One of the shortest Netflix dramas of the month is also one of the heaviest in subject. The Law of Beasts, a four-part Polish drama from writer and director Kasper Bajon, premieres on Netflix on Wednesday 18 November, and Netflix released its official teaser on 3 November. With four episodes of about 45 minutes each, the full series runs roughly three hours.
The story
The series opens in 1988. Police Major Anna Bersz is investigating the murders of four boys, and her friend, the psychiatrist Agnieszka Grabska, is asked to assess whether the suspect can be held criminally responsible. The decisions each woman makes end their friendship. Twenty-five years later, the convicted killer is due to be released, and both are forced back into the case and what it cost them.
The drama is inspired by the case of Mariusz Trynkiewicz and by the law it prompted in Poland, known as the Beasts Act. The two women at its centre are fictional. That distinction matters: this is a drama built around real events, not a reconstruction of them, and its interest lies in the people who had to decide what justice required.
Netflix
How it was announced
Netflix first unveiled the series on 26 August, already with its 18 November date, as a four-part drama based on the true events that led to Poland’s Beast Law. The teaser followed on 3 November, a little over two weeks before launch.
The cast and the team
Agnieszka Grochowska plays Anna Bersz and Agnieszka Żulewska plays Agnieszka Grabska. Michał Pawlik plays Trynkiewicz.
Bajon directs and wrote the series with Anna Kasińska. Edyta Krajewska produces for the Polish company Entrego. Bartłomiej Kaczmarek is director of photography, Piotr Waglewski composed the score, Anna Marzęda designed the production and Magdalena Bem-Jankowska the costumes.
Where it fits
Netflix’s autumn slate already mixes true-crime documentary, such as The Fall of El Mayo, with international drama, such as Lee Chang-dong’s Possible Love. The Law of Beasts sits between those poles: a scripted series, made in Polish, about a legal and moral question rather than a manhunt. For viewers who prefer their crime drama compact, four episodes is a modest commitment.
Netflix lists the release as global. For the rest of the month’s arrivals, see everything new on streaming in the UK this month and our other November guides.
Where to watch
- Canada, US, UK, Australia and New Zealand: Netflix, from 18 November.
Sources
Before you go
