'All the Light We Cannot See' is a heartening and hopeful wartime tale
At a time when so much of what we see on television is devoted to ongoing coverage of war, you may not want to seek out a scripted drama about war – even long-ago World War II, and even a story based on Anthony Doerr's very popular novel. But All the Light We Cannot See, the new four-hour Netflix miniseries, is worthwhile and heartening. In the midst of the darkness and horror of war, the "Light" in the title refers to hope.
All the Light We Cannot See is told in several different time periods, and from several different perspectives – all leading to a climax in which everything somehow comes together. The main characters are two young children — a French girl named Marie-Laure and a German boy named Werner. He's a tinkerer who becomes adept at building and repairing all types of radios. She's blind, and is equally fascinated by the radio because she listens nightly to a shortwave broadcast, aimed at kids, hosted by a mysterious ham operator who calls himself the Professor.
In Paris, Marie-Laure is inspired by the Professor's messages of hope — and back in Germany, so is Werner, who intercepts the same broadcasts from his orphanage before being forced into service by the Nazis.
Eventually, the roles of these central characters are taken up by older actors. Werner, as played by Louis Hofmann, is now a teenager trained and dispatched by the Nazis to seek out illegal radio operators. And Marie-Laure, now played by Aria Mia Loberti, flees the city of Paris on foot after the Nazi occupation, suitcases in hand. She's led by her father Daniel, a museum director played by Mark Ruffalo, who's smuggling out some important museum valuables.
Their journey as refugees eventually takes them to the coastal town of Saint-Malo, where Marie-Laure's uncle Etienne, played by Hugh Laurie, is a member of the French resistance. In time, Werner, the young Nazi, is sent there to hunt down illegal radio operators. And Marie-Laure, discovering the secret location from which the Professor once made his defiantly hopeful broadcasts, decides to do the same.
This puts both Marie-Laure and her father in harm's way, hunted by other Nazis in addition to Werner, whose conflicted conscience is one of the strongest elements of All the Light We Cannot See. Laurie's character, an agoraphobic veteran of an earlier war, is touching too — but no one is as resonant, or as captivating, as Loberti as Marie-Laure.
Loberti, like the young woman she plays, is legally blind, and this is her first professional acting role — I didn't become aware of that until after I saw all four hours of this Netflix drama. I'm still blown away by how assuredly, and effectively, this relative newcomer carries the weight of her leading role. Co-creators Shawn Levy and Steven Knight, who directed and wrote this miniseries, didn't just fill a difficult and demanding part when they cast this impressive unknown. They also discovered a talented new actor.
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Transcript
TERRY GROSS, HOST:
This is FRESH AIR. "All The Light We Cannot See," the Pulitzer Prize-winning novel by Anthony Doerr, has been adapted into a new four-part miniseries premiering today on Netflix. The story takes place in the years before and during the Nazi occupation of France in World War II and features Mark Ruffalo and Hugh Laurie as its most recognizable stars. But our TV critic David Bianculli says that the lesser-known younger actors are equally worthy of attention. Here's his review.
DAVID BIANCULLI, BYLINE: At a time when so much of what we see on television is devoted to ongoing coverage of war, you may not want to seek out a scripted drama about war, even long ago World War II and even a story based on a very popular novel. But "All The Light We Cannot See," the new four-hour Netflix miniseries, is worthwhile and heartening. In the midst of the darkness and horror of war, the light in the title refers to hope. "All The Light We Cannot See" is told in several different time periods and from several different perspectives, all leading to a climax in which everything somehow comes together.
The main characters are two young children, a French girl named Marie-Laure, referred to as Marie in the television series, and a German boy named Werner. He's a tinkerer who becomes adept at building and repairing all types of radios. She's blind and is equally fascinated by the radio because she listens nightly to a shortwave broadcast, aimed at kids, hosted by a mysterious ham operator who calls himself the Professor. In Paris, Marie is inspired by the Professor's messages of hope. And back in Germany, so is Werner, who intercepts the same broadcasts from his orphanage before being forced into service by the Nazis.
Eventually, the roles of these central characters are taken up by older actors. Werner, as played by Louis Hofmann, is now a teenager trained and dispatched by the Nazis to seek out illegal radio operators. And Marie, now played by Aria Mia Loberti, flees the city of Paris on foot after the Nazi occupation, suitcases in hand. She's led by her father, Daniel, a museum director played by Mark Ruffalo, who's smuggling out some important museum valuables. As Daniel and Marie begin their arduous journey, he reaches to take one of her suitcases and is surprised by the weight his daughter has been carrying.
(SOUNDBITE OF TV SHOW, "ALL THE LIGHT WE CANNOT SEE")
MARK RUFFALO: (As Daniel LeBlanc) It's so heavy. Is this your radio?
ARIA MIA LOBERTI: (As Marie-Laure LeBlanc) Where we're going, they may not have one. And I want to know what the Professor thinks of what's happening.
RUFFALO: (As Daniel LeBlanc) Marie, I'm sorry, but we cannot take this with us.
LOBERTI: (As Marie-Laure LeBlanc) So can you explain to me why a whole city is running away with nowhere to run to? Can you explain why the Jews are running the fastest? Can you explain why one country wants to own another?
RUFFALO: (As Daniel LeBlanc) I cannot. I can't explain any of it.
LOBERTI: (As Marie-Laure LeBlanc) On the radio, they say the Nazis hate anyone who's different, and they hate anyone who speaks the truth.
RUFFALO: (As Daniel LeBlanc) Marie.
LOBERTI: (As Marie-Laure LeBlanc) Listen to me. Listen. I'm different. I know I am. I know you've tried to protect me, but I'm different, and you speak the truth.
RUFFALO: (As Daniel LeBlanc) Yes, and I'll stay silent to keep you safe. The only different thing about you is that you're willing to carry a heavy weight at your side in order to hear the truth, which is one of the many extraordinary things about you, Marie. In life, you must never hide who you are. But in war, being unseen can keep you alive.
BIANCULLI: Their journey as refugees eventually takes them to the coastal town of Saint-Malo, where Marie's uncle Etienne, played by Hugh Laurie, is a member of the French Resistance. In time, Werner, the young Nazi, is sent there to hunt down illegal radio operators. And Marie, discovering the secret location from which the Professor once made his defiantly hopeful broadcasts, decides to do the same.
(SOUNDBITE OF TV SHOW, "ALL THE LIGHT WE CANNOT SEE")
LOBERTI: (As Marie-Laure LeBlanc) Ladies and gentlemen, before I begin my broadcast today, I have something to say, something from my own heart. Many years ago, a great professor used to offer words of wisdom to children on this very frequency.
BIANCULLI: This puts both Marie and her father in harm's way, hunted by other Nazis in addition to Werner, whose conflicted conscience is one of the strongest elements of "All The Light We Cannot See." Hugh Laurie's character, an agoraphobic veteran of an earlier war, is touching, too. But no one is as resonant or as captivating as Aria Mia Loberti as Marie. Loberti, like the young woman she plays, is legally blind, and this is her first professional acting role. I didn't become aware of that until after I saw all four hours of this Netflix drama, and I'm still blown away by how assuredly and effectively she carries the weight of her leading role. Co-creators Shawn Levy and Steven Knight, who directed and wrote this miniseries, didn't just fill a difficult and demanding part when they cast this impressive unknown, they also discovered a talented new actress.
GROSS: David Bianculli is professor of television studies at Rowan University. He reviewed the miniseries "All The Light We Cannot See," which is streaming on Netflix. If you'd like to catch up on FRESH AIR interviews you missed - like this week's interviews with David Byrne, co-founder of Talking Heads, and Adam Kinzinger, one of the two Republicans who served on the House select committee investigating the attack on the Capitol - check out our podcast. You'll find lots of FRESH AIR interviews. For a look behind the scenes of our show, subscribe to our free newsletter. You'll find bonus material about the interviews, staff recommendations and highlights from the archives. You can subscribe at whyy.org/freshair.
(SOUNDBITE OF BRAD MEHLDAU'S "JOHN BOY")
GROSS: FRESH AIR's executive producer is Danny Miller. Our technical director is Audrey Bentham. Our engineer this week is Adam Staniszewski. Our interviews and reviews are produced and edited by Amy Salit, Phyllis Myers, Roberta Shorrock, Ann Marie Baldonado, Sam Briger, Lauren Krenzel, Heidi Saman, Therese Madden, Seth Kelley and Susan Nyakundi. Our digital media producer is Molly Seavy-Nesper. Thea Chaloner directed today's show. Our co-host is Tonya Mosley. I'm Terry Gross.
(SOUNDBITE OF BRAD MEHLDAU'S "JOHN BOY") Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
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