Sheer artistry in this series has got my attention. It was like a novel, has a lot to say about how we deal with our emotions and view our lives at large.
Basically, it is a roller coaster ride of two characters Margaret and Hilary in their late 40s and under tremendous stress. Mercy, maybe in her mid-20s, loves fun and frolic, mixed with an ominous feeling that she was accursed for life. Her chance meeting with Hilary's husband, David, and becoming pregnant throws into a choas, not only her life, but also adds one more sour note to Hilary's already troubled marriage.
Most interesting is Gus, Margaret's 4-year-old child. He is introduced in ep 2, but remains a crucial element through out, touching the lives of all the 5 major characters, Margaret, Hilary, Mercy, David, and Margaret's helper, Essie. Gus runs through like an undercurrent connecting them all in their interactions with each other.
In ep 2, we learn Margaret left Gus in the care of Mercy at a mall, and Gus strayed away while Mercy was on her phone. That was a pivotal moment.
I tried to put Margaret's intense grief and her subsequent erratic behavior in perspective just to see where it was coming from. It seems the age difference between her 2nd child and the 3rd (the missing one) is about 5 or 6 years. That could weigh heavily on a mother. Second, she did not want another baby, but after he was born, he became her only world (Her chat with Hilary in ep 2.) And then, she lost him, partly, because she entrusted the kid to a stranger (in her Helper's words in ep 5). All these factors, combined, threw her into a fit of emotional abyss. Against this backdrop, it is no surprise she lost touch with reality, turned out to be unstable and self-centered. She was miserable and she made the others' lives miserable.
I have not seen Nicole Kidman's other movies, but I think, she played Margaret very well. It is not Kidman but it is the character that has become unbearable for many viewers, I think.
The issue with Hilary is motherhood. Amid pressures from mother, her husband, David, who did not want kids at first but later changed his mind, and also friends, she had to grapple with the questions whether she should have kids, and how would she know whether that is the right thing to do. The problem precipitated when Margaret suspected David of stealing Gus. Thus, Gus's disappearance plays an abysmal role in their marriage.
Expats is an artwork. It illustrates thought provoking, probing questions about the loss of a child, and motherhood from two different perspectives against the background of other expatriates, the politically charged city and the helpers.
We get a peek into the lives of those helpers only in ep 5. I wish they were stacked against their affluent employers in each episode bringing out the contrast into a sharper focus. They should not be treated as a separate clan but a part of the Hong Kong society as a whole. I must add the cinematography is breathtaking.
As I said at the outset, this series may appeal to only certain people such as the reflective, contemplative type.
There is room for improvement. For one thing, the have-nots are part of the entire society; they are there every day in the lives of the haves. So, it would better serve to show their side of each incident in each episode. Second, the raunchy sexual acts and nudity scenes undercut the somberness of the narrative. They could be a little subtle, leaving something to viewers' imagination.
Therefore, 9 stars in stead of 10.
Basically, it is a roller coaster ride of two characters Margaret and Hilary in their late 40s and under tremendous stress. Mercy, maybe in her mid-20s, loves fun and frolic, mixed with an ominous feeling that she was accursed for life. Her chance meeting with Hilary's husband, David, and becoming pregnant throws into a choas, not only her life, but also adds one more sour note to Hilary's already troubled marriage.
Most interesting is Gus, Margaret's 4-year-old child. He is introduced in ep 2, but remains a crucial element through out, touching the lives of all the 5 major characters, Margaret, Hilary, Mercy, David, and Margaret's helper, Essie. Gus runs through like an undercurrent connecting them all in their interactions with each other.
In ep 2, we learn Margaret left Gus in the care of Mercy at a mall, and Gus strayed away while Mercy was on her phone. That was a pivotal moment.
I tried to put Margaret's intense grief and her subsequent erratic behavior in perspective just to see where it was coming from. It seems the age difference between her 2nd child and the 3rd (the missing one) is about 5 or 6 years. That could weigh heavily on a mother. Second, she did not want another baby, but after he was born, he became her only world (Her chat with Hilary in ep 2.) And then, she lost him, partly, because she entrusted the kid to a stranger (in her Helper's words in ep 5). All these factors, combined, threw her into a fit of emotional abyss. Against this backdrop, it is no surprise she lost touch with reality, turned out to be unstable and self-centered. She was miserable and she made the others' lives miserable.
I have not seen Nicole Kidman's other movies, but I think, she played Margaret very well. It is not Kidman but it is the character that has become unbearable for many viewers, I think.
The issue with Hilary is motherhood. Amid pressures from mother, her husband, David, who did not want kids at first but later changed his mind, and also friends, she had to grapple with the questions whether she should have kids, and how would she know whether that is the right thing to do. The problem precipitated when Margaret suspected David of stealing Gus. Thus, Gus's disappearance plays an abysmal role in their marriage.
Expats is an artwork. It illustrates thought provoking, probing questions about the loss of a child, and motherhood from two different perspectives against the background of other expatriates, the politically charged city and the helpers.
We get a peek into the lives of those helpers only in ep 5. I wish they were stacked against their affluent employers in each episode bringing out the contrast into a sharper focus. They should not be treated as a separate clan but a part of the Hong Kong society as a whole. I must add the cinematography is breathtaking.
As I said at the outset, this series may appeal to only certain people such as the reflective, contemplative type.
There is room for improvement. For one thing, the have-nots are part of the entire society; they are there every day in the lives of the haves. So, it would better serve to show their side of each incident in each episode. Second, the raunchy sexual acts and nudity scenes undercut the somberness of the narrative. They could be a little subtle, leaving something to viewers' imagination.
Therefore, 9 stars in stead of 10.
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