The Cosmopolitans (TV Mini Series) The Cosmopolitans (2014) User Reviews

Potential for decent series was there

[Horst_In_Translation · 6/10 · 22 December 2016]

"The Cosmopolitans" is a 25-minute live action movie from 2014. The writer and director is Oscar nominee Whit Stillman and here we have a rare excursion from him to the small screen. This could have been the pilot episode for a long-running show actually, but it turned out the opposite. It was not picked up and so the characters we see in here never returned for more. Disappointing. There are some names that are somewhat famous I guess like Adam Brody or Oscar nominee Chloë Sevigny and Adriano Giannini has also appeared in some well-known projects.

Here we have the story of a bunch of young people living in Paris, some of them from abroad, for example Americans (in Paris). I must say of course there were characters and situations that did nothing for me, but there was also quite a decent deal of positive scenarios that got me curious about what would happen next. Never gonna find out. Too bad as I may have given this series a chance at some point. Both the acting and script in terms of comedy were as solid as I'd expect from Stillman. Watch these 25 minutes. You will most likely not be disappointed.

Give it a go

[edwardyson · 10/10 · 10 September 2014]

The biggest reason to recommend The Cosmopolitans is that it's unlike any other comedy pilot out there. You won't be blown away by its plotting, nor will you find loads of straightforward, sitcom-style gags here. But it's the tone, the rhythm of it that's so distinctive. As with many of Stillman's movies, the characters are slightly formal, awkward and unintentionally funny. One reviewer on here wondered who is meant to relate to a bunch of well-educated but impoverished American twenty- somethings living in Paris. Well, the answer is, anyone with an imagination. You don't have to be a tormented Louisiana cop with visions and a drinking problem to enjoy True Detective, do you? Yet whilst there are thousands of cop shows out there, there are no comedy dramas quite like this on TV. So if you like a bit of variation, give it a go.

Heavily airbrushed

[irala68 · 2/10 · 30 August 2014]

According to the pilot of the series, Paris is mainly populated by white middle class people between 20 and 30 years old, who's main concern is finding a good party. Dialogs are boring and meaningless,there is no action of any sort; all the conversations seemed to be focused on reinforcing the idea of Paris that is romantic and cheesy, repeating the popular clichés and stereotypes.

Very clean visually (there is not even one piece of rubbish on the street & even "roughed up" hair of some french guys look carefully arranged), some good camera work which is unfortunately wasted on this series. So, if you're looking for an airbrushed version of Paris and airbrushed reality than it is series for you, but if you're looking for some more substantial stuff to watch you can give this one safely a miss.

Promising Pilot

[bobmancini · 10/10 · 28 August 2014]

An excellent little Pilot, produced by Amazon as part of their original programming. Audience feedback will determine whether this gets picked up and turned into a full season. But certainly the Pilot is promising. The only problem is it's too brief. We want the rest of the Season for binge viewing right now! Beautiful people in the Beautiful city with Beautiful dialogue. What's not to like? Particularly strong performances from Adam Brody and Chloe Sevigny. The Italian actor is also very sympathetic.

This is the Whit Stillman of Metropolitan but now updated for the 21st Century and set against the backdrop of the ever-alluring Paris. An intriguing idea from Amazon. More please!

slow and not realistic

[alphatango241 · 3/10 · 29 August 2014]

This show tries to copy a Woody Allen or a French film d'auteur. Unfortunately, it ends up being just slow, pompous, and snobbish.

It's also a completely unrealistic description of expatriates in Paris. First, the expatriates community barely interacts with the French. Second, French "high society" doesn't mix up with foreigner... even Americans. Third, most of the expatriates are young professionals who share flats and work!

Finally, using French actors who don't speak English make it very difficult to believe their acting, as the message they deliver is not in sync with the emotions they are supposed to go through.

My college students' generation at work in learning life.

[utopianwizard-22-274383 · 9/10 · 14 September 2014]

This pilot is so very subtle in its use of humour, very European/British/French. I hope the audience grows for this one to at least let the project grow. I am waiting with anticipation. This is classic sophisticated humor at its best. This play digs deeply into the mindsets and the source of those mindsets for this generation of young people. Ex-patriots from America's small minded social atmosphere of what I would, as a professor of English Literature, call society undermining the learning process and forcing good minds to evacuate a failed American Education, thinking that Paris, and seeing themselves as Parisians, will recreate their true selves. Ah, the errors of youth.

Competently shot, insufferable content

[james-asmus · 2/10 · 26 September 2014]

Looks fine. Lovely settings are underutilized.

But at least throughout the pilot, the characters are all bland, self-involved, and terminally derivative. I wouldn't want to spend another minute with any of these characters even it offered an ACTUAL trip to Paris.

There are plenty of interminably talky indie films out there that actually deliver some life, some punch, or some startling insight. None of the boring conversations in this pilot contain any of those - or anything else that ultimately proved worthwhile.

2/10

A Breath of (Parisian) Fresh Air

[pacwarbuff · 10/10 · 29 August 2014]

What a refreshing and exciting change of pace from what passes for a TV show these days. The Cosmopolitans is an intelligent, dryly witty show which follows American ex-pats and their friends who are all searching for something more (though mostly romance) in Paris. The Cosmopolitans is reminiscent of writer-director Whit Stillman's 1990 cult film Metropolitan (which has since been given the Criterion Treatment) as it too chronicled a group of young socialites and their travels (and travails).

Not much is revealed in the pilot episode, but it does set the premise up and provides an excellent introduction to the characters. The character most worthy of your attention is Fritz (Freddy Åsblom), who gets the best lines throughout the pilot. His "If they (women) are prone to making bad choices, then there's hope for us" is already iconic to those in the know.I was also quite taken with Hal (Jordan Rountree) whose casual, deadpan air masks his off-and-on relationship with the incessantly- mentioned Clémence.

Everything works in "The Cosmopolitans", and I am eager to continue following the adventures of these characters. Watch it for the talented cast, the sharp writing, the clothes, the sights of Paris, and the superb song selections, but by all means, do give "The Cosmopolitans" a try; you won't be disappointed.

If it's supposed to be so clever why isn't it entertaining?

[leftbanker-1 · 4/10 · 31 August 2014]

It's like when you make a cake and forget to add the eggs except replace "eggs" with story. Like that.

The pilot goes something like this: youngish people sitting around talking about how sad, lonely, and alienated they are in Paris. It's billed as a comedy/drama but you have to pay really close attention and weed through some accents to find anything remotely resembling humor. Absolutely nothing happens in the first installment (and perhaps the last?). While I applaud the idea of this pilot I wasn't very pleased with the execution. It's just too Whit Stillman who is too Woody Allen without Allen's brilliance for humor (at least sometimes). There's just too much of people trying to be clever, presumably just for the sake of it. What good is it to be clever if you aren't entertaining, or better, HOW can you be clever if you aren't entertaining? Answer: you can't.

I found most of the dialogue to be stilted and unnatural. "His girlfriend, Clémence, left him." Why would he say this to someone he hardly knows. It reminds me of the joke, "Help, my son the doctor is drowning." And Hal talks about being lonely, "a feeling of being hollowed out, a void inside that seems as if it will never be filled." I got something to fill your void, 500 pounds of fresh horsesh@t.

Stillman has made his career by portraying the lives of really uptight, rich, white punks. He should try hanging out with people who don't have their own drivers or wear thousands of dollars worth of clothes every time they step outside. How about people who work for a living? Is that so repugnant? The Italian character remarks about how Anglo men get pushed around by women. Perhaps, but it's better than getting pushed around by other men. He later gets into a little bitch fight with someone he called a pipsqueak.

I had high hopes for this show as we've never had an American series set in Europe before this year (Welcome to Sweden is another train wreck). I was hoping for something that would help to dispel the stupid stereotypes of the French that so many Americans hold as gospel. "French waiters are rude. The French are arrogant." These stupid prejudices have been handed down in America for generations it seems. The Cosmopolitans (at least the pilot) focuses on whinny ex-pats who huddle together in Paris like they are trying to keep warm. There's a little bit about their learning the language which for most expats that is almost everything—or should be—and virtually nothing about how they actually live except a very claustrophobic scene of the girl stepping into her apartment. Maybe if she spent more on rent and less on her clothes she could swing a better place?

Unless the next episode has new people who actually do something I'll probably pass.

Outstanding! You aren't a Parisian until you lived there for a couple months

[IDwasTaken · 10/10 · 1 September 2014]

Whit Stillman's THE COSMOPOLITANS is jam packed with clever dialogue, great acting, and some great awkward moments. To me it rang very true, and made me laugh a lot. The lines about the apartment having a view when there was just a sliver of one, not having a decadent affair by going hiking, and the comment about the Starbucks being next to a great building were just a few of the gems in this outstanding Pilot. There are too many great lines of dialogue and to name them all would spoil the fun.

If you have seen Stillman's DAMSELS IN DISTRESS you will get the clever reference (I do not want to give it away). I want to watch these characters develop and see where the series goes. Hopefully this series gets picked up as it is a refreshing breath of fresh air. Clever without being crude (very rare today), and shot and directed beautifully. The acting is also really great and I particularly loved Sandro character as I have met Europeans just like him. It was also great to see Chloe Sevigny in another Whit Stillman project. If you do not pay attention you will miss the slew of funny lines.

Sad...

[kmitch0550 · 1/10 · 31 August 2014]

Exactly like Metropolitan, which was of it's time in 1990, but the world has moved on and clearly Stillman hasn't! What is he trying to say, let's all laugh at the stupid young white Americans? Fine, but it gets old within 10 minutes! I want Amazon to innovate not dredge up an old movie and just make more of it! There are often comparisons to Allen, but he is nowhere near that.. Chloe looks pretty, but she is way better than this! Transparent is the one to watch! Relevant, compelling and thought provoking! Also..I wonder who Amazon thought this was for? I don't think HBO would have made this! Who is his aud? Ex Harvard grads living in Manhattan?