Series review of “Land of Women”: The family drama directed by Eva Longoria must question itself

The plot of AppleTV+ Land of Women is not exactly a novel proposition. A New York socialite, robbed of her wealth, finds herself in the middle of a small town where she learns some life-changing lessons. Swap out the Hallmark-typical Christmas setting for the sun-drenched vineyards of Catalonia and you get Land of women. While the Eva Longoria-directed dramedy does much to enrich its script with the richness that the Spanish countryside has to offer, its focus on the more comedic-thriller aspects, coupled with the intention of leaving much of the conflict resolution to the next season, leaves a lot to be desired.

Gala Scott (Eva Longoria) is close to achieving everything she’s dreamed of – a high-class wine business in New York, but has to give it all up when she’s harassed by her husband Fred’s creditors. While Fred (James Purefoy) is on the run, Gala grabs her mother Julia (Carmen Maura) and daughter Kate (Victoria Bazúa) and flees to Julia’s tiny Spanish hometown of La Muga.

La Muga has its own problems waiting for the trio. While Gala makes a bad first impression by knocking over the vineyard produce in an accident, Julia realizes before she even enters the town that the town still sees her in a bad light even after 40 years.

The six-part series is based on a novel by Sandra Barneda and finds its way in the first half with its more fragmented approach. Gala’s interactions with the women who run the winery, her subplot with Amat (Santiago Cabrera) – the only man who works at the winery – and a Mamma Mia-inspired search for the real father gives the show its lighter moments. Carmen Maura, on the other hand, brings the darker tones as Julia. With her creeping dementia, Julia often feels transported back in time, and in La Muga the memory lane is more colorful. Maura plays the family’s fun matriarch with ease, handling both the cheeky and serious parts with a thoroughly captivating screen presence.

While Julia’s problems from the past pose obstacles for Gala in the present and Kate is looking for her own place in the line, Land of Women finds a soothing, if predictable, rhythm to tell a story about returning to one’s roots. But as the film accelerates this journey to self-realization with the help of some dim-witted assassins, the script becomes confusing.

We are torn from the everyday life of the small town and interrupted by stumbling New Yorkers. We are thrown back into Gala’s flight from those who want to recover the money she borrowed from Fred. A pair of assassins – who, to be honest, looked as if they had learned villainy by watching – Home alone – land in La Muga and follow Gala’s trail. The second half of the show shifts the focus to their antics as Gala finds new ways to escape them.

Land of Women takes much of its basic narrative from the feel-good movies about moving from the big city to the unique chaos of small towns. Set against the backdrop of Spanish vineyards, we get a slightly new angle to enjoy the expected twists. Yet even with six episodes at the show’s disposal, there isn’t much substance to be gained from these characters. Aside from Julia and perhaps Gala, the script seems to ignore the journeys of those around them. Moreover, a special section for some less impressive assassins steals time that could have been spent fleshing out the contours of La Muga.

Land of Women is clearly aiming for a second season and leaves many questions unanswered. Hopefully the series will go back to its roots and get better through simplicity.