C'est la vie- the french life presented by Netflix

Welcome back to the home of Unoriginal Thoughts. I apologize in advance for my lack of blogging- as anyone who is currently in university would understand, the second semester hits you like a sack of bricks. I really wish that was a joke. However, in the midst of crying, reading, writing, and repeating I have been watching a fair amount of Netflix. When I say 'fair amount' I mean an excessive amount. I am currently at the stage of a Netflix binge where I am watching shows, I swore I would never watch such as Emily in Paris. For any fans of the show, I am sorry (but not really) to tell you that the show itself has a lot of issues. These problematic elements are not my own observations but that of Loic Bordeau a Lecturer in French Studies at the Univesity of Maynooth.

I attended a research seminar he hosted back in 2022 which focused on the representation of French culture and identity by Netflix. To be honest, I was a little out of my comfort zone at that talk. For one, I did not speak French and felt like a complete fraud sneaking into that seminar. Another reason is that my experience in my undergraduate and postgraduate studies didn't prepare me for a look at multimedia platforms. Entirely my own fault, as I really avoided any modules that had movies or t.v shows listed as core materials. So I was underprepared to be discussing shows and films in such detail. I found that the seminar itself was not as intimidating as I thought it would be and really informative. Considering a lot of my own research focuses on concepts such as self-identity and the use of tropes, I found a lot of his points very valid to my own research interests.

Netflix with over one billion subscribers is constantly trying to appeal to a wider audience. In doing so, they can be seen to produce certain shows and films that appeal to their audience's expectations. Of course, no production company has to produce only reality shows because that would exclude a variety of genres and plots. This does not mean that Netflix also needs to work on generalizations and stereotypes. Speaking of generalizations and stereotypes, let's discuss Emily in Paris.

My initial thoughts on the show were an alternative version of Sex and the City. It has the same basic elements of glamourized living, high fashion, sexy men, endless love triangles, and a young woman at the centre of all the drama. It's also not that surprising considering Darren Starr is the creator of both of these shows. While it is hard to come up with a completely new concept, Netflix missed the opportunity to really make Emily in Paris its own show. It could have focused on the true difficulties of moving abroad and trying to reestablish yourself in a foreign city. Instead of giving us a real insight into French culture and life, we got an American making endless stereotypes about her new co-workers and acting like a tourist on vacation.

The most obvious issue with the show is the lack of preparation on behalf of Emily. She moves her entire life from Chicago to Paris without attempting to learn a lick of French. Even more bizarre, she consistently assumes that everyone else will make up for this and speak fluent English. Like most sane people I do agree that Lily Collins ( who plays Emily) is absolutely adorable, but her character's behaviour is not. Without tearing apart the character altogether, I find that her personality speaks more towards Netflix than anything else.

Paris and France in general are treated as a location and not recognized for having a culture or identity of their own. Rather than trying to grow and adapt to her new surroundings, Emily focuses on making France more "American-friendly". Therefore, the representation of France given by Netflix cannot be taken as authentic. It would be more accurate to recognize that it is a tourist viewpoint throughout the show. This is confirmed by Emily's understanding of the city: "[t]he entire city looks like Ratatouille" ("Emily in Paris." Emily in Paris, written by Darren Star, directed by Andrew Fleming, Netflix, 2020). Emily lives her life like she is in a movie and seems to lack any real knowledge about the city itself; "I feel like Nicole Kidman in Moulin Rouge!" (ibid).

This viewpoint is always taken to be charming and endearing but it fails to address the real offensiveness of her standpoint. She references the city through movie clichés, refuses to learn the language, and is surprised that she is not settling in well. It seems obvious that Emily should try to adjust more to her new surroundings. Instead, Netflix presents Paris and Parisians as the real problem. Her co-workers, new friends, and the people of Paris are seen to be cold and standoffish to Emily. In comparison to Emily, they are depicted to be slightly backward in some regards and in need of her moralistic teachings.

The most problematic example of this would be the addressing of the #METOO Movement or as it is known in France #BalanceTonPorc (#ExposeYourPig) within the show. While the show should be commended in one regard for allowing the depiction of uncomfortable sexual harassment in the workplace and in dating, there is still an overreliance on clichés. This is obvious in Emily having to point out that having a photo shoot of a naked woman on the bridge over the Seine could be problematic. In response to the show one offended viewer, Mr. Bigiaoui said that he "could never ever imagine a shoot of a naked woman on a bridge over the Seine" (Sciolino "'Ridicule': The French Reaction to 'Emily in Paris'"). The fact that this had to be pointed out by Emily says volumes. Netflix is pushing an image of American morals at the expense of France.

The seminar was very interesting and made me re-examine my own understanding of national identity. It's also made me rethink some of my favourite Netflix shows. While these shows are often fiction, it's hard to ignore their ability to influence our feelings about certain places and cultures.

I promise not to take as long to repost again. Well, I won't promise but I'll try very hard not to do it again.

Stay Unoriginal.

Works Cited:

Sciolino, Elaine. "'Ridicule': The French Reaction to 'Emily in Paris.'" New York Times, 15 October 2020, https://www.nytimes.com/2020/10/02/style/Emily-in-Paris.html . Accessed 30 March 2023.

"Emily in Paris." Emily in Paris, written by Darren Star, directed by Andrew Fleming, Netflix 2020.

Playlist:

https://www.nytimes.com/2020/10/02/style/Emily-in-Paris.html