Les Revenants

For my money, this is beautifully produced, brilliantly cast and its pace is both challenging and exciting. Breaking Bad, Mad Men, (and even though I've never seen an episode, I presume Lost) have introduced us to the idea that TV series can take time to develop intricate and dense story arcs.

The Returned is clearly doing the same, but it is pushing us viewers even further by withholding almost everything. It's piling up the questions and then leaving us at a pretty excruciating tipping point. At the same time, it is redefining the idea of being 'episodic' by using each instalment to thicken the plot rather than resolve it.

It's hard to not have a reaction to this strategy. We all want answers, goddamit! Even more so than The Fall, The Returned drops us cold right as the accumulation of questions seems to have reached its peak.

I love that this approach has created so many theories and ideas about the 'answers' and what comes next. I think it's exciting to see that kind of engagement rather than the usual "Did you see the last episode? A bomb went off and everyone died".

It's really hard to recalibrate our expectations, but this new way of telling an extended story is clearly something we're going to have to adjust to! In only hope that ultimately, when The Returned does conclude it manages to find an end point that is less frustrating than the 'pause' points. I can forgive being strung along, but I'll be furious if I'm still left to turn to theories on IMDb when the final series ends.

Slow in a good way, of course, because it's all about suspense. People start coming back from the dead - some are better remembered than others, some are more aware of what's going on, some just want to start again. This makes the narrative layered, the characters' stories only slowly become clear, the whole situation gradually starts to make sense. There's no hurry, plenty of atmosphere, and a lot is left to the imagination (or at least not explained properly, which I suppose amounts to the same). Family drama overlaps with the fantasy element, so one minute it's really sad and moving, the next weird or horrifying, and all wrapped up in a melancholy soundtrack and lovely mountain scenery. Unsettling, sometimes baffling, but strangely addictive viewing.

Much credit is deserved here, to find such a fresh field amongst the hordes of undead programming assaulting our screens just now is a real achievement.

The setting is also a nice change adding bags of atmosphere. The acting is excellent with almost all the players showing just the right level of reluctance to accept the mind breaking reality of what is happening around them. The characters are diverse enough to give a real sense of the effect the events are having on the community and not just the individuals.

It's hard to criticise a show that makes such an effort to do things differently, and I wouldn't dream of being harsh to this one. The plot is that of a teasingly slowly unravelling mystery, and I would say this can naturally be just a little frustrating at times. One or two scenes are perhaps a little tough to accept as the genuine reaction of the character.

Little (almost petty) criticisms aside, I really enjoyed this show. It always left me eager for the next episode and I recommend it heartily to anyone looking for a smart new approach to an increasingly tired category.

Les Revenants is a simply stunning production with its evocative setting and equally musical score. With well drawn characters and an intriguing premise which offers a thrilling obtuse take on the zombie genre each episode makes for wonderful, entrancing viewing. Its resonance reflects David Lynch's TV tour de force, Twin Peaks (itself about to get a 21st century make-over by Lynch). The only disappointing thing is how long it is taking for the second season of Les Revenants to be broadcast. If the second season replicates the very high production standard of the first, Les Revenants is destined to mark its place in television history as one of the greatest shows of all time.

Great series. I'm watching the English-language version of it now with French subtitles and it's great. I can't remember when I watched something that passionately last, waiting for each Sunday installment on British TV. The beauty of it is, it's very realistic and human, spooky in a very believable way. How would you feel if your child or lover came back from the dead and you had to deal with all the problems of hiding them from all the friends and neighbors who were present at their funeral AND have to avoid the truth as the poor souls apparently don't realize they've been dead for years or decades!

I did knock off one point for the dialogue. I'm just not a big lover of "suspenseful" evasiveness when people just don't tell each other things because if they do, the mystery will end after just one episode! Sometimes I was on the verge of hurling something at the TV, so annoyed I was with the characters' constant ambiguities. I don't think I've heard one line of plain honest information in the whole film, it's all understatements, or alternatively something happens just when someone was about to say something important. To me, it's not suspense, it's sloppy manipulative dialogue. So one point off for that.

Otherwise, the actors are very good, the story is well-developed and the atmosphere is beautifully spooky. If realistic horror is your thing, this is definitely a film to watch.