Brought to you by some of the team behind Succession is The Regime, HBO’s latest uber-ambitious prestige satire. Elevated by a never-better Kate Winslet and a solid supporting cast, the miniseries is quite uneven, but when all of its elements work together in harmony, it’s very entertaining and provocative.
The Regime follows the authoritarian chancellor of an unnamed European country as her control over her people begins to fall apart behind the closed doors of her deteriorating palace. For fans of British political satire, this is filled with intriguing ideas, but the short episode count creates erratic pacing and tone.
The first episode of the series, directed by the legendary Stephen Frears, has a dry humor about it — very reminiscent of the British stylings of Armando Iannucci. In fact, the stylings of the first half of the show make it almost surprising that the satirist himself wasn’t involved in this project in any capacity, as it often feels like it mimics his style.
The Regime starts well but fizzles out
However, after Frears hands directorial duties off to Jessica Hobbs, it starts to take a much more serious tone. The real-world inspirations of the characters that had only been strongly insinuated become abundantly clear, and the show stops ridiculing its characters, instead taking a more “doom and gloom” approach. It turns from absurdity to disgust and suffers in the process.
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There is something somewhat off-putting about how The Regime asks us to empathize with these characters despite their obvious real-life parallelisms. With something like Succession — on which creator Will Tracy built much of his resume — the characters are unequivocally awful, but at least they aren’t committing war crimes. These characters don’t even work on a “love to hate” level because Tracy tries, and mostly fails, to make them “nuanced.”
That being said, the cast is absolutely incredible and manages to make the most out of their roles, unevenly written as they may be. Kate Winslet gives the performance of a lifetime, capturing the delicate balance of menace, confidence, and naivete in this satirical portrait of world leaders. Matthias Schoenaerts is nearly as impressive, giving a turn that is far more sensitive than the role is written.
Outside of the two leads, there are a few other recognizable faces, but they feel largely underused. Hugh Grant has a guest role and gets some very impactful scenes in one episode, proving yet again that he is a much better actor than he gets credit for. On the opposite end of the spectrum, Andrea Riseborough and Martha Plimpton make virtually no impact at all.
The technical side of The Regime is quite strong thanks to the talented crew assembled behind the scenes, from the two directors to the below-the-line artisans. The score, by Alex Heffes and the Oscar-winning Alexandre Desplat, gives the series a much-needed feeling of buoyancy, making it much more palatable of a watch despite the occasionally bleak messaging.
The Regime has the juice to be an incredible modern satire, and for about two episodes, it absolutely is. However, as is too often the case with farces, creator Will Tracy ends up biting off more than he can chew in the time allotted by a six-episode limited series. Still, HBO’s latest satire is worth watching if only for the tremendous performances from its talented cast.
The Regime debuts on HBO on March 3 at 9pm ET/PT, with new episodes airing subsequent Sundays. All six episodes reviewed.
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Rating: 7/10
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