Review | ‘The Crown’ Season 5 Is Fueled By Scandals And Flawless Performances

“The Crown” is one of Netflix’s most popular and acclaimed series – and not for any reason. Based on the play of the same name, the production revolves around Elizabeth II’s accession to the throne of the United Kingdom and her extended reign, navigating the unexpected death of her father, King George VI, and the various responsibilities to be the most famous in the world. monarch planet. After four years, the production has established itself as a jewel of the mainstream scene which, despite the dramatization of certain events by fueling the need for entertainment, offers an interesting insight into the royal family and the characters who still make up this core.

We now come to the fifth production run – and one of the most anticipated. After all, after the spectacular finale of the previous season, it was more than natural for us to look forward to seeing the story unfold, the various scandals involving members of the Crown, and how the public became an active part of this setup. , especially in the age of globalization (which is reaching the show’s timeline now). The result is a little less than expected due to a few pacing flaws, but nothing too egregious to erase the work’s aesthetic and performance beauty – and which, even so, may somewhat alienate the fans it has. collected in previous iterations.

Following in the footsteps of previous seasons, our protagonist, Elizabeth II, gets a facelift through the iconic Imelda Staunton, who as one can imagine does a spectacular job, walking down the paths immortalized by Olivia Colman and Claire Foy in a very distant past. . Here, the monarch faces a moral dilemma that extends both within her own family and how the queen is perceived by her subjects: she remains stagnant in time and in a mythology painted over the long Crown story, as she moves away from the constant change facing Brits, with the exponential expansion of technology, the advent of the internet and everything being much more energetic than when she put on the coat.

It’s no surprise, then, that much of the media, including tabloids, is dropping the verb to talk about Elizabeth’s apparent lack of tact – and that she would have to abdicate the throne in order to hand it over. to Prince Charles (Dominic West), his eldest son, who is involved in social causes aimed at young people – such as the creation of a scholarship program that includes inventive boys and girls who have ideas that would not be subsidized lack of opportunities. Of course, things don’t turn out that way and Charles won’t take over the monarchy until Elizabeth dies – and that’s not all: Charles remains married to Princess Diana (Elizabeth Debicki in a key role for her career), which goes from bad to worse. The paparazzi who are making royal life hell continue to fuel rumors that they are about to split and cause even more trouble for a weather-weakened Crown and a massive loss of power.

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While Staunton and West do an impeccable job and virtually guarantee well-deserved Emmy nominations, it’s Debicki who puts on a stunning performance that steals all the limelight. Unlike the passionate ingenuity Corrin presents as young Diana, Debicki embarks on a construction marked by constant problems, terrified of what the family she is inserted into may do to her sanity and physical integrity. She carries her children’s unconditional love with her, but not enough to overshadow the fact that her husband betrays the sanctity of his marriage to Camilla Parker Bowles (Olivia Williams), an old acquaintance who still stirs up raw feelings in Charles. Although she keeps the pose, Diana is moved by a subtle irony that keeps her from going completely insane and abandoning everything she has built.

Recent episodes delve into more sober and heartbreaking contemplation than we’ve ever seen. The color scheme follows a similar aesthetic, marked by color clashes that highlight the clash between protagonists and supporting actors – whether between Elizabeth and her children or between Diana and herself; the management does not deviate much from the conventional, but it is sure enough to convince what it wants to sell; and, perhaps, this is the main problem of the fifth cycle (migration towards a verisimilitude guided by scandals which sometimes forgets to humanize the theme and the characters that Peter Morgan and his collaborators have done so well).

“The Crown” may have slipped, but nothing that significantly spoils an almost immaculate structure. What might put viewers off is the smooth transition in pacing and a celebration of tragedy that borders on sensationalism but doesn’t let things get ugly. Overall the gears fit together and, while in need of a bit of lubrication, are convincing enough to take us from start to finish.

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