Torrente 5: PSOE propaganda or merciless satire?

Torrente 5: PSOE propaganda or an equal-opportunity satire?

The claim that the latest Torrente installment is a piece of PSOE propaganda (Spain's ruling Socialist party) hardly holds up against the facts. The film takes swings in every direction, and if any party comes off worse it's Vox, rebranded as NOX, but the PSOE doesn't escape either: its leader is shown as ridiculous, the movie mocks inclusive language, animal-rights hypocrisy and the Ábalos corruption scandal. Is this really propaganda?

The arguments of those who see systemic propaganda

The most common criticism is that the film links patriotism to heroin addicts, sleazebags and bigots, while the PSOE only gets minor slaps. They point out that Torrente says he admires Ábalos for filling a van with prostitutes, which they read as a knowing wink. They also highlight the rally scene where a wasp stings Torrente on the ear, which some see as a mockery of the attack on Trump. The presence of cameos such as Vito Quiles or Nuria Roca's husband — an award for a pogre book — reinforces the suspicion that the director aligns his humor with the dominant narrative.

The response: satire that spares no one

Others argue that Torrente has always been a grotesque farce caricaturing the worst of Spanish society, and that in this installment the target is across the board. They note that Santiago Segura, though he describes himself as left-wing, has voted for Ciudadanos and Feijóo's PP — hardly a Socialist militant. The film ridicules Vox by portraying its leaders as yokels who turn the parody into reality, but it also mocks sanchismo (the political style of PM Pedro Sánchez), calling it "vilchismo," along with political correctness and the government's management. The only party that could feel aggrieved is Vox, and not exactly by omission.

The political context: beyond the PSOE

What makes the debate interesting is that it reveals how each viewer projects their own prejudices. For the right, the film is cultural propaganda of the regime; for the left, it's just a commercial product. The reality is that Torrente 5 is a product chasing box office success, and for that it needs to offend everyone a little. The reference to Vox voters as "bullfighters" or the parody of the attack on Trump are elements that, viewed coldly, don't fit a supposed PSOE agenda. They rather reflect the cynical vision of a director who knows that black humor sells.

Only time will tell whether this installment ages like the previous ones or, as some antiestéticar, helps cement a stereotype that sticks. For now, the only certainty is that the controversy serves as a thermometer of political polarization: when even a broad farce is interpreted as a conspiracy, the problem isn't the film, but the lens through which it's viewed.