Irma Vep

A popular actress joins a strange director and some other weird characters in a remake of an old silent film about Vampires who aren't really Vampires. I'm all in! Sure, much of it makes no sense but the fun is in the characters and what they do and say. Guess I was in the mood for something different because I like it more than most.

This show is really well written and feels authentic. A peek into the life of a show, the actors, the director, the crew. It also feels quite personal from the director Olivier Assayas.

Give it a try and don't get influenced by the bad reviews who only watched the first episode..

As Episode 1 of "Irma Vep" (2022 release from France; 8 episodes of about 55 min each) opens, the Alicia Vikander character (we later learn it is an American actress called Mira) arrives in Paris and is whisked away to a photoshoot for her news movie "Doomsday". Mira is actually in Paris to star in an adaptation of the 1916 French silent classic "Les Vampires", and was hired by the French director who envisions her playing "Irma, pure evil in a sexy kinda way"... At this point we are 10 min into Episode 1.

Couple of comments: in 1996 French writer-director Olivier Assayas had a great idea to make a movie-within-a-movie about the movie adaptation of a 1916 French silent movie, and along the way casting Hong Kong movie super star Maggie Cheung who plays herself in the film. Now more than a quarter century later, Assayas decided to reimagine his 1996 movie into an 8 part mini-series, and my immediate reaction was: why? But I must admit I was rather curious about it, and now having seen the initial two episodes of this, I must say that the mini-series is a very different experience compared to the movie. It's not that the acting is inadequate. Alicia Vikander and Vincent Mcaigne (as the director) are tops. And the mini-series is very stylish and even sleek (plus it plays the 1979 classic tune "Moscow Discow" by Belgian electronics band Telex in the photoshoot scene, extra bonus point for that!). But it also lacks the originality, adrenaline and urgency of the 1996 movie. Yes, the 1996 movie was a bit rough around the edges, but frankly that is part of its charm. So based on the initial two episodes, the choice so far between the 1996 movie and the 2022 mini-series is an easy one: the 1996 movie wins.

"Irma Vep" (the mini-series) premiered on HBO Max a week ago, and new episodes are available on Sundays. If you are watching the mini-series without having seen the 1996 movie, I encourage you to conclude the mini-series and then check out the 1996 movie, and draw your own conclusion.

I've seen both the original 1916 Les Vampires and the 1996 Irma Vep, so I "get" what the director is trying to do with this series. I'm two episodes in and it seems this is written exclusively for critics, cinephiles, and fans of French film history. 7/10 is generous, but my memory of the original 1916 series keeps me interested.

The original series is "wacky" and very hard to describe. It certainly had energy. Cinema was still in its infancy, so they could just make it up as they went along and dream up ridiculous situations. You'll notice the actors in the HBO series keep lamenting that no one would say or do these things in 2022.

Musidora wasn't classically beautiful but had a strange, magnetic sex appeal. Maggie Cheung in the 1996 version was brilliant, odd casting and incredibly sexy. Her befuddlement added to the chaos. Alicia Vikander is not quite inspired casting. She's done a good job on her American accent, but her character is bland, listless, and gives off little sexual energy. Musidora was voluptuous; Vikander is a twig. Perhaps more inspired casting could have better captured the essence of Irma Vep.

I don't think the world was waiting for another version of Irma Vep. I'll watch to the end, but I can't recommend this to the casual viewer.

UPDATE: I have now finished the series and downgraded my score to 6/10. In 8 hours of tedium there were only 2 interesting characters; Rene, played tenderly by Vincent Macaigne, and Gottfried, channeling Keith Richards, played with reckless abandon by Lars Eidinger. Both deserve future Emmy nominations. Oddly, Irma Vep/Mira is the most poorly written character in the series. Mira really has nothing interesting to say or do, and Vikander infuses her with zero charisma. Fala Chen, in a bit part, lights up the screen as Lily Flower. Perhaps she should have played Mira/Irma Vep?

WARNING: This review is written by a contributor that HASN'T viewed the whole series.

Films about making films tend to have the odds stacked against them. The concept, aside from being grossly over represented, is pathed with potholes - the biggest one being that all involved find the subject way more interesting than the audience.

Another obvious risk is that it will be perceived as an egotistic indulgence and that the end product ends up more of a show off than a show. There will also be a perceived amount of laziness, after reviewing thousands of possible topics - the decision was; to make a show about "themselves". In short; the execution must be spot on for there to be any praise worthy merit.

So... plenty of risk taken here - how has the end product turned out? After the first episode - rather much as feared. Despite some good acting; pretty boring and rather self-indulgent. That's not saying it's worse than a lot of other stuff out there. It is, however, a bumpy ride over the potholes - of which few have been avoided.

Irma Vep has started out painfully predictable - resulting in a recommendation that may seem obvious; if you have enjoyed other films/shows along the theme of making a ditto - chances are you will enjoy this. If not - chances are that you will feel the urge to utter something along the lines of "pretentious rubbish".

After two episodes the issues of main concern, apart from the above mentioned, has to do with rhythm and pacing - the overall impression is beginning to feel choppy and bouts of boredom are showing up. It is stil hard to look past the aspect of self-indulgence. However... intricate threads of complexity are being woven in and they may come into play at a later stage (if not it would be further added indulgence). The best advice, possibly, is avoid at this stage; to wait until the whole series has aired, and then read the reviews.

Irma Vep could go in two very different directions from here: The most likely being that it is a cul-de-sac of self indulgence. But t could also "come together" in a way that makes the, relatively painful, first episodes pay off at a later stage.

It's not a great idea to write a review after a couple of episodes and this is a first impression - if any greatness develops as the series progresses; this review will be altered or taken down.

FINAL EDIT (After E3) After three episodes the self-indulgence is on the rise - rather than the decline - and this reviewer will be checking out. The few potential interesting threads that were out there have come to nothing and the "please give me a break" moments are on the rise.

Thanks for your attention.