The Agency: Is the US remake at the Legends Office? (critical)

The Americans loved the legendary office. So much so that they decided to do it again. Darker, more muscular, but less exhilarating, this new version tries the big gap between fidelity and reinvention. With class, but without the thrill.

Originally, it is Éric Rochant He himself wanted to oversee this US remake from his cult series. He finally preferred to hand over. And here The Agencyvery faithful adaptation of Legendary (2015–2020), this series of espionage made in France brought to the naked abroad, until appearing in the classification of the New York Times Best international series of the decade.

So, what did the Americans of our dear Desk ? An adaptation of the boutish, which takes up most of the intrigues of season 1 – in the center, we find the difficult return to the real life of a CIA agent who lived years under cover in Africa, and who wants to continue his impossible love story – with a darker, more muscular varnish. A series of undeniably sophisticated espionage, capable of digging as much the cracked psyche of its agents as the troubled games of contemporary diplomacy. It’s intelligent, dense, often exciting … but never as tense as the original. The breath of the first French seasons, when Marina Loiseau sank into Iran, sorely lacking. More cerebral than tense, more elegant than breathless.

Like a Michael Fassbender Who imposes his chic, his presence, and illuminates the screen as an interior decaying agent. Around him, Richard Gere,, Jeffrey Wright And Lashana Lynch Offer a gallery of second roles as delightful as the Henri Duflot / Marie-Jeanne Duthilleul duo.

Chic without shock

The staging of Joe Wright (Pride and prejudices) Take care of the aesthetics, with a cozy style, very British. But this visual coquetry distances the remake from the raw realism of the French version, and it is perhaps there that The Agency ends up getting lost a little: the rhythm is too intellectualized. Slow, sometimes stretched excessively, leads to the dramatic intensity. Yes, this Desk would become almost boring, constantly hesitating between two tones: popcorn entertainment or subtle and complex fresco. By dint of juggling between his ambitions, The Agency Never arrives at the height of its model and will certainly not enter the legend. But the copy is beautiful, and is not the work of a Malotru …

The Agency, season 1 in 10 episodes, to see every Thursday on Canal more in France.