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.

Assayas remakes his 1996 cult classic into a long form cheeky essay on the machinations of the film world. Here he is able to delve deeper into the characters, most notably the ticking time bomb mind of the box-office American disillusioned star, Mira (Alicia Vikander having fun with her Tomb Raider popularity status). Mira travels to France to take on the role of Irma Vep in the modern remake of Les vampires. What seems to be an easy role, and a good excuse to be in France, ends up being more than what Mira has bargained for. There is enough mystic on the character only after episode 1, giving the viewer a reason to come back for further Mira encounters of the strange kind.

There is also the director, René Vidal, (Vincent Macaigne having a neurotic time of his life). The director had only a minor part in the film version, but in this series it seems that there will be plenty of time to slowly roast the hapless director with a breakdown of artistic proportions that only Assayas can pull off (and enjoy at the same time).

Yes, there are cliche characters, but as someone who works in the film industry, they do exist. With Assayas at the helm, it is going to be one super-duper ride into the disintegrating minds of the filmmakers as reality clashes with the surreal film world. So let's all sit back, and watch the madness unfold...

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..

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.