Black Butterflies follows the journey of an author Adrien whose agreement to write Albert’s memoir results in delving into uncomfortable aspects of the dark human psyche.
Backed by excellent performances by Nicolas Duvauchelle as Adrien, the ghostwriter, and Niels Arestrup as Albert, whose story Adrien is approached to write, Black Butterflies delivers the thriller that it promises. The French thriller also features Alyzée Costes, Alice Belaïdi, Brigitte Catillon, and Sami Bouajila in supporting roles. The series is directed by Olivier Abbou and Bruno Merle.
The Story
Albert, an old man in his 70s, approaches Adrien to write his memoir. Adrien agrees as he is stuck with writer’s block since his first book was published. As he listens to Albert’s story, he delves into his own past. He also finds out that the story told by Albert is no ordinary story. It is filled with Albert’s dark past which Adrien doesn’t initially believe, but gradually, after gathering evidence, he gets to know that Albert’s story is based on disturbing real-life events of a killer couple– Albert and Solange.
Adrien discovers how his and Albert’s story is interlinked. This creates conflict within Adrien as he starts questioning his entire past.
Reasons To Stream
Engaging strong performances from the main cast as well as the supporting are one of the film’s definite strengths. The complicated and dark theme explored in Black Butterflies requires strong performances and the actors commendably stand true to the complex characters in the story. The morally compromised characters of Black Butterflies needed finesse in the acting performances and the same is delivered by the talented cast.
The captivating acting by Axel Granberger and Alyzée Costes, who play the roles of young Albert and Solange, is praiseworthy. The love between the young Albert and Solange sets the tone for the rest of the story and the characters are performed beautifully by the two.
The time jump works well for Black Butterflies as it creates suspense to keep the audience glued to the screen. As one root for Adrien to get over his writer’s block and see how Albert’s past leads to the exploration of his own past, the use of the time jump technique creates intrigue and suspense.
The film sets up multiple questions beautifully before delving into the journey of finding the answers. The gradual unfolding of the truth takes the cake as it leaves the audience in awe of the skillful storytelling at place.
Reasons To Skip
The twists and turns that Black Butterflies offers in excess sometimes get exhausting. At some point, it is overdone a tad bit as it might get hard to keep track of the unfolding drama which demands a lot of focus on the viewer’s part.
The drama also goes overboard on a few occasions in the series, affecting the suspense that was built because of the time jump used when Albert was narrating his story to Adrien.
The skewed perception of the morally challenged character, Albert, is disturbing. At times, the show tends to provide an excuse for trauma and unfulfilled desires as a cover for characters to behave immorally. This can easily be excused though because, at the core, Black Butterflies is a thriller about flawed characters who are beyond absolution.
The Verdict
Though the drama didn’t require the need to go overboard with the twists and turns in the story and unnecessary focus on melodrama at times, overall, Black Butterflies checks most of the boxes for a thriller drama, making it an easy pick for a thriller lover.
The darker elements of the theme, an excellent exploration of flawed characters, and the well-executed storytelling effectively work in favor of Black Butterflies.
Rating: 3.5/5
Black Butterflies is now streaming on Netflix.
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