When looking for compatibility in a partner, we put into consideration, a lot many filters – Habits, Intellect, Physical Appearance, Security, Personality and the list is unending . What a lot many of us miss, is the compatibility of Intimacy. Are they as wild or as fun as we are, will they keep spicing up the intimate notions even after getting married? These are some important themes covered by Netflix’s Swedish Comedy Series – “Love & Anarchy.” Set up in an office environment, it centers a married woman and an IT Tech guy who get involved in an unexpected flirting game.
Created by Lisa Langseth, “Love & Anarchy” Season 1 consists of eight episodes of approximately half an hour each. The series is made in Swedish language and is mostly adult rated due to its intimate scenes, without any censorship. Some of it might be required to give the series it’s sensual tone. The series mostly revolves around it’s protagonist Sofie (Ida Engvoll) and it’s her story till the end.
The Story
“Love & Anarchy” Season 1 begins with Sofie, who is married with two kids. The chemistry between Sofie and her husband looks pretty normal until we find out that it’s just intimacy that is amiss in her married life.
Sofie is a consultant who has recently started working in a publishing house. She is hired to create a digital presence of the business. It is in the small office, where Sofie meets a young IT guy Max (Björn Mosten) who is on a temporary job. Sofie and Max don’t mutually gel initially but things get out of hand, when Max finds Sofie touching herself in the office, late at night. He clicks her picture to blackmail her. Well, it isn’t any dark drama so the tension is released quickly between them which is transformed into a flirty relationship between them. Max starts giving Sofie interesting dares, which spice up their newly formed relationship.
While Sofie deals with problems at work and her marriage, she is burdened up with the responsibility of a revolting father who hates capitalism and protests on any platform he gets. Sofie, in the midst of all Chaos, finds her peace and fun in Max, but will she be able to continue this secret relationship? That’s what “Love & Anarchy” Season 1 explores in the further episodes.
An Already Explored Territory
“Love & Anarchy” Season 1 has very little freshness or uniqueness attached to it. It is short and attractive at times but not substantial in terms of story or characters. It is a binge which you could really miss and not feel bad about it. Reason being, many of the sequences or plot seemed to be influenced by famous series like “The Office” that explores the same environment of an office. The only uniqueness attached to the plot is Sofie and Max, and their relationship. Dares exchanged between Sofie and Max are the center of attention of the whole series. It keeps one invested but when it is not there, one can easily be swayed away. The creators have tried their best to extend this alluring chemistry between them, and keep things a mystery for a while, but when events turn towards the dramatic part of the series, there is no engrossing or entertaining layer attached to the whole thing. It becomes dull.
The series works best with it’s explicit bold scenes but whenever the series tries to explore the other themes, subplots or sub characters, it falls flat to boredom. The other characters are not anything new or creative. Even the publishing house set up works marvelously for a period but when it starts deriving ideas from other famous shows, it becomes monotonous, repetitive and predictable. Additionally, the direction has been approached casually to give actors space for improvisation. There was an interesting theme that creators tried to underline, but it didn’t result in anything significant. Sofie is not fed up in her marriage, or her husband is having an affair. It is a very unusual situation where the passionate intimacy is missing and one can not explain these circumstances, if they haven’t been there. I found the idea intriguing but it was not given enough weight. The series followed the cheesy idea of a young boy and a married woman in its approach.
Final Words
“Love & Anarchy” isn’t some serious or boring drama that is too preachy. It will give you small adrenaline rush and is arousing for some parts, with all it’s interesting and sensuous dares. If you are looking to watch something on a weekend, with your better half, or alone, then the Swedish series can be an interesting watch. It will keep you interested and engrossed.
“Love & Anarchy” Season 1 is streaming on Netflix.
