The French seem to have a deep-seeded affection for criminals, especially if they are charming and somehow wrongly accused. Back in the day, there was Jean Valjean in Victor Hugo’s “Les Miserables.” A century later, it was Jean Gabin as Pepe Le Moko.
To this illustrious den of thieves, I am delighted to add Assane Diop (Omar Sy) in “Lupin,” the irresistible French crime show on Netflix. The only mystery is why we didn’t watch it sooner.
Assane is the son of Babakar (Fargasse Assande), a Senegalese immigrant in Paris, who goes to work in 1995 as a gentleman-in-waiting for Hubert Pellegrini (Herve Pierre), a corrupt businessman who is a ringer for Jabba the Hut. Hubert conspires to steal a valuable necklace for the insurance money and blame the robbery on Babakar. The latter is sent to prison, where he commits suicide, leaving Assane an orphan.
Assane, who knows the truth about what happened, vows to revenge his father’s death 35 years later. But not the way you’d expect. He resorts to the ingenious tactics of the 19th century gentleman burglar Arsene Lupin (hence the name of the show.) Apparently the Lupin literary collection is as vast as that of Sherlock Holmes.
Slick, fast-paced, and gorgeously shot, “Lupin” aims to show Assane’s obsession with bringing Pellegrini to justice. But this won’t be a walk in the park: Pellegrini, who is on to Assane, is now attempting to frame Assane for the theft of the necklace which has suddenly reappeared at an auction. Pellegrini is simultaneously conspiring to steal millions from the foundation of his own daughter Juliette (Clothilde Hesme). Evil guy. So evil, a little dog named J’Accuse barks every time he hears his name.
Assane has a few tricks of his own up his sleeve: he is a master of disguise and a technology whiz (his understanding of drones and digital technologies easily rivals that of the CIA and the FBI.) As for the French authorities, they come off as truly witless, letting Assane escape their grasp at every turn. Save for Youssef Guedara (Soufiane Gourrab) a savvy young detective who shares Assane’s passion for Lupin’s books and seems to know the thief’s next moves almost as soon as the thief does.
“Lupin” features a fabulous ensemble cast that includes Assane’s estranged wife Claire (Ludivine Sagnier), their moppet-headed teenage son Raoul (Etan Simon) who loves the books of Lupin as much as his dad does, and Benjamin (Antoine Gouy), his best friend from HS who has become an antique dealer as well as a somewhat reluctant accomplice to all the craziness Assane causes.
My fondest wish is that “Lupin” is renewed for Season 3 (apparently there are talks it will begin airing in 2022). But don’t wait for then to start binging the first two seasons. It’s perfectly acceptable for the gentlemen burglar to get away. But not this show.