queen sono review

Because no matter how many things Queen Sono does less effectively than Alias did — and I'll get to that soon — this is a far more complicated and immediate perspective than the one ever attempted by that Jennifer Garner favorite. Queen Sono (Spoiler-Free) Review. (The initials S.S. aren’t remarked on, but are hard to miss.). EMAIL ME. In six episodes, the series does more than diversify the spy genre, it expands the very nature of it. Queen Sono sees Thusi play the heroine, a woman who is a field operative of the Special Operations Group (SOG). And for the unfamiliar viewer, they’re also in the locations — not just Johannesburg but also Zimbabwe, Kenya and, in a Bond-style opening, Zanzibar. Her mother, Safiya Sono, was a revolutionary whose efforts to free her country from apartheid made her one of the nation’s most revered heroes. Even if you ignore the transgeographical flow of the series, Lediga made a concerted effort capture a linguistic collage of Northern and Southern tongues in the continent. Unlike most spy thrillers in which statuesque, expensively dressed women show an unexpected talent for kicking the bejeezus out of armed men, the South African series “Queen Sono” also devotes a lot of time to historical and geopolitical debate, or at least sloganeering. Netflix may not have been a big winner on Oscar night, but part of me wonders if the streamer deserves at least a modicum of credit for the relative ease with which audiences were able to embrace Bong Joon Ho's Parasite. They tend to show up arbitrarily, on what feels like someone’s idea of an action-show timetable. The Office Was Reportedly 2020's … + by Zaid Kriel Updated March 3, 2020, 9:49 a.m. Posted Feb. 28, 2020, 5 a.m. Subtitles on Queen Sono also identify the wide variety of languages spoken onscreen (in addition to English), which range from Russian, French and Afrikaans to languages like isiXhosa, isiZulu, Xitsonga and several others that weren't granted this sort of exposure when, for example, Jack Bauer spent several hours dealing with child soldiers in "Sangala." When she's asked to play high emotion, she's far less compelling and her capacity with action is decidedly limited. Queen Sono, a series inspired by modern espionage movies laced with high-tech and swift-cut fist-fights, made its global debut on Netflix on Friday. Queen Sono is a thought-provoking show that embodies the juxtaposition between the beautiful South African culture and a rough political and social reality. The series deals with subjects like corrupt politicians, complex family histories, secret missions and foreigners' interests in the continent. They’re also in the show’s freewheeling, lightly cynical humor — the fictional leader of South Africa is described as “their idiot president” by an outsider and “the most bribable statesman on the planet” by one of his own citizens. Legendary South African actress, Abigail Kubekha, plays Queen’s grandmother. This spy thriller series follows femme fatale Queen Sono, a beautiful secret agent with a troubled past (is there any other kind?) Entertaining and rich in context, if slightly limited by budget. On the other hand, if you do have some experience with African TV — the glossy, unapologetic melodramas of Nollywood or the viscerally brutal action thrillers of South Africa — you may find “Queen Sono” unsatisfyingly in-between, a halfhearted and problematic attempt to dress up a soft Western-style drama. Production stills from the set of Netflix Queen Sono with Pearl Thusi, directed by Kagiso Lediga. The Gist: Queen Sono (Pearl Thusi) is a spy for a South African organization called the Special Operations Group; their mission is to improve the lives of … March 11, 2020 Jean Henegan Comment(0) If you’ve ever felt nostalgic for Alias, the early 2000s ABC spy drama that launched Jennifer Garner’s career, Queen Sono is definitely a show for you. Or, like The Black Panther but make it make sense? Queen Sono is a great exploration of the African landscape, both literally and figuratively. By Marvs 27 Jun 2020 29 Jun 2020. Cast: Pearl Thusi, Vuyo Dabula, Sechaba Morojele, Chi Mhende, Loyiso Madinga, Rob Van Vuuren, Kate Liquorish, Khathu Ramabulana, Enhle Maphumulo, Abigail Kubeka. Queen Sono Season 1 - Review. Season 1 Review: Queen Sono is thrilling and fun to watch, and while there are plenty of classic spy tropes to keep it firmly planted in the genre, it’s absolutely unique in its focus. Daniel Fienberg It’s an action series with a fabulous female heroine played by … Rave reviews for Queen Sono Mbalenhle. ), Queen is an ace at hand-to-hand combat, but she, and the show, are saddled with an omnipresent back story about her mother, an activist killed in mysterious circumstances when Queen was a child. South African spy Queen Sono finds herself in a nefarious web of business and politics as she seeks to uncover the truth behind her mother's death. That means he makes a lot of deliberate and even bold decisions. comparisons, or even my own Alias comparison, I guess. Sitemap | AdChoices The narrative is fueled by the optimism that greeted the post-apartheid revolution in the mid-'90s, subsequent disappointments and the multi-century history of European colonialism and corporate control of the entire continent and its often ruinous effects. Lediga and fellow director Tebogo Malope travel Africa, shooting from Johannesburg to Soweto to Lagos to Zanzibar, and there's a fresh and colorful look to the entire series that could never be equalled by taking a few days of production in Morocco or even New Mexico and slapping an "AFRICA" chyron across the screen. Though there may be a remaining audience that attaches a stigma to reading TV shows or movies, there's something wonderfully progressive to the way Netflix has blurred international and linguistic boundaries such that "Hey, that looks good!" With gorgeous costuming and a colorful soundtrack, there’s little the show gets wrong. An armed band that might be terrorists or might be freedom fighters declares its intent to liberate Africa from “the clutches of colonization.” A hapless do-gooder calls out the primary villain for being a neocolonialist, and is quickly abducted with extreme prejudice. Queen Sono Season 1 - Review. It definitely deserves more of a chance to find its footing than much of the dreck Netflix has produced in its ever-growing need to create a constant flow of content. 5 due in PE court for rape, murder of EC teen. 2 years, 11 months. 1. It's hard to tell if Thusi isn't able to execute Queen's physicality, if the flaws are with the South African stunt professional or if the directors are simply less adroit with set pieces, but Queen Sono has an unfortunate tendency to fall flat at exactly the wrong points. Queen Sono is Netflix’s first script-to-screen series produced in Africa, a testament to the creative chops of show creator Kagiso Lediga. Maybe Queen Sono isn't always exciting, but it's sometimes provocative in very real ways, eschewing that frequently used buzzword of "Afrofuturism" for "Afrocontemporism" that's plenty valuable on the small screen. Review: With ‘Queen Sono,’ Netflix Enters New Territory A spy thriller about a South African secret agent is the streaming monolith’s first … Directed by Kagiso Lediga, Queen Sono is an engaging crime series that grabs your attention from the very first minutes with its many twists. Review: “Queen Sono ... Queen Sono isn’t just a story to be told; it’s Lediga’s chance to show off modern-day Africa to the world. Queen Sono: Review. Netflix has finally delivered us their first original program filmed completely in Africa, Queen Sono. So I mean, yes, you could just watch Queen Sono as a standard piece of spy TV and there's fun to be had in that experience, but that's the sort of surface viewership that leads to facile, "Oh, it's Homeland in Africa!" Summary Netflix’s Queen Sono Season 1 is an exciting African original series about a spy desperate to learn the truth regarding her murdered mother 25 years ago. Queen Sono will gain attention for being Netflix’s first African original series. (Its size — five core members — makes you wonder whether the budget for “Queen Sono” wasn’t as generous as it was for other Netflix series. Netflix’s ‘Queen Sono’ Review: A low-action spy thriller with high entertainment value. | EU Privacy Preferences. That framework is certainly a serious part of Lediga’s conception of the show, and it serves a similar purpose, in terms of setting a mood, as do the more anonymous conspiracies and injustices of American or French noir. 2020-03-02. Overall, Queen Sono is a colorful, exciting romp of a spy thriller that deserves a second season. Queen Sono (TV Series 2020– ) cast and crew credits, including actors, actresses, directors, writers and more. Read the recap of the first episode. But “Queen Sono,” created by the South African writer and performer Kagiso Lediga, doesn’t compromise when it comes to rooting its story close to home. Director of HBO's Tiger Woods documentary reveals … Between the speeches about colonial legacies and about historical atonement, there are plenty of throwdowns and chases and shootouts, staged with competence if not much flair. The show’s embodiment of that outlook, and the motor of the season’s plot, is an alliance (perhaps plausible, but presented in awfully broad strokes) between a squad of black-nationalist revolutionaries and a Russian security outfit called Superior Solutions. Queen is unpredictable, headstrong, street-savvy, and doesn’t like to play by the rules. Queen — … Causing drama in the early episodes is the uncomfortable intersection between the corrupt South African political regime, a private military contractor headed by Russian oligarch Ekaterina Gromova (Kate Liquorish) and a nationalist paramilitary faction called Watu Wema, headed by Shandu (Vuyo Dabula), a fiery man with ties to Queen's past. A flawed, but fun, African flavoured spy romp well worth the data it will take to stream. More Like This. The title character, played by Pearl Thusi — she was the lawyer and C.I.A. But spelling it out makes “Queen Sono” sound a lot more serious than it is. That “Queen Sono” is unremarkable as an action and crime drama doesn’t cancel the excitement of seeing something new (if it’s indeed new to you). The show isn't as effective capturing or justifying the cover-story side of Queen's life, and that leaves the characterizations really thin for Ramabulana and for Enhle Maphumulo, who plays Will's girlfriend, Nova. Queen Sono tells a spy story from a South African point of view; the country’s history and its relationship with other countries are at the core of … There's a top gear the show keeps not being able to reach, whether it's a limitation of editing and fight choreography or a failure to find scale at what couldn't have been a towering budget. The real colonizer, of course, is the one behind the screen: Netflix, where the six episodes of this sprawling, earnest, likable show debut on Friday. Read full review TWITTER Queen Sono makes sure to grab your attention and never lets go. As with other test cases for narrative globalization, like the South Korean “Kingdom” or the Scandinavian “Ragnarok,” you can sense the bending of local traditions toward Netflix norms: the six-episode season; the emphasis on action and mystery; the clockwork interjections of a Westernized, universally intelligible wry humor. Queen Sono makes sure to grab your attention and never lets go. I Am Queen Sono 45m. So, click on my review to see which one will be the show you have to watch. 10:18 AM PST 2/28/2020 Netflix has encouraged audiences to understand that if you, for example, like CW-style teen soap operas, you aren't beholden exclusively to The CW to produce them when you might find equally entertaining genre entries from Spain or Denmark, just like you'll rapidly discover that the rhythms of the Dick Wolf-style procedural have spread across the globe. From costumes to soundtrack choices to the cast, Queen Sono has confidence in its voice and identity. The cast isn't always a strength, mind you. Queen Sono, … And at only six episodes, there isn't nearly enough time for the myriad less successful elements to become serious impediments. Netflix's first script-to-screen African original series, Queen Sono, follows in the footsteps of many of the streamer's better international efforts. 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