Entertainment NOW

Entertainment Now | June 4 - 10, 2022 By Dana Simpson TV Media W hether you subscribe to the notion, fa- mously attributed to famed Irish wit and writer Oscar Wilde, that "life imi- tates art far more than art imi- tates life," there is no denying that HBO's newest series toes the line between the two. "Irma Vep," premiering Mon- day, June 6, on the specialty net- work and its streaming service, HBO Max, follows Mira (Academy Award winner Alicia Vikander, "Tomb Raider," 2018), a young American actress who travels to Paris to star as Irma Vep in a re - make of the classic silent film "Les vampires." Created by French filmmaker Olivier Assayas ("Clouds of Sils Maria," 2014) and based on his own film of the same name from 1996, "Irma Vep" is a unique exploration of the boundaries between fact and fiction. Those new to the intricate lega- cy of the "Irma Vep" story should know, firstly, that "Les vampires" is a real-life silent film series. First released as a serial between 1915 and 1916, the Louis Feuillade ("Fantômas," 1913-14) films span 10 episodes (for a total of roughly seven hours) and tells the story of a journalist and his friend who are investigating a string of crimes at- tributed to an underground crimi- nal organization called the Vam- pires. What follows is a string of suspicious deaths, potentially su- pernatural events, double-crosses and secret codes, all set against a haunting nouveau-gothique backdrop and involving a mysteri- ous Vampire named Irma Vep. Subsequently, the 1996 film "Irma Vep" follows Hong Kong actress Maggie Cheung ("Hero," 2002), playing herself, in the lead- ing female role of "Les vampires." Organized as a sort of film within a film, "Irma Vep" sees Cheung grow increasingly uncomfortable (or perhaps too comfortable, de- pending on which lens she is viewed through) with the direc- tor's unique vision of the Feuillade remake. Over the course of the film, Cheung begins to slip into her character more and more seam- lessly, each time losing herself a bit more to Irma. As reality gives way to fiction throughout the film-making process, it becomes less and less clear where Cheung ends and Irma Vep begins. Follow- ing suit, the viewer also finds themselves wondering where "Irma Vep" ends and "Les vam- pires" begins. If all of this is a bit confusing, rest assured you are not the only one who thinks so. One essayist, Fabrice Zagury, who focuses largely on surrealism and classic film, stated in an essay on "Les vampires" that "Feuillade's narra- tive seldom originates from prin- ciples of cause and effect. ... Rath- er it unwinds following labyrin- thine and spiral-shaped paths." In its own way, the "Irma Vep" film follows suit, paying homage to Feuillade's film serial while commenting on the state of French cinema as a whole. All this to say: HBO's new series has its work cut out for it. In keeping with the movie's original premise and themes, HBO describes "Irma Vep" as a limited series that "reveals to us the un- certain ground that lies at the bor- der of fiction and reality, artifice and authenticity, art and life" while the protagonist "struggles as the distinctions between her- self and the character she plays begin to blur and merge." The series was ordered by HBO mid-pandemic, in December 2020, and is co-produced by Little Lamb Films ("Euphoria") and A24, the entertainment company behind such films as "Midsom- mar" (2019), "The Lighthouse" (2019), "X" (2022), "Minari" (2020) and the Academy Award Best Picture-winning film "Moon- light" (2016). And in an extra ex- citing bit of news released by France's Centre National du Ciné- ma, the original series score is provided by none other than Thomas Bangalter, one-half of the recently disbanded Parisian elec- tronic music duo Daft Punk. An official trailer for the series has yet to be released as of writ- ing — presumably to safeguard the mystery of the experience — but casting information counts Byron Bowers ("No Sudden Move," 2021), Tom Sturridge ("On the Road," 2012), Vincent Macaigne ("The Innocents," 2016), Adria Arjona ("True Detec- tive"), Carrie Brownstein ("Car- ol," 2015), Lars Eidinger ("Per- sonal Shopper," 2016), Vincent Lacoste ("Amanda," 2018), Jerrod Carmichael ("The Carmichael Show"), Fala Chen ("Shang Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings," 2021), Hippolyte Girardot ("The French Dispatch," 2021) and rela- tive newcomer Devon Ross ("The Mermaid's Daughter," 2011) among Vikander's co-stars. And just to add that much more star power and drive to the series, The New Yorker announced in a November 2021 profile about Kristen Stewart that the "Spen- cer" (2021) star would also make an appearance in Assayas' up- coming series, saying, "Stewart has a small part in the series." Of course, fans of Assayas will re- member Stewart from her 2014 role as Valentine in "Clouds of Sils Maria" and her haunting role as Maureen in 2016's eerie atmo- spheric thriller "Personal Shop- per." Filmed in Paris and first screened as an Official Selection at the 2022 Cannes Film Festival on May 17 (in similar fashion to its 1996 predecessor), the eight- episode limited series is sure to be the perfect addition to the As- sayas catalogue — not to men- tion, the HBO/HBO Max lineup. Whether you tune in for the stars, the director or the smooth and sultry Parisian backdrop, chances are you'll stay for the deep suspense and intrigue. Don't miss the premiere of As- sayas' newest iteration of "Irma Vep," premiering Monday, June 6, on HBO and HBO Max. Alicia Vikander in "Irma Vep" Art imitates life: Realities merge in HBO's 'Irma Vep' 2 | Cover story A/Grindstone Charlie's B/Norris Insurance 1 x 4" Moore's Home Health 5 x 2"

• Cover