Anthracite () is a six part French television series, created by Fanny Robert and Maxime Berthemy and released on 10 April 2024, on Netflix. Included in its cast are the rapper Hatik, Noémie Schmidt, and Camille Lou. It is loosely based on the Order of the Solar Temple, a group which was tied to several mass suicides. It is not a direct recreation of the Solar Temple story, as the group and people depicted are all wholly fictional.
The series received mixed reviews, with praise for the scenic appeal of its settings and mystery, but criticism over its plot and storytelling. Anthracite was Netflix's first "ecologically sensitive" production, with the production involving an "eco-referrent" who measured the climate impact of the series, and with a portion of the carbon cost being donated by Netflix.
Synopsis When journalist Solal Heilman disappears in Lévionna, a fictional small town in the French Alps, his daughter Ida sets out to find him. She travels to the town, where she meets ex-convict Jaro. The two investigate, revealing secrets linked to a cult which was active in Lévionna thirty years earlier, in 1994.
Cast and characters Hatik: Jaro Gatsi Camille Lou: Giovanna DeLuca, a police officer Noémie Schmidt: Ida Heilman, "websleuth" Masha Billy: Malia Gatsi, Jaro's daughter Nicolas Godart: Romeo DeLuca, Giovanna's brother Isabelle Candelier: Carmela DeLuca, Giovanna and Romeo's mother : Erwan Le Floch Basile Violette: Titouan Le Floch, Giovanna and Erwan's son Jean-Marc Barr: Solal Heilman, Ida's father, investigative journalist : Caleb Johansson, leader of the sect Kad Merad: Claude Chevallier, Jaro's uncle Romane de Stabenrath: Juliette Chevallier, Jaro's mother : Marie Chevallier, Claude's wife Marianne Basler: Valérie Faure : young Valérie Faure Vincent Rottiers: Vincent Léo Legrand: Hari Faure, doctor and Romeo's boyfriend Bernard Blancan: Denis Monnier Anaïs Parello: Anaïs Aymard Ludmilla Makowski: Emma Marçais, murder victim Étienne Diallo: Sofiane Klaus Séverine Vincent: La Detraz Apollonia Luisetti: young La Detraz
Episodes
Background and production Anthracite was Netflix's first "ecologically sensitive" production, with the production involving an "eco-referrent" who measured the climate impact of the series, and with 1% of the carbon cost being donated by Netflix to environmental groups. The series was released 10 April 2024 on Netflix. The creators of the series were Fanny Robert and Maxime Berthemy, while it was directed by Julius Berg.
It is loosely based on the case of the Order of the Solar Temple, responsible for the December 1995 massacre in Isère, as well as several other mass suicides that killed 74 people in total throughout the 1990s. It is not a direct recreation: the cult named is fictional, the series is set in a fictional village instead of the real location, and the characters are wholly fictional. Robert said the case had deeply affected her when she was a teenager, telling a journalist that:
Reception Stephanie Morgan, writing for Common Sense Media, criticized the series and rated it two stars out of five, arguing its dialogue was poor, as was the storytelling overall with "jarring portrayals of violence and dark themes [that] overshadow any potential for a compelling mystery". Several reviews praised the visual appeal of the mountainous setting.
Cécile Lecoultre, writing for the Swiss newspaper 24 heures, criticized the series as confused and cliché. Lecoultre said its similarities to the Solar Temple case were "anecdotal" outside of "morbidly trashy sequences" revolving around the rituals of the group, and said one should go to works like La Fraternité, Les Mystères sanglants de l'OTS, and Shock Waves instead if one wanted to focus on the Solar Temple. Joel Keller writing for Decider tentatively recommended the series, criticizing what he called its "tonal quirkiness" but praising its mystery. He said its tone was odd and torn between being "a cult-based murder thriller" or "a sometimes silly treatise on how effective web sleuths can be".
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