Looking back at Nazi Paris

Sheetal

Wars don’t differentiate between the rich and the poor, the powerful and the downtrodden. But there’s the aftermath of it all, equally taxing! On similar lines is the series, The New Look, wherein creator Todd A Kessler delivers a story with the backdrop of World War II that weaves together fashion and politics.

Series: The New Look  

Directors: Helen Shaver, Julia Ducournau, Todd A. Kessler and Jeremy Podeswa

Cast: Ben Mendelsohn, Juliette Binoche, Maisie Williams, John Malkovich, Claes Bang, Zabou Breitman and Thure Lindhardt

Rating: ***

Set in the world’s fashion capital, Paris, occupied by Nazis for four years (1940-44), it begins by throwing names like Dior, Chanel and Balmain that we know today as luxury fashion brands. But it goes beyond their individual stories to how these fashion designers (Christian Dior, Coco Chanel and Pierre Balmain) survived and thrived during war. And they come out victorious, however hurt. Their ability to create and dream overpowers everything else. As much as this intertwined politics and fashion leaves you surprised, it also makes you repel the dreadful times wherein both choosing sides and staying neutral were difficult tasks to accomplish.

Although Coco Chanel is passed off as ambitious, diplomatic and business-minded woman, yet her portrayal by Juliette Binoche makes her no less than the lead of the series. The creator’s focus is of course on Christian Dior and how and why Dior became a revered name in the world of fashion just after the liberation of France from Nazi occupation. And yet Juliette’s character Coco has more layers to shine through the series. And, oh boy, did she look phenomenal!

Actor Ben Mendelsohn as Christian Dior is a soft man who doesn’t know how to argue, fight but only knows how to make dresses that own the women wearing it. In fact, the title The New Look is about couturier Dior’s first ever collection by the same name launched in 1947. Dior’s character commands respect even though he speaks less throughout the series. Another highlight of the series is Maisie Williams; yes, you heard it right! The Game of Thrones’ Arya Stark sure knows how to be a rebel. And she does it by portraying the role of Catharine Dior, Christian’s beloved sister, who is part of the Resistance Army of France and gets caught by the Nazis to be transported to concentration camp. While Maisie’s performance rings a bell for it is similar to her GOT character, but she sure has what it takes to share screen space with seasoned actors. Dior’s collection, ‘New Look’, also deeply rooted in his love for his sister Catherine, thus stood for the ultra-femininity he witnessed in women during wars.

John Malkovich as Lucien Lelong leaves an impression. He is far more than an employer and has his workers’ back in tough times. The series shows two extreme personalities, Dior and Chanel, the naïve and the cunning (who went on to become each other’s rivals). It’s kind men like Lelong who were able to strike the middle path, put food on the table for his workers while he continued designing ball gowns for Nazi women.

The New Look beautifully and honestly explains that cruelty was served at both the sides. While Nazis were guilty of killing the innocent and torturing prisoners at concentration camps, FFI (French Forces of the Interior) did no less in rounding up collaborators without proofs and publically shaming people, especially women for ‘horizontal collaboration’ (sleeping with the enemy — Nazis). The parallel drawn between Catherine Dior as a prisoner at Nazi concentration camp and a French actress Arletty (Joséphine de La Baume), a victim of the wild purge after the liberation by FFI, is uncanny. Both the women were humiliated and their long brunette hair were cut.

Call it a period series or a biographical drama, it paints only Dior in positive light, but it’s still a binge-worthy tale of the horrors that were unleashed in Paris. So far, five of the 10 episodes are out and as they release weekly on AppleTV. 

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