A sense of mystery and uneasiness permeates the first episode of Expats. The characters look lonely and detached. You feel as if one piece is missing from the puzzle. Something feels incomplete, and everything feels off. The camera slowly circles the characters, trying to read them from different angles. Hilary (Sarayu Blue) doesn't hold the lift for Margaret (Nicole Kidman) and her children. During an informal gathering with friends, Mercy (Ji-young Yoo) appears disconnected. We strongly sense that something is wrong. That dog surely does not continuously bark out of boredom. We, before the characters, understand that the dog's owner has met his maker.
The first two episodes of Expats, however, do not investigate the case of that dog owner. The second episode, though, makes it clear why Margaret is so cheerless and why, during a birthday party, Mercy runs away from her. The reveal, when it comes, fills you with discomfort. However, what's interesting is one woman's thoughts about Margaret's situation. She says that what happened to her is not uncommon, but since her face is photogenic, the case got so much media attention. At another point in the series, when Margaret is told that the police have arrived because a neighbor is dead, she smiles and responds, "Thank god." (She got worried thinking that the police had come because her children were in trouble).
These two scenes show how much importance people give to their personal lives and how little they think about others. This thought is not original, but it's presented with such sharpness that it fills you with horror. The casual language of Margaret and that woman who comments on Margaret elicits shocks from us. Based on the first two episodes, the biggest strength of Expats lies in its pointed comments. Hilary tells Margaret that she needs to draw a line between her and her domestic worker. Later, Margaret's eyes look slightly bitter when she sees the maid lying in bed with one of her children.
Director Lulu Wang, who made the excellent The Farewell, creates moments so palpable they seem to be plucked from your own experience. When Mercy swims under a boat for attention and emerges from the water to realize that no one actually cares about her, we feel awkward as well as sorry for her. Wang tightly tethers us to her characters' emotions. Her images are intense - they activate your full emotional spectrum. Expats has started on a very strong note, and I hope it continues to sustain its momentum.
Final Score- [9/10]
Reviewed by - Vikas Yadav
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Publisher at Midgard Times