An adaptation that will delight fans of the video game as much as those who do not know it.
The year 2023 is off to a very strong start for series fans with “The Last Of Us”, the first episode of which will be posted on Prime Video in France this Monday, January 16.
A broadcast announced at the last minute, when many French spectators were worried that the fiction, produced for the cable channel HBO across the Atlantic, was not scheduled here.
We had to wait for the announcement of a partnership with the Amazon platform a few days ago to be reassured.
Why such a wait?
First, because "The Last of Us" is a video game phenomenon.
When it was released in 2013, it caused a sensation, hailed from all sides for the quality of its aesthetics but above all for its screenplay, which gave pride of place to emotions.
Multi-award winning (including a “Parisien” Star in 2013), the title has sold 17 million copies worldwide.
If the raw material seemed perfect to be reborn in series, its execution should not be missed.
An outstanding duo
The creator of the game, Neil Druckmann, is at the helm of this adaptation, alongside Craig Mazin, creator and screenwriter of the exceptional mini-series “Chernobyl”.
Another delicate point to take care of: the choice of actors to embody the two heroes.
Because the story of "The Last of Us" is that of Joel and Ellie.
The action takes place in a world ravaged by a fungus that colonizes human organisms, turning them into killer zombies.
The series begins in 2003, when the first infected appeared, before jumping twenty years later, when the survivors are parked in quarantine zones.
Joel, a man broken by life and turned black market trafficker, finds himself reluctantly tasked with escorting Ellie, a 14-year-old girl apparently immune to the virus, across the United States.
Pedro Pascal embodies this man, 56 years old on the screen.
The 47-year-old Chilean-American actor, seen in "Game of Thrones", "Narcos" and "The Mandalorian", extends his serial CV without false note.
Facing him, Bella Ramsey lends her features to Ellie.
The 19-year-old actress blew away Game of Thrones fans as Lyanna Mormont, an iron-fisted clan leader despite her young age.
It's very simple, she stole the show from all her playmates at each appearance.
The chemistry between the two actors is palpable, ensuring a large part of the success of the series.
The scenario, faithful to that of the first opus of the video game (a sequel was released in 2020), combines drama and emotion, horror and action, feelings and violence.
Without forgetting a touch of incisive humor that often comes from the mouth of Ellie, whose impertinence is a treat.
A well-crafted plot
This real feat is served by a narration that leaves room for the development of certain secondary characters well beyond their evocation in the game. It is also an opportunity to meet a multitude of familiar faces over the nine shutters: Anna Torv (“Fringe”, “Mindhunter”), Nick Offerman (“Parks and Recreation”), Murray Bartlett (“The White Lotus”, “Welcome to Chippendales”), Melanie Lynskey (“Yellowjackets”), Rutina Wesley (“TrueBlood”)…
There is a grace in "The Last of Us" that, despite its dark side, sometimes warms hearts.
Episode 3 is at this level a master class.
In the “survival series” genre, of which “The Walking Dead” is the most popular example of recent years, this new fiction also stands out by delivering an extremely well-constructed plot, where each episode has its own identity.
The action does not constantly evolve in a gray world of ruins.
On the contrary, the different seasons and contrasting landscapes make it possible to never fall into monotony.
A single episode will be uploaded to Prime Video each Monday, following US programming.
This sometimes frustrating pace will still allow you to fully appreciate the story, its subtleties, the emotions that flow from it.
Because you have to savor “The Last of Us”, it is not every day that such a successful series arrives on our screens.
Editor's note:
5/5
“The Last Of Us”, American series by Neil Druckmann and Craig Mazin (2023), with Bella Ramsey, Pedro Pascal, Anna Torv… Nine episodes of 43 to 81 minutes each.
