Prime-Video - Totems : We discovered the first four episodes

By Mulder, 16 february 2022

The new French Amazon Original series starts this Friday, February 18 with the release of the first three episodes of this captivating spy series. A new episode will then be available every Friday and the series will end on March 11. The cast of Totems is ambitious and worthy of a feature film, with Niels Schneider, Vera Kolesnikova, José Garcia, Lambert Wilson, Ana Girardot, Alekseï Guskov, Mikhail Gorevoy and Surho Sugaipov among the cast. 

While American series are currently the most mediatized and awaited worldwide, it was really necessary to have a real artistic ambition to find the epic breath of the great spy films of the 70s but also a real reflection on how to conquer an increasingly difficult audience with the large number of series offered on streaming platforms such as Prime Video, Disney+, Netflix and AppleTV+ but also on the many TV channels. However, from the very first minutes, this historical reconstruction captures our interest and plunges us right into the action with a suspenseful crescendo and by constantly playing on deceptive appearances. 

The Cold War period comes to life before our eyes by placing the story in a pivotal year, 1965, and showing us the complexity of the secret services not only to protect important people but also to recruit people who have nothing of the typical secret agent and therefore very far from the image that we have with James Bond as the model. We follow the journey of Francis Mareuil (Niels Schneider), a French scientist who in spite of himself is recruited by a spy agency.  He will collaborate with the French secret service and the CIA. His mission will put him in contact with Lyudmila Goloubeva (Vera Kolesnikova), a pianist forced to work for the KGB. Between difficult and risky mission and a romance that will be born between two people embarked in a story that exceeds them, Totems is assured a thrilling spy series that holds all our attention.

Another important asset of the series is the presence in an important supporting role of the actor José Garcia in a counter-role showing us that he is a real complete actor as comfortable in comedies as in different roles. In the same way, it is always a pleasure to find the actress Ana Girardot who never ceases to surprise us by giving life to characters from all walks of life and by giving them a real presence on the screen.

Created and written by Olivier Dujols and Juliette Soubrier with François Uzan, Thibault Valetoux, Julien Anscutter, and Sabine Dabadie, the series is directed by Jérôme Salle, Antoine Blossier and Frédéric Jardin. Totems is produced by Isabelle Degeorges and Arnaud de Crémiers, and Olivier Dujols and Jérôme Salle for Gaumont (Narcos, Lupin, El Presidente). The series will also be available exclusively on Prime Video in more than 240 countries and territories worldwide in 2022.

Synopsis: 
In 1965, at the height of the Cold War, Francis Mareuil (Niels Schneider), a French scientist, begins working as a spy. While collaborating with the French secret service and the CIA, Mareuil meets Lyudmila Goloubeva (Vera Kolesnikova), a pianist forced to work for the KGB. A romance develops between the two spies, but how do they know if it's genuine feelings or political maneuvering?

Totems
A series directed by Jérôme Salle, Antoine Blossier and Frédéric Jardin
Showrunners : Olivier Dujols, Juliette Soubrier
Produced by Isabelle Degeorges, Arnaud de Crémiers, Olivier Dujols and Jérôme Salle
Written by Olivier Dujols, Juliette Soubrier, François Uzan, Thibault Valetoux, Julien Anscutter, Sabine Dabadie
With Niels Schneider, Vera Kolesnikova, José Garcia, Lambert Wilson, Ana Girardot 
Music by Guillaume Roussel
Director of photography: Renaud Chassaing, Antoine Sanier, Axel Cosnefroy
Distributed by Prime Video
Release date : February 18, 2022 (World)
Duration 52 minutes (8 episodes)

Rating: 4/5