The Perfect Mother

I'd worked out whodunit by halfway through episode two but not why - that would come near the end of the final moments of the drama. But how could the cops be slower than me? In the face of continual lying and stories that didn't add up they seemed to be bending over backwards not to get the correct person convicted.

At the same time that all this was going on in Paris, another drama was playing out in Berlin. Neither the main plot in France nor the sub plots in Germany were particularly convincing; I'd have been more impressed if Lukas had turned out to be gay which looked for a while how things were going.

I'm not sure a French lawyer would have compromised his ethics as badly as Maître Duc. I can't imagine a British barrister doing what he did. That he wasn't up before the disciplinary committee for his known infractions was a wonder. As he himself said, lawyers aren't allowed to investigate themselves for obvious reasons. He was doing so openly.

The ending was equivocal. Did Hélène stop being the "perfect mother" and seek happiness instead or did she carry on with the sham? I don't think there'll be a second season so we shall never know.

This was tedious to watch. It's only four episodes long... and that's five episodes too many. By the end of the fourth episode I was fast-forrwarding to shorten the torture. The acting by the two female leads is so flat and lifeless that it might be the real crime in this series. Mother Hélène's face rarely moves much, and she spends a lot of time speaking in breathless, whispered tones. The viewer suspects that Hélène may in fact suffer from Resting B Face all the time, not just when her daughter stands accused of murder. And what police force would tolerate her messing about in an investigation like this? It feels totally unrealistic and frankly I wish they'd put her in jail too. (How do you say "entitled Karen" in French?) As for daughter Anya, she evokes no sympathy even at the outset. She made bad choices, and bad things happened to her. But that alone isn't enough to make her character or predicament intriguing to the viewer. Other characters in this slow-paced melodrama the just felt irrelevant and pointless through the entire story. Does it really matter in every episode if Lukas gets to finish his exams on time? Were various hospital scenes exploring the complications from little Farida's face transplant surgery necessary? Tangents anyone?? There were some twists and turns in here--and the ending certainly turns the tables on Anya. But by the time you get to the end, you just don't care anymore. You just want it finished.

Summary

Packed with some interesting ideas, this short Belgian police miniseries fails to shake off its listless tone for most of its run, due in part to unconvincing performances. She is also not helped by certain implausible aspects of the script.

Review

Anya, a student, is arrested in Paris on suspicion of a murder. Hélène, her mother, travels from Berlin to help her. From the beginning, we know that Anya (Eden Ducourante) is not telling the whole truth, and the series is a path towards solving the murder.

This Belgian series has some interesting ideas but does not translate them well. The Perfect Mother doesn't work well either as a thriller or a family drama. The script has some inconsistencies (1) (among others, the participation of the lawyer that Hélène contacts, certain alternatives to the investigation that both undertake; see spoiler zone below) and as a drama, everything looks tired and listless, due in part to the cold performances of Ducourant (yes, I understand that it hides things) and a Julie Gayet in the role of a mother whose perfect world is progressively falling apart. Nor does the subplot that takes place in Berlin with Anya's father and brother contribute much. On the other hand, the issue of illegal immigration appears, and the series manages to convey some effective messages in this regard.

Anya had elements to be an interesting character, especially because of her motivations and contradictions, which the series exposes, but there is something wrong with her staging and they do not generate much dramatic interest.

The miniseries is very short and could have been a movie. As usual, the last chapter picks up the aim and the rhythm and the series concludes with a successful ending.

This got more annoying as it went on. Far, far too much padding, notably with the Berlin angle. It needs a good edit down. The final episode progressed at a snail's pace and was utterly tedious. In the end I didn't really care about any of characters with the exception, perhaps, of the lawyer played by Tomer Sisley.

I ended up really enjoying this. The four episodes moved along well and thought the plot was pretty good. Definitely worth a watch. Though it switches between Paris and Berlin it is clear and not at all confusing. A good way to spend about four hours.