The Idol

[The Narrator Returns]

A pretty damning Rolling Stone story on the production, with a lot of crew members with a lot of bad things to say about Sam Levinson and his organizational skills.

[therewillbeblus]

It's hard to know what to make of that - mentions that people have no idea what it'll look like as a finished product with all these scrapped plans and reshoots, but then also feeling pretty certain that it's becoming the very thing it's satirizing based on some risqué changes in isolated form sans context; and some initially more neutral comments on Euphoria turn quickly to digging on it to see it as a vapid piece of work that this promised not to be, or something?... So I have no idea what to expect, and it seems like these people don't either. It doesn't surprise me that Levinson would falter organizationally if torn between Tesfaye's and HBO's changing demands and that these ongoing changes would frustrate people working on the production, especially given the whiplash of upending expectations from a more streamlined collaborative environment they got with Seimetz to whatever mess came out of egos clashing here. It doesn't sound like Levinson's ego is to blame so much as people taking issue with not only his active artistic choices but assumptions about him from his history of aesthetic and content enhancement, and aiming their frustrations at him as a scapegoat, which is nothing new for people who follow Euphoria on social media. Seems like there's no new 'information' here- we all expected this. Levinson cast into the director seat, will take the thrown tomatoes, his main starlet loves him and sees him as super collaborative and the crew doesn't, though I can't imagine what circumstances were within his power to 'right' those wrongs for everyone to be happy on a massive, delayed, toxic production. Perhaps he is to blame in part, but it would be naive to ignore all the chaotic factors at play. Either way, it's sad for the crew who had to deal with all this madness, and I hope Levinson's future projects are cleaner.

[Never Cursed]

A pretty damning Rolling Stone story on the production, with a lot of crew members with a lot of bad things to say about Sam Levinson and his organizational skills.

Long thing, no spoilers in here for anythingShow

TWBB is absolutely correct to note that there's a real minimum of new information here (along with everything else he said), but I am really irritated by the way that a lot of the information in this story is framed. I have no problem believing that the production of the show was chaotic and atrociously organized, that Amy Seimetz's exit was unfortunate and probably neither her choice nor the choice of most people involved in the show, or that any number of people on the show, up to and including Tesfaye and Levinson, were difficult to work with. But the statements of fact offered in the article are depicted with maximal negative attention to Levinson in a manner that I think is extremely unfair given the accounts of the production that are offered.

We have a description of an original script that diverges wildly from paragraph to paragraph. At one point it is a nuanced analysis of the effects of fame and sexualization that Levinson hijacks (despite being a co-writer of this "original version") and bastardizes into an example of the thing it is satirizing; at another point it is such an unfinished mess that not even Seimetz knows what she is shooting on a given day to the point that she has to ask her assistant to help her rewrite things. At one point HBO is blamed for stacking the deck against her and not allowing her the resources she needs, at another they give her an extra $20 million to finish the show. (And of course the idea that Seimetz herself could have contributed to the problems of the show's chaotic production in any way is excluded from the outset - the narrative that intrinsically defends her also strips her of the agency to have fucked up, even a little bit, on this production. I obviously don't think Seimetz did anything wrong, but I think this extremely defensive tone is indicative of a certain reductive attitude towards what she could have brought to the show). At one point it is Levinson's vision that overrides Seimetz's and he is the force kicking her out, at another it is Tesfaye and his misogyny that forces her out, at yet another point Seimetz's tight schedule is brought up as though that is the limiting factor, and at another point still Tesfaye and Levinson basically conspire to get rid of her, which Levinson wants to do very badly despite also not being that involved with the show and being absolutely exhausted from nine months of shooting Euphoria. (It still makes no sense to me that co-writer and producer Levinson would be able to compel HBO to scrap up to $75 million of shot material by himself; my suspicion is that lead actor and financier Tesfaye threatened to quit, after which HBO fired Seimetz and installed Levinson to make sure the show got finished).

And then, of course, there is all the material about Levinson's supposed edgelord/sexual proclivities making their way into the show, with no indication of how the original version(s) differed in content or extremity thereof. The egg anecdote is, I think, an excellent example of how harshly Levinson is judged for an overall artificially constructed "vibe" he effects on people rather than what he actually says, thinks, or does. If written as described in the article, the idea is extreme, perhaps to the point of pushing or breaking through good taste. It is also:

1. In my eyes, a direct homage to a quite famous erotic movie (a fact which has not escaped many commentators on social media) and thus hardly his own idea (particularly given how much he likes these types of visual quotations)
2. Hardly a rupture from the sexual content of other erotic thrillers or horror movies or older movies with sexual content in general, some of which themselves are quite extreme or even misogynistic, but most of which do not inspire this particular type of vague vitriol
3. absurd to make a moral condemnation of an artist as an artist (or even really as a person, save, like, open racism or whatever) for an unused idea they had and jettisoned. The scene was never shot and Levinson agreed not to use it, apparently without complaint. No one even says they were offended or that their boundaries were violated. Particularly in a collaborative medium, and particularly for a director who is so beloved by his frequent collaborators (with everyone from his actors to his usual cinematographer to his usual gaffer and stunt coordinator, who you can just follow on Instagram, singing his praises whenever they get a chance), why on earth would Levinson not be allowed to propose something risky and disturbing? (Again, is it not more important to criticize elements of an artistic project THAT ACTUALLY EXIST ALREADY as opposed to those that will never exist?)

This is the entire controversy in a microcosm. A thinly-sketched narrative of supposed wrongdoing or harm, sourced anonymously and self-contradictorily from random burnt crewmembers is projected onto the presupposed dislike of this guy as an artist to create the emotional impression of him doing some nebulous and really horrible act. Is he a misogynist that likes seeing women get flayed, a control freak-asshole-auteur, a nepo-baby that leverages his executive connections for power, a shitty boss, a shitty artist? Why not all of the above?! Commentators on social media all agree that he has done some of these things but disagree as to what degree he is a piece of garbage. The article thus functions better as a Rorschach test for elements of potentially toxic creative energy that irritate the reader than an account of anything that actually went wrong with this guy or on this show. It is not just uninformative, it is anti-informative; it actively obfuscates fact for a socially constructed feeling that takes the place of a fact. I think it's totally acceptable to develop this sense for a person or even an artist on your own or through a network of people that you know well. But it's another thing entirely to disseminate it through journalism and networks of people engaging parasocially with the artist and each other; the latter act is an excellent way to reduce this story to a maximally-felt feeling while ignoring all the actual political and artistic aspects of it that everyone who is engaging with it claims to care about.

[therewillbeblus]

I imagine that the further away Levinson gets from Assassination Nation, the more validated he feels in his vision as that film’s zeitgeist consciousness has become directed and amplified towards him as an artist (it’s worth noting that none of this was changed against him before that film, which was pre-Euphoria). Pretty depressingly reflexive irony, eerily predicted by a film about depressing reflexive irony

[Never Cursed]

Will premiere out of competition at Cannes

[therewillbeblus]

Release date is set for June 4, plus a new trailer

[Never Cursed]

Most of the critics who saw the first two episodes at Cannes appear to have hated it in the most facile and ridiculous ways possible, equating the presence of nudity and sexual content with Levinson's approval and even assuming that the content of the show is coded proof that he is a predator. One of the most astonishing excerpts of the reviews is currently making the rounds on Twitter... and meeting with overwhelming approval from most who see it:

Spoiled for lengthShow

I don't mind people loving or hating Levinson's work, but I have no clue what it is about the guy that makes it impossible for trained reviewers of film and television to respond fairly to them. I also saw someone bemoan how, in the right hands, this show "could have been the next Showgirls," seemingly completely unaware that a hostile critical response to sexual content marked the releases of every erotic thriller that critics love/jerk off to now, including that one

[therewillbeblus]

Didn't certain cultures used to put artists on trial for making provocative art using a moral model of assumptions on their humanity way back in the day? Progressive

[therewillbeblus]

Not really sure what to make of this yet after just one episode, but I'm cautiously optimistic it'll be at least half-enjoyable when all is said and done. The first part of the near-evenly bifurcated pilot was excellent, and something I never would've assumed Levinson helmed without foreknowledge. It plays out more like an Altman-esque satire, with an array of terrific character actors engaging in playfully bold interplay. Not 'bold' because the topics are sensitive in today's climate, which they are, or the provocations novel, which they aren't- but because the acidic comedy welcomes the softly tragic undercurrents of a labile psychology contending with an existential void of superficiality and self-conscious social deceit, without allowing either tone to usurp the other, much like Altman's best work in this arena. It's filmed with an objectivity that's rare for Levinson, and even once the second section kicks into more aesthetically-accentuated territory, his subjective fingerprints aren't entirely there, though they do come through a bit at the very end (even still, in this section, there’s a lot of very distant shots and alienation when physically intimate - very ‘removed’ in contrast to all the leaning in with unconditional curiosity in Euphoria).

What's most puzzling to me at this point is how we're meant to see Weeknd's character. He's been billed as a "charismatic" cult leader, but he's portrayed as a pathetic creep from the outset, with characters and the camera directly commenting on this (the latter hysterically demonstrated in how he's shot from a distance as a stoic shadow at the gate, sans music cues or dramatic emphasis, just exhibited as a limp value-less presence, at least in objective terms). I 'get' that his fringe-interventions of 'trust' and 'honesty' are attractive in a superficial milieu of people who coddle circumferentially, but he doesn't really sell it well, and I'm not convinced Levinson or the show is very interested in exploring him as a character either.

I'll be fine if they continue to keep a healthy distance from his 'charms', as Rose-Depp is more appealing as a performer and role to unpack, and her posse demands at least half an ep of screen time to make this come alive the way the first ep promised in its first act. Props should be divvied all around, but Jane Adams, Hank Azaria, Dan Levy, Rachel Sennott, Da'Vine Joy Randolph and Hari Nef were on fire. Though Weeknd kinda has to become a somewhat involving curio if his vehicle is going to succeed, unless the whole thing is a joke on Weeknd to gawk at his Cool Persona and never truly appeal to his arresting intentions.. but if that's the case, wouldn't Levinson just be taking over Seimetz' approach, pretending to indulge his ego? This is all too early to speculate, but nothing in the pilot made me go, "Oh, the ostensible reasons for Seimetz exit have clearly been 'remedied'" They still seem to be (thankfully) instated, with Weeknd's cryptic allure negated or deflated at every turn with film language (seriously, that long shot stalling on him at the gate..), and I wonder if she filmed any of this episode. As of now, I see more of her directorial style, or maybe Levinson is just diversifying a bit.

[flyonthewall2983]

Jane Adams? I might have to check this out now

[therewillbeblus]

Jane Adams? I might have to check this out now

She’s the MVP, steals the second episode in the first five minutes just like she did the first. Suzanna Son makes quite the entrance too - sucking any possible eroticism out of a scene (which seems to blatantly divert the camera away from intimacy to objectively exhibit objectification) with her ominous yet captivating presence

[therewillbeblus]

The last two episodes have really moved the needle towards this being an uninteresting failure.

I think it has potential to be theoretically interesting as a clash between Weeknd’s vision and Levinson and co’s but it doesn’t play out in an interesting way. The characters, writing, and relationship dynamics are poorly constructed (and unbelievable, moving too quickly - an unfair expectation on the audience to buy into the cult’s ‘power’, which is not earned in the least). Everything is was too reductive, which could work if it was carefully examining the cult’s reductiveness and the superficial industry personality’s draw toward reductive feelings and thoughts spoonfed… However, that reading doesn’t really work because direct and raw questions are posed with too-easy simplified “honest” responses and these simple emotions are taken at face value without irony.

I reject the claims that the show is romanticizing abuse or promoting Weeknd’s role as positive (even as a necessarily evil in the industry). I do wonder if Weeknd believes this - but Levinson makes it clear that he does not, at all. But it isn’t challenging the thin, earnestly unidimensional emotional responses of Rose-Depp or viewing them as tragically conditioned to be simplified. Regardless of her upbringing I don’t buy that she would respond so confidently singular in emotion about trauma… Levinson is better than that. I think he’s compromised here, and the project was destined to be flawed, but it’s unfortunate.

I’d love to get a behind-the-scenes doc with Weeknd’s perspective clashing with Levinson’s and Seimetz, but they’ll never outspokenly shit on an HBO show and sever that relationship. As a side note, my partner used to adore Weeknd and now can’t even stand listening to his music because his character is so despicable in this - so I find it funny that he’s using this show as an indirect platform to promote material from his new album, considering that on a base level, an audience of this show is not going to be conditioned to digest more Weeknd. I’m so curious how he sees his character here, or the value of portraying him as he does. But that mystery is all I’m getting out of it at this point

[thirtyframesasecond]

The Weeknd's persona has always been that of a sleazy douche, ever since House of Balloons. It would've been more interesting for him to play against type.

[therewillbeblus]

Yeah but here that "persona" is an unambiguous flux of toxic behavior in lying, manipulating, and abusing people emotionally, psychologically, physically... maybe his artistic persona blurs the line between sexy and sleazy to sell records, but I doubt this is going to appeal to the same crowd when defined in such concrete form

[therewillbeblus]

Maybe the most nonsensical season finale I’ve ever seen - a series of unexplained actions and motivations and allegiance-twists stitched together this sloppily demonstrates just how fucked this production was. The last minute condensing of six eps into five was writing on the wall, but.. this is the best a talent like Levinson could do with the material he had.. The dom-sub reversal is unearned, confounding, and stupid, and the few promising grace notes in the first two eps that Levinson clearly wanted to lean into wound up rotting in the kitchen sink. Please just cancel this so everyone can move on to better things.

SpoilerShow

However, I was amused at how Levinson slid in a shot with the three agents’ confused faces right at the end to reflect his/our/the only possible reactions to this mess!

It’s a final gesture to connect with the audience and validate that there’s no way to understand these non-characters, because he doesn’t either.

[yoloswegmaster]

The Idol cancelled after one season

[jazzo]

I could only make it through two episodes, so this may be unfair of me, but I knew something wasn’t sitting well when I began longing for the halcyon days of Shannon Tweed and Andrew Stevens tackling similar material.

Truly an embarrassment for all.

[therewillbeblus]

And those first two episodes were far and away the most coherent and entertaining of the bunch - Ep three is when things went off the rails, spiraling into asinine developments that felt like at least ten script pages were missing between characters speaking to arrive at the puzzling new tone or evolved dynamic being pushed

I'm thrilled by this news, please go spread all this wasted talent into fertile places