What Is the Story About?
The series follows an authoritative chancellor Elena Vernham of an authoritative European Nation that’s collapsing under her rule. Increasingly paranoid of power dripping out of her hands and unstable due to an attack to the palace from an allergen, she relies on a soldier Herbert Zubak as a confidant. Her increase in dependency on him and his increase in influence on Vernham, the country slowly starts disintegrating around her in ways she can’t control.
Performances?
The star of the show and probably the only reason why many of us would tune into The Regime is Kate Winslet. After her smashing run with Mare of the Easttown with HBO, The Regime’s pilot showcases the iconic actress in another starkly different avatar, where she chews every scene she is in.
As an entitled, delusional, crooked, unhinged and cruel politician Elena Vernham, the actress reminds us of so many authoritative politicians we have in the world today ruining it fragment by fragment. Her oratory skills ooze confidence and she comes across as a validation seeking absurd delusional brat otherwise.
Schoenaerts plays Zubak- the soldier turned confidant to Vernham very interestingly in the pilot episode. It would be interesting to see how his pyschotic and subdued violent nature would get out the worst out of Vernham eventually.
Analysis
HBO’s political satire miniseries ‘The Regime’ starring Kate Winslet in the lead is written by Will Tracy after Succession and The Menu. Stephen Frears and Jessica Hobbs direct the episodes respectively. This political satire follows a megalomaniac politician who resides in her own delusion and twisted sense of self-importance even when the country and her rule crumbles right under her nose.
The show begins with a look at a huge government building. We then see military trucks entering the building with its wide gates open. Corporal Herbert Zubak is in one of the trucks – considered as the most pivotal person aka the butcher of the Area 5 after cobalt miners were killed by a team led by him by opening fire.
Chancellor Elena Vernham, who is now surrounded by a palace covered in plastic, increasingly bothered about the allergic molds that would possibly surface in the palace has requested his presence. One look at the palace interiors, we could see the absurdity hitting the ceilings. Elena Vernham, the megalomaniac politician has worrying respiratory issues and she commands Herbert Zubak to be the holder of a hygrometer – to check the humidity of any room she is in.
Elena’s increasing sense of self-importance and deteriorating humanity comes through in every gesture and dialogue of hers. Especially when she says ‘there’s a good man in there who deserves love’ appreciating the soldier’s decisiveness during the Cobalt Mine protest. Herbert Zubak, who is a thorough pyschotic militant eventually gains the confidence of Elena and becomes her sole confidant.
Although the pilot episode only sets the premise and it’s main center of focus – Elena Vernham up and front, it undeniably piques interest only because of a terrific Kate Winslet performance. The other characters appear and scatter, making not much of a landing. The wafer thin writing also is elevated by the presence of the actress. Her British accent, slight mannerisms and desperate innate sense of being better than her father and idiosyncratic behaviour patterns work overtime to compensate for the lack of ‘satire’ in the pilot episode. One could only expect the show gets better from here.
In short, The Regime is no BBC’s Yes! Minister or Yes! Prime Minister in terms of nailing the satire in Politics, but it sure does have a performance that’s worth watching the series for. It also has moments of tongue-in-cheek humour and meta call-backs to some of the most notorious world leaders we have today. But how long can Kate Winslet pull the dull affair (if it continues to be one) is yet to be seen.
Music and Other Departments?
The Regime is written and executive produced by Will Tracy – known for Succession and The Menu. The writing doesn’t really make much of a mark in the pilot episode and gives other characters apart from Vernham little to do. The production design of the show is appreciable, while the lighting and camera work is reminiscent of literally every other British show.
Highlights?
Kate Winslet
Call-backs and meta references
Drawbacks?
Not much of a satire
Wafer thin writing
Did I Enjoy It?
Yes. Very selectively.
Will You Recommend It?
If you dig political satires and love to watch Kate Winslet do her thing, you may give this a try.
The Regime Series Review Review by Binged Bureau
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