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Charnice Horne is a Gen Z writer who strives to make cultural criticism pieces at the intersection of politics and pop culture. This is often reflected through her writings on the website and her fun takes on films and television. She is a recent Political Science graduate from North Carolina looking to make even bigger waves at The Cinema Spot. 🙂
The Sympathizer is no doubt one of the best shows of 2024. This HBO historical black comedy-drama limited series stands strongly on its own despite previously having such great work that precedes its original book from the author, Viet Thang Nguyen. There are also no breakout stars in the cast, but that’s a good thing. There are multiple captivating and emotionally driven performances throughout the show that almost make one wonder how exactly the producers of this show were able to bring together such impeccable talent to tell a story centered around one of the most tragic wars throughout history.
Yet, the cast of The Sympathizer can pull this off just right. The Sympathizer is absolutely one of the best projects to come out of A24 and will absolutely be looked to by the end of 2024 as one of the better shows to come out during this long year. The captivating storytelling, beautiful cinematography, and outstanding performances from multiple cast members truly make this show stand out alongside other major stories and shows from the 2024 cycle.
The Sympathizer incorporates the primary theme centered around the main arc of the story, “double consciousness”, through the usage of non-linear storytelling and detailed first-person narration. In doing so, the series gives the audience a true understanding of all the experiences and life changes that our protagonist, the Captain (Hoa Xuande), will constantly go through and evolve up until the final episode. Through these episodes, the audience will find the story incredibly moving and riveting in how these scenes are created, often shifted between the past, present, and future to give viewers more of a full picture of what is taking place through the story of The Sympathizer.
In a year with so many amazing and incredible established pieces of work like FX’s Shogun and Prime Video’s Mr. and Mrs. Smith, HBO’s The Sympathizer easily matches the prestige of both shows while also being able to tell a story centered in both excellent comedic timing alongside passionate historic sequencing.
Zealous Performances
Hoa Xuande provides such remarkable and zealous line delivery as we follow his character, The Captain, throughout the show’s entirety. The Sympathizer is set during the end of the Vietnam War, and we get to see the character really deal with the show’s overall theme and struggle, which is the idea of double consciousness and having to exist sort of in two realms in order to maintain his actual identity in real life. Yet, throughout the entire series, Xuande pulls this off efficiently without ever leaving the audience with nothing to truly digest.
This is aided by the various different performances of Robert Downey Jr. The actor pretty much gives some of the best performances of his career through this series as he is portraying multiple characters all in one. Downey Jr. pulls it off magnificently to the point where viewers truly won’t even feel as though the same actor was used in multiple roles across the series. His consistent line delivery alongside the passion he upholds is excellent.
Lastly, Sandra Oh does a great job in her role as Ms. Sofia Mori. She creates a clear contrast between our main character and her as a supporting character throughout the series. Oh also has moving line deliveries towards the end of the series.
Importance of History in The Sympathizer
There are multiple key references and many lessons that are to be learned not only from this show but throughout all of history, and The Sympathizer does an excellent job communicating that to its viewers. One episode directly shows how Western storytelling of tragic historical events can often come off as insensitive or exploitative. In a later episode, certain events are explained to be viewed as progressive in Western countries, whereas in many other countries across the world, there is a different perspective on everything.
The storytelling is also effectively done through the usage of various different visual components. This is one of the most beautifully filmed shows ever and it all has to do with the blocking of the actors as well as the scenery that came along with recreating the 1970s and ’80s landscape for the series’ time setting. Everything is crafted into perfection so that you wouldn’t truly be able to question what era this show was created in. It truly lays everything out to perfection and explains thoroughly what is to take place, mainly including the moments that lead up to the historical event that is the Fall of Saigon.
We rarely see stories like The Sympathizer get told in such a way that are moving while maintaining its instrumental elements of dark comedy. This is done through the incorporation of historical elements alongside perfect comedy to lighten some of the more serious aspects of this story. The significance of a Vietnamese spy who moves to America towards the end of the Vietnam War and ultimately lives a double life in the States within a refugee population is also one that many will come to understand even further.
There is even a point in the story that discusses how American creatives can often be insensitive to things that have gone on in the world, yet for the sake of money completely ignore such enormous tragedies. Quite frankly, this show can combine a multitude of elements and commentary, thus defining a period in world history that wasn’t particularly a bright one for all people.
Conclusion
The Sympathizer is phenomenal storytelling that has something for all types of audiences. At the end of this show’s run on HBO, there is no doubt that everyone will be more educated or quite moved by some of the deep political commentary this show can provide. There is nothing more creative and uplifting than stories that are willing to push beyond the limits of traditional filmmaking to create a much more enlightening and courageous project for all individuals capable of consuming media. This show effectively knows when to balance gravity and levity to give audiences a chance to understand the scale of what they are dealing with while watching. The Sympathizer is one of the best shows to come out in the past year and will absolutely stand the test of time as more people can truly watch the show in its entirety.
Final Rating: 9.5/10
Are you looking to read up on the source material? If so, then look no further! Purchase a physical copy of Viet Thanh Nguyen’s Pulitzer Prize-winning book, The Sympathizer, via our Amazon Affiliates link today!
Charnice Horne is a Gen Z writer who strives to make cultural criticism pieces at the intersection of politics and pop culture. This is often reflected through her writings on the website and her fun takes on films and television. She is a recent Political Science graduate from North Carolina looking to make even bigger waves at The Cinema Spot. 🙂
This article was edited by John Tangalin.