Ana Tramel (Maribel Verdú) is a top lawyer who’s hit rock bottom. Once a rising star in the Spanish legal scene, a string of bad decisions and worse outcomes has left her frustrated, depressed, and working a dead-end job clearing traffic cases at a legal firm run by her best friend Concha (Natalia Verbeke). A loner with alcohol and pills as her only companions, she’s the kind of employee who comes into work wearing sunglasses on a cloudy day. At home and at work, things look bleak.
Then she gets a phone call that will change her life forever. It’s been years since she last heard from her brother Alejandro (Unax Ugalde): now he’s on the other end of the line begging for her help. “I wouldn’t call you if it wasn’t serious,” he says. He’s not exaggerating.
Even in an era where female anti-heroes are mainstream, this Spanish-language series (based on a best-selling novel by Roberto Santiago) gives Ana an edge that stands out. Life has her on the ropes and it’s not entirely clear whether she could get back up even if she wanted to. Pills and booze aren’t just a fun way to take the edge off for her, they’re how she eases the pain that is her life. While we hear about her high-flying career, this is a series where it seems more than possible that when she gets back in court, she’s going to struggle to find that old magic. And that old magic is what her brother is relying on.
‘ANA. All In.’ Source: Distributor
He’s been accused of murdering the manager of the Gran Castilla Casino and the case, once Ana starts to investigate what’s really going on, looks pretty air-tight. The manager was bludgeoned to death; Alejandro was arrested with blood on his hands. Worse, he’s run up a massive gambling debt, which means he has motive for the crime. Now he needs Ana’s help – if not for him, then for his family, who need protection from the kind of people who collect gambling debts for a living.
All this comes as a bit of a shock to Ana. She didn’t even know her brother was married to Russian stripper Helena (Yulia Demóss); now she discovers she’s an aunt, with Alejandro the father of a two-year-old boy. But that’s not the only personal connection going on with the case. When she visits her brother in jail she meets Lieutenant Moncada (Israel Elejalde), who is heading up the investigation. Yes, there is definite chemistry between them – and yes, this is going to cause problems down the line.
‘ANA. All In.’ Source: Distributor
For now, Ana decides to help. She puts together a small team of young lawyers to help with the investigation into Alejandro’s situation and ties to the casino, while she puts on her legal gown to return to court and argue in front of a judge for the first time in five years. But before she can get started on her defence, there’s a twist that shifts the entire focus of the case. Now Ana and her team are going after the casinos themselves, to bring their shady doings into the spotlight.
Throughout ANA. All In, there are two things you can rely on: Ana’s home life is going to get more chaotic, and her work situation is going to get more dangerous. This isn’t a series built around a glamorous redemption arc, though Ana is working hard to find her way back out of the gutter. The struggle against the casinos is a long and difficult one, where every step forward is almost always followed by a setback. They have all the money, power and influence; at times it seems like Ana just has a lot of pills.
‘ANA. All In.’ Source: Distributor
As she and her team, including shabby private investigator Eme (Luis Bermejo) dig deeper, the casino’s threats to Alejandro come to light. It seems they were fully aware of his desperate situation and more than happy to use his plight for their own benefit. Worse, Helena has foolishly co-signed her husband’s debts, and the casino have kindly offered her a way to pay them off – by basically becoming their slave for life.
And when Ana’s digging gets too deep for the casino’s liking – which isn’t very deep at all – they’re not above roughing her up to get their message across. Those pain-killing pills she’s so fond of? They might just come in handy after all.
Follow the author
