STORY
During the final phase of the great war, when the French wait for the American troops to defeat the Nazis, a blind French girl waits for her father to return from his mission.
INTRODUCTION
‘All The Light We Cannot See‘ is a Netflix limited series consisting of four episodes. The series is based on Anthony Doerr‘s Pulitzer Prize-winning novel of the same name. The story is set in a time when the Nazis invaded France and the only optimism that was left against those evils were the French resistance.
The show is centered around two teenagers. One is this blind French girl Marie-Laure LeBlanc who along with her father Daniel and her great-uncle Etienne are part of that resistance.
The other teenager is a German boy Werner Pfennig. An orphan who has an exceptional skill for repairing radios and helps him admit in a military school that turns him into a Nazi soldier.
IMPRESSIONS
The reason for watching this show are many. One reason is that this teleplay is developed by Steven Knight, the creator of Peaky Blinders. The whole series is directed by Shawn Levy, one of the makers of ‘Stranger Things‘. And personally the world war themed projects have been very compelling for my consideration. Plus Mark Ruffalo and Hugh Laurie are in the supporting roles, and they are very choosy in their careers.
THE NEWCOMER
And then this beautiful girl who plays the blind French girl was the light of the show that we all can see. The bts about this actress Aria Mia Loberti is that she was one of the thousands who had auditioned for this role and she was selected in the first try. The most interesting point about Aria playing a blind French girl is that she in real life has a rare genetic condition called ‘Achromatopsia‘ that makes her legally blind.
Although the performance of a blind by a blind can be a piece of cake but that is certainly not the case. If acting was so simple and easy, would have never been considered to be taught or act as a profession. Not only did she fit in the character but the sentimental and psychological aspects in the anatomy of the character were sublime. Aria is an extraordinary addition in this line of work and I would like to see her acting in future projects if there are.
Those of you who are Bollywood buff like me, can you agree with me that Aria Mia Loberti has an uncanny resemblance with actress Mithila Palkar?
THE HARDEST REMINDER
‘All The Light We Cannot See’ is a fictional tale of relations that are tested with time fighting against the injustice and struggling to create a society of resistance that stands for their land against the invaders. That reminds me of something very similar to what is exactly happening in Gaza. I am not dragging the matter but this show has been released at the most perfect time to make all the Netflixters assume how and why the resistance becomes necessary.
When you are stripped of every known human right and are targeted to be beaten, bombed, and killed for demanding what is your’s, a series like ‘All The Light We Cannot See’ helps you to realize and come out of denial. So this series, with all its loyalty with the book’s plot line, is a blessing to correct your observation about a situation.
RELATIONSHIP DETAILING
I liked the detailing of Marie’s relation with her father and then great-uncle that presses on the finity of the time that is passing without alarming them when their world is going to be collapsed. It is very natural depiction about how Marie and Etienne find common grounds, and Etienne’s insecurity melts by her encouragement. It was so touching when father Daniel tells the Nazi that his daughter’s blindness is not a misfortune but a blessing.
Another reason why I rate Marie’s character highly is because of the character detailing about her intelligence that naturally comes from blindness. Her reading the book, sense of touching, and listening the objects were well covered.
The sibling-hood of Werner and his sister were also carefully written with so much emotions involved. It was so touching when she listens to her brother on the radio.
MINUSES
Without a doubt, the series is impressive overall. But I have some issues to address about the show that I didn’t find it right at all.
The one is that I sense that four episodes were not enough to wrap up the story. Only the readers of that novel can better judge my opinion. I haven’t read the novel but I found out that the novel has over 500 pages. So I reckon four episodes certainly are ignoring a lot of details from the book. And it looks very clear when you are in the middle of the third episode until the end of the show. The development in the continuity looks dragged. Steven Knight must have offered at least 6 episodes if not 8.
The other issue is the most annoying one. The entertainment industry has become a global village more than ever. With so much diversity and cultural exchange involved, it is time to embrace that the character of a particular nationality should speak their language to maintain commonsense and realism. Because it was bizarre to see all the non-American/non-British characters were speaking English. Marie, Daniel, and Etienne are a French family and to my utter shock, they neither sound French nor they pronounce the English vocabulary in French. It is completely okay if a non-French plays a French, this is where the performance is tested. But why are you not acting in French?
CLOSING REMARKS
Besides, the technical aspects are likeable. I must praise such compelling production design that made us love this place called Saint-Malo. Editing the screenplay becomes more challenging when the project is presented in a nonlinear narrative. And with countless reminders of the past blended with the present, I say it was superb effort in editing. The ending part was pretty predictable and quite typical.
‘All The Light We Cannot See’ is a massive win for Aria Mia Loberti and an unintentional political message that holds distinction. The show looks visually attractive that covers the unwanted mediocrity. With stereotypical portrayal of Nazis and not much favor done by the writing, I feel the show, despite being in the faithful hands, could have been executed much better.
RATING 6/10
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Sami Naik | Film Critic 