Killing Eve 4, review: a disappointing ending
Killing Eve 4, review
On 11 April, 24 hours after the BBC's American live broadcast, the TIMVision streaming platform made available the last two episodes of Killing Eve 4. The story of Eve Polastri and Villanelle is officially over.Eve and Villanelle The British series made its debut in 2018, drawing inspiration from Luke Jennings' short story Villanelle. Sandra Oh, star of Gray's Anatomy, and Jodie Comer have worked side by side so far, starring in a brilliant series that has captured an ever-growing number of fans for years. Did the fourth season live up to expectations? Let's find out together.
Don't miss the previous three seasons, buy the Killing Eve Box Set S1-3 on DVD on Amazon.
The incipit of Killing Eve 4
Carolyn Martens In the following episodes, there is a lot of focus on Helene, introduced in the previous season, involved in the plans of the Twelve. Now the French woman becomes a fascinating first antagonist, the object of Eve's attention to find the first member of the secret organization. The news is not over. A new character is introduced, Pam, Konstantin's apprentice (who, meanwhile, takes on an increasingly marginal role, despite the first few seasons). Pam is employed in thanatoesthetics, the art of preserving bodies after death, in a funeral home together with her brother. Soon her life changes dramatically, and she tries to become what Villanelle once was.
Unconvincing choices
Pam On the other hand, Villanelle has us always captured the charisma, the verve, the resourcefulness. She is a charming killer, ruthless, unscrupulous, but at the same time with a sweeter side that she shows on very rare occasions. A woman with a troubled past, a person almost impossible to decipher. The Villanelle of the first episodes of Killing Eve 4, in fact, almost does not like it, but you don't have to wait long to meet once again the one of the past.
Who is Eve now?
Eve and the art of disguise Sometimes we have seen Eve struggling with the disguise, a gimmick that until a few seasons ago we would have attributed to Villanelle. It is curious, in fact, to see how the two women are now much more similar, albeit followed by completely different backgrounds. The brilliant agent often plays other roles in her investigations, giving in to the art of fiction. We are facing a much shrewd Eve, if we can say so, with a great spirit of initiative, even more than in previous seasons in which, in any case, she was already an amazing character.
A disappointing ending
Over the course of the episodes, we can witness an approach of Eve and Villanelle, not entirely unexpected and certainly hoped for from the first moment. Yet something is not working as it should. The "game of cat and mouse" which involved the two enemies, each obsessed with the other, was the real engine of the series. The tension between the two women was what pushed events forward, as was the spasmodic desire to find each other and confront each other. Now that the two protagonists often find themselves conversing and collaborating, fans are divided into two factions. If on the one hand their relationship undergoes a long-awaited evolution, on the other the intrigue that characterized it has perhaps been lost.Eve and Villanelle In short, there are many scenes in we see Eve and Villanelle together, and in some ways it's almost strange. We are convinced, among other things, that it is precisely this radical change by Polastri that upsets the cards on the table. She has nothing left to lose and is totally out of her comfort zone. Villanelle, however, continues to be her fixed thought of her. Precisely in the light of a profound change and of what could have been a new beginning, the season finale arrives like a sliver and closes Killing Eve 4 in a rather disappointing way. Its very strong impact and its powerful symbolic value are not enough to consider it fully convincing: once again, plot ideas are not completed or are hastily closed.
The direction and the artistic sector
If the plot and the narrative choices are not entirely convincing, as far as direction and photography are concerned, we are always on a very high level. The first episode had already given us a substantial taste: the same captivating style persists, which respects a very specific scheme. As Killing Eve is a very dynamic series, even in its settings, the audience witnesses a variety of places, shapes and colors that affect the aesthetics of each individual episode. A certain symmetry returns in the shots, often linked to a precise symbolism. In the first episode we saw Villanelle ready for Baptism, with wings in the background that created the illusion of seeing an angel. Well, it is an image that is repeated in the last episode - whoever has completed the vision knows what we are talking about - with a different expedient. It is a very strong message, an allegory that works and that closes the circle that opened months ago.Other more evident parallels characterize Killing Eve 4, with a photographic work that works by superimposition. There is also a novelty that we really appreciated. The fourth season is essential to discover more of the Twelve. A very common gimmick in movies and TV series (The Haunting of Bly Manor on Netflix comes to mind), but totally new in Killing Eve, is to use black and white for sequences set in the past. Even in the third season, for example, distant events were entirely shown to the viewer, with a filter not too different from that of present-day scenes. This time the series is enriched with new stylistic ideas, functional to the narration.
