Zorro: we skip or watch the return of the horseman who emerges out of the night ?

© Paramount+ < p>For the start of the school year, Paramount+ wanted to make a big splash… marked with a Z. The streaming platform wants to show that in the audiovisual landscape, it is well and truly there. Thus, Paramount+ wanted to resurrect a vigilante loved by all generations: Zorro, the horseman who emerges out of the night and out of the past.

Justiciar and avenger masked, Zorro is given yet another youthful lease of life in this new series directed by Émilie Noblet and Jean-Baptiste Saurel and written by Benjamin Charbit and Noé Debré. Starring Jean Dujardin, who dreamed of wearing the famous mask, the series Zorrohas a lot of good arguments. But what is it really like ? Verdict.

Should you watch Zorro on Paramount+ ?

If you remember a charismatic Zorro, you won't really find what you're looking for in the new series led by Jean Dujardin. When you decide to revive a legendary character from a century ago, you have to know how to bring him something new. Something fresh. Benjamin Charbit and Noé Debré therefore wanted to think outside the box by presenting us with a Don Diego de la Vega in his late fifties, far too wise and formal to captivate anyone. It's been several decades since Zorro's alter ego dropped his mask, hat, sword, whip and Tornado. Well, at least his faithful servant Bernardo is still around.

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In this reinterpretation of the Zorro myth, his alter ego is a loser with a capital L. Don Diego de la Vega is ridiculed and is not taken seriously by his tyrannical father, nor by the citizens of Los Angeles (whom he is brought to lead), nor by his wife Gabriella nor by the greedy businessman Don Emmanuel. Distraught by his new duties, with a city crumbling under debt (thanks Dad), Don Diego de la Vega decides to bring Zorro back at a gallop. But time has taken its toll, and the masked avenger no longer has his former aura.

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© Paramount+

The idea of ​​demystifying the legendary hero and humanizing him is not really a bad one and it can be emphasized his audacity. But it has made us raise our eyebrows several times about its execution. As a fan of Zorro, you may be disappointed. The series focuses on humor above all, flirting with parody with too much oomph. Comedy is a genre that works particularly well for us, we know that. So, we can understand the teams who want to make Zorro a multigenerational series that will appeal to the greatest number. Self-mockery is there… But Zorro has a hard time really moving away from what the series wants to make fun of. Result: a nice stab in the water. If we did not remain completely unmoved by the series, the comic situations that truly and sincerely made us laugh are not numerous. And that's a shame.

Unfortunately, the comparison with OSS 117 is inevitable. It's hard to blame us, absurd situations and jokes follow one after the other in Zorro.Similarly, the reactions of this good old Don Diego de la Vega are not without reminding us of another character played by Jean Dujardin. All this, without really succeeding.

The real problem with Zorro is that the series wants to go in all directions. So much so that it sometimes takes superfluous paths. Finally, the viewer finds himself a little lost. Parody, satire or even social criticism, vaudeville… Zorro is in search of his identity, a little like Don Diego de la Vega. Moreover, this constant duality and the weight of this double identity that weighs on the shoulders of Don Diego de la Vega is rather enticing… Especially when his wife Gabriella falls in love with the dark Zorro. Despite everything, she can't make us join the series.

However, not everything is to be thrown away. The series offers us some epic and well-choreographed fight scenes, splendid sets as well as a soundtrack that immerses us in Los Angeles in 1821. In addition, Grégory Gadebois in the role of Sergeant Cristobal (who reminds us especially of Sergeant Garcia) is extremely funny while being very touching at the same time. But Zorro's charm will not have worked on us.

Zorro is broadcast exclusively on Paramount+ from this Friday, September 6, 2024. The series should be retransmitted on France 2 at the end of this year.

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