LONDON: Before “Expats” had even been seen, the show became mired in controversy — not just because of star Nicole Kidman’s exemption from COVID-19 quarantine protocols when travelling to Hong Kong to film the miniseries, but also for its portrayal of the 2014 Umbrella protests which took place in the city, and criticism of its focus on expatriate life during a period of social and political upheaval for the local population.
Which is a shame because, at its heart (and three instalments into its six-episode run), “Expats” is a slick, concise, multi-voice drama which asks some interesting questions about the dynamics between wealthy expats and the local population into which they may or may not choose to integrate. Series creator and director Lulu Wang adapts Janice Y K Lee’s 2016 novel with a stylish eye, painting Hong Kong with all its promise and (some of its) problems on show. To do that, she’s assembled a talented cast to tell this multi-layered story — led by Kidman and Sarayu Blue as expat wives Margaret and Hilary, and Ji-young Yoo as disenfranchised graduate Mercy. How their stories (and those of their families and friends) intersect is key to the premise of “Expats”, particularly when a tragic incident sends ripples through the community.
Wang does an excellent job of portraying the stark isolation of expatriate life, and the occasional tenuousness of relationships formed between people united by shared loneliness. To that end, Kidman and Blue bounce off each other nicely, each trying to support the other while also dealing with their own complex situations. Mercy’s storyline weaves in and out of the other narrative strands, with Yoo doing a lot of the show’s heavy lifting in her portrayal of a deeply conflicted young woman in a city that won’t allow her a chance to catch her breath.
Wang intercuts these complicated human stories with lingering shots of Hong Kong — an equally complicated and conflicted character in its own right. That contrast between material luxury and intense isolation is an affecting one, and makes “Expats” an uncomfortable, yet captivating, show to watch. It’s not perfect — the show tends to pose more questions about societal disparity than it really answers — but it is engaging, and certainly worth the investment of a few hours.
