A Report On Holiday Small-Screen Viewing: “Emily In Paris”
I know, I know, I am clearly shallow – but I liked it!
For starters, the French settings (especially in this time of Covid when travel is largely on hold) are ooh-la-la, in the most pristine of tourism-poster ways, and as for the clothes— Did I say ooh-la-la already? Well, I’m saying it again!
While I am not a fashionista at all, I can appreciate the art, so thoroughly enjoyed the ensembles Emily and other cast members got to wear. Another scene, another ensemble – but I am not saying that like it’s a bad thing.
OK, a great many of the characters are clichéd – but they strut their clichés with panache. Plus the show is lighthearted and funny, which is what you (I!) want in a comedy. And although I understand it’s been described as “ridiculous”, I felt that was pretty much the point…
An aspect of the show I felt was a strength was the women’s friendship between Emily, Mindy, and Camille, along with the brief appearance of Mindy’s friend Li. (There is a wrinkle in the friendship angle, but no spoilers…)
The other strength of the show, one that saved it from being mere eye-candy floss of the sort that swiftly cloys, is the way in which it canvasses—albeit within the lighthearted format—more serious subject matter. Starting with Emily’s assumption that it’s OK to come to Paris to live and work and not speak French, and carrying on with #Me,Too and the “Sexy or Sexist” conversation, along with Mindy’s need to move on from a public failure.
Emily is rom-com so of course (rolls eyes) there is a love triangle. Sometimes who you fall for can be complicated, but I am reserving judgment on how the show handles the triangle going forward. Not least because it appears to intersect several of the strengths that made Emily work for me, such as the women’s friendships and #Me,Too aspects.
On balance, though, if you’re looking for something light, funny, and with fashion pizazz, you may well enjoy Emily In Paris.