MovieChat Forums > Les revenants (2013) Discussion > WOW! Why the hell have I never heard of ...

WOW! Why the hell have I never heard of this show before?

posted 10 years ago by jokkevideoedit
10 replies | jump to latest

Never heard of "The Returned" before. Watched the pilot on netflix, and realized after that it was a remake of "Les revenants". So decided to try it out to compare the two pilots, to see what version I prefered. And everything in the french version was superb. Acting, cinematography, music, pacing .. Why the hell was there a need for a remake? People must really hate subtitles lol ..

But yeah .. 8 Hours later and I had watched the whole thing in one sitting.
AMAZING show, the atmosphere is just amazing. The setting obviously seems "Twin Peaks" inspired, and also the whole story have a Stephen King feel to it. The atmosphere in the series reminded me of games like Alan Wake and Silent Hill.
The cinematography was one level with A+ shows like Breaking Bad and True Detective at some points, with incredible attention to detail.
What a horrible overlooked and underrated gem. 9.5/10 .. So far
I can't wait for season 2 ..
But I also always have a worry with these "mysterious" shows. I can't count how many shows seemed so interresting to begin with, but when the story unfolds you realize how shallow the whole plot is, and the magic wears off. (Prison Break, Orphan Black etc.)
But i'm optimistic about this one.
I read that season 2 was shooting .. Any news on when it begins?

Favorite TV Shows (drama)
http://www.imdb.com/list/ls076987856/

[–] BlueRidgeGoddess 10 years ago

We watched the French version in its entirety, and now watch the U.S. version weekly. I'm with you: Both versions give me a different feel, but I'd put this show in the top five of my all time best TV ever. AMAZING series!

[–] dundundunn 10 years ago

The new season is slated to air in the November of this year, but that's only France. I hope they cobble together subtitles fast and make them available elsewhere as well.

Also, I am SO happy that the American remake was created. It served to bring more people here, once they realised that a far superior original was already waiting for them.

I've got a remote and I'm not afraid to use it.

[–] jokkevideoedit 10 years ago

haha, have to agree with that. I would had never discovered this version if it wasn't for the remake.

Yeah sadly it will be a while before it's on dvd/bluray/netflix.
So, the only real option for impatient people is to torrent it :S (I can imagine there is a lot, since the final episode didn't bring much answers, but more questions xD)
Wish season 2 would just air on netflix from day 1.

Favorite TV Shows (drama)
http://www.imdb.com/list/ls076987856/

[–] dundundunn 10 years ago



I've got a remote and I'm not afraid to use it.

[–] annick_eisele 10 years ago

In France, foreign series are actually dubbed and not subtitled, although they are now often available in their original language with subtitles. If American viewers don;t want to read subtitles, they could have dubbed the series into English.

I didn't watch the American version, because...

I am French
I have seen the original serie
I believe that the original serie is always better

[–] jokkevideoedit 10 years ago

Sure but don't you watch american shows and movies?
I just think it's sad that so many shows/movies gets so little attention because they are not american. But that's just the way it is :P
I'm danish and have always read subtitles, I even watch english subtitles on english shows/movies if there is no danish sub available :P .. Scratch that, I usually only read english subtitles, because in danish subtitles they always have to change things. Like if in some movies they mention a joke involving some American figures, they have to translate it into similar danish persons, and that annoys me.
I think subtitles is very nice, because sometimes you can miss out on a lot, either because of bad audio in the video, someone keeps talking while you watch or other reasons.
Yeah I see on german channels that they always do a german voice over, but I can't believe that people can enjoy that. The voice is a very important part of an actors performance.
Some cheap lazy voice over dude, just won't cut it :P And just seeing lip movements not matching the audio .. just nah xD

Favorite TV Shows (drama)
http://www.imdb.com/list/ls076987856/

[–] annick_eisele 10 years ago

Of course, I watch American shows and movies and I prefer watching them in English (with or without subtitles). I live in the UK now, so my TV is in English. When I was younger in France, you could get some things in English on cable channels. Otherwise, everything had voice-over.

I think the voice is important too and I prefer subtitles even when I don't speak the language. I really loved The Bridge by the way. However, some people are just too lazy to read subtitles or they have trouble concentrating on the text and on the action at once. In my opinion, for those people, an original series with a good voice-over is a better compromise than a remake.

By the way, I am a Translator, so bad translation really annoys me too. It can be a reference which is weirdly transposed, a sentence which syntax sounds strange in French or something translated litteraly. I remember an episode of Friends where they translated Little Women by Les petites femmes, whereas the book is called Les quatre filles du Docteur March in French.

[–] wearetherobots 10 years ago

this is one of the best shows i've seen.

the remake was really poor and sad to watch.
so glad it got cancelled.

season 2 airs this november!

[–] serenity159 10 years ago

Bravo OP. You pretty much said what i wanted to say and same experience.

I also watched The whole season in one go just yesterday. Even made a thread in 'The Returned' forum asking about which one to watch first. Luckily I went with French first.

Also I am 100% with you on the endings of mystery shows/movies. But to be fair, usually the ending can't be satisfactory no matter how they spin it. Thats why its important to enjoy the journey before the inevitable disappointing ending sets in.

~Luca Brasi sleeps with the fishes~

[–] rmkeltz78 9 years ago

Have you heard of many French or European (not UK) shows? Not being a smartass, but assuming you are in the US, it's going to get no publicity until a remake is made, and you are right, the remake is unnecessary, but at least the remake opened your eyes (and probably many others) to the far superior French version.