaving implausibly. The melodrama grows more overwrought, and the plotting leans on coincidences that even devoted fans may find hard to swallow. The final part delivers spectacle, but the show's original cleverness is harder to find. ## Who should watch Money Heist? It is ideal for fans of heist stories, high-energy [thrillers](https://celluloidscore.com/genres/thriller/) and bingeable ensemble drama, and it is an easy entry point for viewers new to non-English television; a dubbed version is widely available. It is a sizeable commitment across five parts. Expect violence, gunfights, hostage situations, sexual content and strong language. If it hooks you, try these next: - [Breaking Bad](https://celluloidscore.com/reviews/breaking-bad-review/) for a crime saga built around another meticulous, controlling mastermind whose plans spiral out of control. - [Sacred Games](https://celluloidscore.com/shows/sacred-games/), another non-English Netflix crime hit that uses flashbacks and cliffhangers to keep viewers hooked. ## The verdict Money Heist is a thrilling, iconic and endlessly bingeable heist saga, with a first half that ranks among the most entertaining crime television of its decade. Its later parts overstretch the formula and strain belief, but its style, cast and cliffhanger craft make it well worth the ride. **Rating: 4/5** ## Related title - [Money Heist (2017)](https://celluloidscore.com/shows/money-heist/) ## Editorial - [Editorial standards](https://celluloidscore.com/about/editorial-policy/) - [Report a correction](https://celluloidscore.com/about/corrections/)