A New Swedish Crime Series Quickly Claims A Top Spot On Netflix Charts

A new Swedish limited drama-thriller series has just hit Netflix, and it has already secured a spot in the Netflix Top 10 charts worldwide. Based on Mattias Edvardsson's bestselling novel "A Nearly Normal Family" ("En helt vanlig familj" in Swedish), the series focuses on the Sandell family, where couple Adam (Björn Bengtsson) and Ulrika (Lo Kauppi), along with their daughter Stella (Alexandra Karlsson Tyrefors) initially appear to be a perfect little family. Rich and affluent, the Sandells spend their time in a lavish suburb outside of Lund, but things go awry when Stella is suddenly accused of murder. Molded as tense, moody crime fiction with surprising twists, "A Nearly Normal Family" succeeds in capturing the complexities in familial bonds that tend to exacerbate during a crisis.

Stella's boyfriend, Christoffer Olsen (Christian Fandango Sundgren), is brutally stabbed one night, and the day after, Stella is arrested, which compels Adam and Ulrika to go to extreme lengths to protect her. Edvardsson's book deftly presents all three perspectives across the chapters while setting each character up as an unreliable narrator, which deepens the mystery and makes the truth even more elusive than it appears. There's more to the story than a murder accusation and attempts to prove Stella innocent — a specific childhood trauma rears its ugly head as things get more complicated, directly affecting the relationship between the trio, along with how Stella perceives herself and wishes to be perceived.

"Sounds like you have a complicated relationship with your parents. Has it always been this way?" The series opens with these words, defining the heart of the matter: although Stella shares a strained dynamic with her parents, Adam and Ulrika are ready to lie to the authorities and even erase evidence to clear her name. The show establishes these different perspectives by switching between them haphazardly, adding to the labyrinthine nature of the mystery that is untangled once Ulrika speaks to Stella's best friend, Amina (Melisa Ferhatovic), who last saw Christoffer the night of his murder.

By the time the truth is revealed, every incident that has been peppered throughout comes together to form a complex, noxious whole. There are no misdirects or red herrings used to trick audiences, as a competent use of warring perspectives helps flesh out the mystery behind the murder. Ulrika's presence during the courtroom sequences, where she uses her expertise and influence as a lawyer to direct the investigation in the direction she wants to, is rather thrilling to witness, while Adam's willingness to tamper evidence despite being a devout believer poses interesting juxtapositions within his character.

In the end, "A Nearly Normal Family" makes good use of perspective to bring its gripping source material to life, while presenting intriguing moral dilemmas that are near-impossible to resolve.

"A Nearly Normal Family" is currently streaming on Netflix.