User Reviews

First, what I noticed and what was not accurate - it is how Juliette Binoche had depicted #5 application. These perfumes were issued in the form of perfume, which is applied directly on the skin by touching pulse points, not spraying from the bottle. Second, what was not highlighted at all, is the diminished role of Madame Gres. And instead of showing real strong woman of these dark hours, who was inspirer of the resistance, the TV series makers trying to bleach the Chanel brand, not mentioning "Coco" involvement into true spying for nazis. But now Madame Gres is abandoned, but Chanel name reigns everywhere. "Good" teaching the new generations. Lie, do bad things, but next invest some bloody money into carlsons - and you are the winner.

This is still a weird and quasi-frustrating experience. The thesis - that couture fashion is somehow crucially important in the midst of the chaos and horror of WWII - is not being supported by the drama. We don't see people being dazzled by the fashions, seeing their mood improve, their lives somehow change. We're just being told, over and over. Somebody needs to go back to Screenwriting 101: Show, Don't Tell.

But this episode is better than previous ones. Ben Mendelsohn's performance is very good and Dior is not an odious idiot, like Chanel, who is the most stupidly privileged oblivious moron I've seen on a series in some time.

I think I know what feels off-kilter about her. Her character type is usually reserved for comedy, so we can mock her idiocy. It's weird seeing it played straight here, as though we're supposed to regard her as noble and decent or even tolerable.

But it is gratifying to see her hounded out of Paris, even if it's galling knowing that her privilege insulated her from punishment reserved only for those who weren't personal friends with Winston Churchill. Maybe this series is being written by people just as oblivious as Chanel.