If there’s one thing that didn’t go according to the plan in the FIFA World Cup so far is Argentina’s humiliating loss to Saudi Arabia in their first group-stage encounter. This has made things complicated for the Argentinians, who now have steady opponents in Mexico and Poland to overcome.
But when the Poles and the Mexicans came face to face on the third day of the tournament, it was rather a dull encounter with no fireworks.
Poland’s star striker, Robert Lewandowski, missed a penalty that allowed Mexico to walk away with a point and set up Group C for an ultimate finale in the upcoming weeks.
But despite an underwhelming match between the two sides, the netizens added a bit of colour that reminded people of a pattern that has existed for far too long in the OTT space.
A picture of the stadium surfaced on Twitter when Mexico was playing against Poland in a stark grey and yellow filter.
One-half of this photo where the Polish supporters were seated was covered with a dark grey filter while the remaining half of the stadium, which entertained the Mexican fans, was emblazoned with a yellow filter.
Many turned to Twitter and asked about this filter. For anyone who is not a fan of streaming behemoth, Netflix, it was hard to grasp the reason behind this filter while the rest who are serial binge-watchers of international shows on the American streaming service knew what it meant.
Over the years, Netflix has developed a style for depicting particular countries. Shows like Breaking Bad, Narcos, and Better Call Saul on the streaming platform depict Mexico with a layer of orange sepia tint and yellow saturation.
This is indeed done to show the barren yet diverse and open lands of the Mexican nation, where an abundance of sunlight prevails throughout the year.
On the contrary, when eastern European nations like Poland are depicted in shows on Netflix, the colour grade changes remarkably. The tone turns into a cloudy, cold, grey, and post-Soviet setting that reminds the world that Eastern Europe is not the same place it used to be under the Soviet occupation.
These colour tones used by Netflix are widely accepted in movies as well. The streaming giant has become a trendsetter for themes and tonality of how the visual content may look on screen.
So when an edited photo of Mexico and Poland came up on Twitter, it was only a matter of time until ardent Netflix fans brought up this distinction between the two nations and turned it into a meme.
Do not be alarmed if you see another photo with two filters when the USA faces Iran in the group stage.
