The Idol Review Episode 1-2: Satire or Thriller? A Plot That Unfolds Little By Little | HBO Series
Cast: Lily-Rose Depp, The Weeknd, Suzanna Son, Jennie Ruby Jane, Moses Sumney, Hank Azaria
Director: Sam Levinson
Streaming Platform: HBO
Filmyhype.com Ratings: 3/5 (three stars) [yasr_overall_rating size=”large”]
After several delays and controversies behind the scenes, The Idol, the series created by Tesfaye (The Weeknd) and Sam Levinson (Euphoria), will premiere on HBO Max Spain on June 5. A premiere that, after its first screening at the Cannes Film Festival, has scandalized some critics for its scenes of graphic sex and free nudes, “even by HBO standards”, as they noted on Indiewire. According to the official synopsis, Lily-Rose Depp (daughter of Vanessa Paradís and Johny Depp) plays a rising pop star who begins a disturbing relationship with Tedros (Tesfaye), the enigmatic owner of a Los Angeles nightclub, who is, in turn, the leader of a modern sect. Serious face, then relaxed. A provocative gaze, then defenseless. First the smile and finally a tear. The Idol begins with an insistent close-up of Jocelyn, the pop star played by Lily-Rose Depp, intent on varying the spectrum of her emotions for a photo shoot. A long close-up that takes Jocelyn to the possible extremes of emotion, from one opposite to the other.
And opposites are the central fulcrum of the new HBO miniseries created by Sam Levinson (former author and director of Euphoria) and Abel Tesfaye, known in the music world as The Weeknd. Extreme opposites such as those that represent the world of pop music, are simple and difficult at the same time. Writing The Idol review is simple and difficult. Simple because the series directed by Sam Levinson seems to want to tell a story that is already known and not particularly original. Difficult, because the two episodes previewed out of competition at the Cannes Film Festival 2023 (the series will arrive in Italy from June 5 on Sky and NOW) are too few to be able to understand the developments and have clearer ideas about the heart of the story. But if we have to speak from the heart, then get ready right away for a series that does not accept compromises, which seeks a conflict between two extremes (the patina of the pop world and the inner drama), and which in this swinging chaos makes a real beat. This can alienate the viewer who is less willing to enter Jocelyn’s world, but which – once inside – bewitches in all its nuances.
The Idol Review Episode 1-2: The Story Plot
So, let’s start with the plot of these first two episodes of The Idol. Jocelyn (Lily-Rose Depp) is a pop star ready to make her big comeback after having passed a difficult year: following the death of her mother and a sort of nervous breakdown, the very young star finally has a new single to release and a new tour to start. The pressure is very high and her entire entourage – from her best friend Leia (Rachel Sennott) who acts as her personal assistant to the affectionate and paternal manager Chaim (Hank Azaria), passing through the cynical record company executive (Jane Adams) – is in tension, ready to intervene at the first crisis.
As it happens, just on the eve of the shooting of the new music video and an important interview with Vanity Fair, there is a leak on the Internet of a scabrous photo concerning Jocelyn: however, the girl does not let herself be discouraged but also decides to distract herself by going to a new club recommended to her by one of her dancers. Here she meets Tedros (The Weeknd), the mysterious owner of the club, who conquers her and slowly begins to insert herself more and more into her private life, also giving her professional advice, insinuating her doubts about the new song, about the direction her career is taking and even on the staff who have been following her for some time.
The Idol Review Episode 1-2 and Analysis
Viewers already familiar with Sam Levinson’s other HBO hit series, Euphoria, will find more than a few points of contact. In the staging, above all, with that softness typical of the film which makes the rooms warmer and the lights whiter and brighter. The dialogues and situations always border on the grotesque and exaggerated, to carry forward a precise meaning of the narration. The way Levinson loves to stage bodies, fucking us on camera. As in Euphoria, The Idol also has a real eye for bodies (especially female ones, but not only) and flesh. Bodies that show themselves explicitly serve to present the characters and define their character. Who is so undressed that they first get excited and then anesthetize? But also, the flesh that bleeds, that sweats, that is touched, that gets wet. The Idol, also thanks to the use of sound, insists heavily on the sound of the skin, quickly turning into praise of touch.
To do this, the body always in plain sight of Lily-Rose Depp, who since the first scenes defines herself as free to be able to show herself as much as she wants and desires, is the compass needle of the whole narrative. A risky choice that always remains one step away from the most gratuitous voyeurism, but never crosses the limit, even though the story also, and above all passes through eroticism, desire, and sex. From tale of bodies to carnal tale. And if the bodies define the characters, we can only be struck by the interpretation of Lily-Rose Depp, who gives a multifaceted Jocelyn, in crisis with her own identity and, consequently, ça va sans dire, moody. As we said: The Idol thrives on opposite extremes, and so the protagonist of the story is strong and weak, free and oppressed, aware and in crisis.
As well as Abel Tesfaye who, although he is the least convincing actor at the moment, perfectly conveys the idea of an elusive and Mephistophelean character. With a package that seems to have everything in the right place, however, there are some doubts about the miniseries. As mentioned at the beginning, seeing two episodes of The Idol (out of six planned) does not allow us to make a definitive judgment on the work. In just under two hours, one gets the impression that the real story has yet to start and that everything seen so far is just a long introduction to the central themes of the series. Only by continuing with the story will we be able to find out if Levinson and Tesfaye have something more particular and memorable in-store or if, on balance, we are witnessing an “adult” version of a story of the rise and fall of a star as we already have often seen.
However, there remains an important aspect that should not be underestimated: setting this story in the world of contemporary pop music proves to be a particularly winning card that could give an extra voice to the opera. Like Jocelyn’s voice, she has the strength to make herself heard and detach from that of her entourage, creating something musically contemporary, alienating but effective, which strikes with the force of an orgasm. So, let’s come to the much talked about sex scenes: there are, there is no doubt, just as there are nudes both of the beautiful protagonist and her female supporting actors.
And if it’s true that the camera lingers a lot on the beautiful female bodies and on the eroticism and sensuality that they unquestionably emanate, there doesn’t seem to be, at least in the first two episodes, that real transgression that had been talked about so much. Some speeches and themes will surely be considered gory by many, but, as in the case of the leaked photos in the first episode, the tone is always ironic and satirical, and never really dramatic as, for example, happened in Euphoria. Just as, for the moment, there is almost no trace of drugs or other more properly tragic themes. Instead, there is a sexy and glamorous pop star with a tormented private life as we have seen and known many in recent decades (Britney Spears, Miley Cyrus even Madonna), and the promise of something more. Whether something more – whether it’s the real scandal or in any case, a much deeper and more scathing reflection on the entertainment industry – will come or not, we’ll find out only later.
The Idol Review Episode 1-2: The Last Words
The first two episodes of The Idol confirm Sam Levinson’s aesthetics and poetics, delivering an absolutely central and undoubtedly talented Lily-Rose Depp. Two episodes are few to understand if the story will be able to give surprises, but at the moment we appreciate the aesthetics and the attention towards the flesh and the body. An erotic and provocative vision. The first two episodes of The Idol not only the scandal that in some way had been promised/announced to us, but something halfway satire and thriller: the packaging is sparkling and sexy as it was logical to expect, thanks also to beautiful protagonists and particularly at ease with the topic, but after the first two episodes of viewing, the legitimate doubt arises that there may not be much more. We hope to be proved wrong.
