Festivals - Canneseries 2020 : Moloch : A first look on a great and new series

By Mulder, 10 october 2020

There are pitches that sound like a promise. Moloch's invites us to mystery, to a possibility of fantasy and even displays a certain visual identity with the mention of a labyrinthine city... Now we have to hope that these boxes, too rarely filled in French fictions, actually exist on the screen.

As often in series, the opening sequences serve as a note of intent. Moloch plunges us directly into the heart of the action in an interweaving of sequences that lead an individual, always filmed from behind, to catch fire in front of the frozen eyes of passers-by. This prelude will lead us to the two main characters, a journalist who is a little too curious and a psychiatrist who is a little too perceptive. The first two episodes won't tell us more about the Moloch of the title, but it obviously refers to a biblical deity for whom children were sacrificed by fire. Arnaud Malherbe, the creator of the series, adds a touch of spirituality to the mystery that hangs over the series. A good idea to flesh out an intrigue that promises to be sinuous and trying.

Olivier Gourmet, calm, impassive, transmits in a few sequences all the humanity of his character. The journalist, to whom Marina Vacth lends her features, appears more ambiguous as if she finally finds meaning in her existence only in this macabre story. This duo, which is not yet a duo in the first two episodes, is a solid entry point for this mysterious story.

All these excellent points do not prevent Moloch from suffering from the same evil as many French series that try the genre: its depressive character. Between its two main characters bogged down in a heavy liability, the absence of humor and the worked but austere settings... it's hard not to find the whole thing depressing. Fortunately, the chromatic universe has a little more nuance than the eternal sepia or grey tones that this type of French fiction usually offers us...

Don't be fooled, Moloch has enough qualities to draw the audience in, but if it took itself less seriously, it would also gain in humanity.

Synopsis:
In a labyrinthine, industrial seaside town, strangers inexplicably catch fire. Louise, a young journalist, and Gabriel, a grieving psychiatrist, investigate.

Moloch (2019; 6 episodes)
A series directed by Arnaud Malherbe
Produced by Xavier Matthieu
Written by Arnaud Malherbe and Marion Festraëts
With Olivier Gourmet, Marine Vacth, Arnaud Valois, Marc Zinga, Alice Verset, Soufiane Guerrab, Jan Hammenecker, Julie-Anne Roth, Laurent Capelluto
Music by Flemming Nordkrog
Director of photography: Christophe Nuyens
Mntage: Floriane Allier, Aurique Delannoy
Production ARTE France, CALT Studio, Belga Productions
Release date: October 22, 2020 (Arte) (France)
Length: 52 minutes

An article written by Marianne Velma