The Real Reason No One Saw Us Leave Is Tanking on IMDb

Netflix just dropped a Spanish-language limited series with a killer premise and a glossy finish. The reaction? Not great. If you have been eyeing No One Saw Us Leave because of its true-story hook and period drama vibes, here is the lay of the land before you sink five episodes into it.

The setup

Based on Mexican author Tamara Trottner's memoir Nadie nos vio partir, the show follows Valeria Goldberg, a mother who goes to war after her husband kidnaps their kids. It unfolds in the 1960s across Mexico City and Europe, with the family drama tangled up in a feud between two influential Jewish families. There is an arranged marriage at the center, a lot of power plays, and the kind of globe-hopping that looks great in a trailer.

• Release date: October 15, 2025
• Where to watch: Netflix (U.S. streaming now)
• Language/format: Spanish-language limited series, 5 episodes
• Genre: True-crime-adjacent drama, thriller
• Setting: Mostly Mexico City and Europe (Paris, Italy, Israel) in the 1960s
• Source material: Tamara Trottner's memoir Nadie nos vio partir
• Main characters: Valeria Goldberg (Tessa Ia); Leo Saltzman (Emiliano Zurita)
• Key supporting: Juan Manuel Bernal as Samuel Saltzman, plus Natasha Dupeyrón, Flavio Medina, and more
• Core dynamic: A loveless, arranged marriage inside an elite Mexican Jewish clan spirals into a cross-continental custody battle
• Current temperature: Negative to mixed buzz; 6.1/10 on IMDb at the time of writing

So, why the backlash?

Short version: the show looks expensive and important, but critics and viewers say it does not land the punch it keeps winding up for. The consensus is that the storytelling wanders. One reviewer at ABC Entertainment argued the series can not decide if it is critiquing this world or simply depicting it, which leaves the point of the whole exercise fuzzy. Arash Nahandian at Gazattely made a similar case, calling it a meticulously staged tour of one family's pain that never finds a solid philosophical spine.

Pramit Chatterjee at DMTalkies went even harder, praising the visuals but saying the performances do not stick and the pacing turns a five-episode run into homework. He also asks the question a lot of recent true-story shows probably need to hear:

"Is your journey going to be memorable for the general public just because it was memorable for you? If you are unsure about the answer to that question, then your story is not ready to be put out there."

The 'true story' problem

That critique stings more because the material is inherently dramatic. Trottner's real childhood included being taken by her father; the series stylizes those events with high production value. The debate here is whether that polish adds insight or just distance. Netflix itself promoted the show on October 15 with a Tudum tweet framing it as a mother battling stigma and a brutal separation mid-divorce. That is accurate to the logline, but the execution is where people are tapping out.

Zooming out, this is part of a larger streak of true-story adaptations that assume the words "based on" will do the heavy lifting. Even Netflix's recent Monster: The Ed Gein Story got a chilly reception. When the story does not build momentum or say something clear, the tag line does not save it.

Bottom line

No One Saw Us Leave has all the ingredients for a gripping prestige drama: a combustible family rivalry, a mother on a mission, international stakes, period detail. On paper, it is potent. On screen, a lot of reviewers say it is handsome but unfocused, with strong imagery in search of a point.

If you check it out, you are getting five episodes of elegant melodrama with an undeniably compelling true-life kernel. Whether that is enough depends on your tolerance for style over clarity. Streaming now on Netflix in the U.S. What did you think?