'Pact of Silence' Review: Is It Worth Watching on Netflix?

Netflix

Netflix knew what I needed this fall – a sudsy drama! This one has arrived in the form of Mexico’s “Pact of Silence” (“Pacto de Silencio”). In the premiere, viewers get everything: secrets, lies, mysteries, and vendettas. It all begins with four best friends running in a rainstorm while carrying a bundle.

If you guessed that bundle is a baby, congratulations. For mysterious reasons, the quad leaves the baby in a shack, and she is summarily adopted by a lady living nearby. Now, she wants payback. Brenda (Camila Valero), that baby-turned-woman, drives the core mystery of “Pact of Silence.” A successful influencer, Brenda, wants to identify her mother and get revenge.

One of the young girls running through the rainstorm is Brenda’s mother. Now grown up themselves, the four friends have maintained their relationship and “Pact of Silence.” Is that about to change? Brenda is determined to make it.

Writing on the Wall

The premiere has two moments where this entire mystery could be solved in two seconds. Brenda could covertly secure a DNA test from her suspected mothers. “Pact of Silence” lets that go without even acknowledging the possibility. All Brenda needs is a hair from each woman.

Of course, we would not have a show if Brenda procured DNA test materials. It is the elephant in the room that the drama keeps a “Pact of Silence” around. If you share this Netflix subscriber’s love of big drama, “Pact of Silence” is the perfect binge-watch. 

The series shares elements of 2021’s “The Five Juanas,” a thoroughly enjoyable Netflix series about five women who learn they are all half-sisters. Of course, those with storied TV memories will probably recall similarities between “Pact of Silence” and the 1984 miniseries “Lace” starring Phoebe Cates.

For those of us who loved “Triptych” earlier this year, “Pact of Silence” is the perfect companion piece. A woman’s search for her mysterious origins is central to both Netflix series. After “Fake Profile” steamed up summer, it is up to “Pact of Silence” to help warm up the fall. So far, it is more than doing its job.