Desire

Set against the backdrop of ultra-wealthy Mexican elite society, Desire (Deseo) follows Lucero Cortina (Ludwika Paleta), a prominent 47-year-old attorney who appears to possess an enviable life. She is married to Fernando (José María Yázpik), a successful industrialist, with whom she has built two decades of marriage and raised two teenage children, Julián and Viviana. Yet beneath their polished, luxurious exterior lies an empty routine and a silent intimacy vacuum.

Everything shifts when Fernando hires Matías (Óscar Casas), a handsome young Spanish former competitive swimmer, to coach their daughter Viviana. Sensing an irresistible spark, Lucero surrenders to her suppressed fantasies and initiates a clandestine, passionate affair with Matías.

What begins as an intoxicating secret escape quickly grows dangerous. As emotional boundaries blur and obsession takes hold, an unexpected dynamic emerges when Viviana also develops a romantic crush on her coach. Caught between forbidden lust, professional blackmail, and familial rivalry, Lucero’s immaculate world rapidly begins to unravel.

Director Teresa Simone uses Desire to critique marital stagnation, midlife female sexual agency, and the hypocrisy of high society. The film argues that the true threat to long-term relationships is not merely physical infidelity, but the toxic silence surrounding emotional and sexual dissatisfaction. Simone emphasizes how elite societal structures force individuals to maintain flawless public facades, driving repressed desires into dangerous, taboo territories that ultimately consume everyone involved.

The Cautionary Tale Reading: Viewers interpret the narrative as a moral warning about how individual selfishness and seeking quick thrills destroy family structures.

Released in mid-2026, Desire arrived during a global resurgence of streaming erotic thrillers. By centering female pleasure and midlife female agency under the female gaze of director Teresa Simone, the film sparked wide discussions across Spanish-language media regarding double standards in marital infidelity. Following its release, it became a #1 trending title on Netflix across multiple countries.

Praised: Ludwika Paleta’s raw, commanding performance; polished cinematography; high production values; and engaging initial premise.

Criticized: Overuse of melodramatic telenovela twists in the second half; unlikable characters; reliance on familiar erotic thriller clichés.

Verdict: A slick, guilty-pleasure thriller that delivers suspense and aesthetic beauty, even if it occasionally leans into genre tropes.