Irma Vep

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?

If you have not seen the original Assayas movie from 1996, try watching it first. You will understand more about the idea behind this series. In short, it's just more of the same 1996 movie, but with enough details shuffled around to make it interesting to watch even if you have seen it before.

This is a remake of a movie that was telling about shooting remake of an old movie from the beginning of the 20th century, that was actually a 7h long series!

It's not for everyone, but you don't need to be neither patient nor intellectual to appreciate it. If you love cinema and love French cinema, you will appreciate this modern take on how chaotic tournage is.

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..

This Tv show is about people making a TV show, so if you dislike anything Hollywood (spoiled movie stars, eccentric filmmakers, etc), annoying french artists and classic cinema/theatre, then look somewhere else. But if love this kind of thing, you're in for a treat. The show's writing and acting feels natural and fluid, and Alicia Vikander has an undeniable screen presence. . We've only seen the first two episodes, so don't expect me to give you my take on the first 30 minutes of a movie-You gotta watch the whole thing before you can talk crap about the story or characters.