Assane Diop has devised a daring and subtle heist to steal the legendary necklace of Queen Marie-Antoinette, on display at the Louvres. He succeeds in seizing this legendary jewel, leaving the police completely lost, with no solid leads. But for him, victory remains bitter. What he really wants is to understand how his father could have been found guilty of stealing the necklace 25 years earlier. His father, an honest and good man, whose only legacy is the book he gave him, Arsène Lupin. Now a father in his own right, Assane is unable to enjoy life to the full, as the shadow of this injustice still hangs over him. He needs to understand why Pellegrini, the owner of the necklace and his father’s employer, did everything in his power to have him convicted despite dubious circumstances.
Lupin is a good series, thanks to a well-crafted plot and the charisma of Omar Sy. The story is intriguing, you always want to know what happens next, and of course you can’t help but understand a wounded child’s quest for justice. The angle of adaptation of the original novel is certainly original and interesting. Omar Sy’s charm shines through and, like Georges Descrières in the 70s, this gentleman burglar is very convincing.
My only regret is that the script doesn’t exploit the secondary characters sufficiently. Yet the cast is very good. Policemen, bad guys or those close to Assane, they all deserved a bit more of the spotlight, a bit more writing about their past and their motivations. But Lupin remains a remarkably effective series, the kind you’ll devour without even wanting to!
3 seasons, ongoing, 17 episodes (45 mn), 2021 -, on Netflix
WITH : Omar Sy / Assane Diop, Ludivine Sagnier / Claire, Etan Simon / Raoul, Antoine Gouy / Benjamin, Hervé Pierre, Nicole Garcia, Clotilde Hesme / the Pellegini family, Soufiane Guerrab, Vincent Londez, Shirine Boutella / the police detectives…