Néro the Assassin Review
Director: Ludovic Colbeau-Justin and Allan Mauduit
Date Created: 2025-10-09 02:30
2.5
Néro the Assassin Review: Directed by Ludovic Colbeau-Justin and Allan Mauduit, the Netflix show assembles a star-studded French cast headed by Pio Marmaï as Néro, Camille Razat as the enigmatic witch, along with Yann Gael, Alice Isaaz, Olivier Gourmet and others. The eight-episode fantasy series runs for around fifty minutes per episode, combining medieval ambience, religion, and magic into one narrative revolving around faith, rebellion, and the price of power.
It was supposed to be a black historical epic with epic world-building and depth of feeling. But in reality, Néro the Assassin is a disappointment. Lacking any lasting emotional resonance, the show fails despite having eye-popping visuals and commanding performances.
Néro the Assassin Review
The story is about Néro, a killing master who is swept into a deadly prophecy that sets him on a collision course with his errant daughter, Perla. They navigate a drought-stricken France that is ruled via terror, with the Church hunting witches and suffocating all things that have any relation to sorcery. Néro’s is a dark and broken universe, and that is the perfect setup for a juicy daddy-daughter story as well as a treatise on blind faith. Too bad the show never really takes that turn.
Instead, Netflix’s Néro the Assassin just brings new characters and plot points into the mix without allowing the viewer to truly form attachments. I was hoping I could be able to be invested in the guilt of Néro or the distress of Perla, but the writing keeps them distant. Most interactions between the two characters are ineffective, and the love that should have been the focal point of the show is left starved. You can get a glimpse of something special, but too much din kills that.
Néro the Assassin Series gets one thing absolutely right, and that is the aesthetic scale. Sets, production, and cinematography are second to none. Drought-ridden landscapes and rock-like castles are historically rich, and the show conveys the desperation of a land that was deprived of magic. Lighting and design have that high-end fantasy drama polish that Netflix is accustomed to, and sword battles and action are beautifully choreographed.
Yet, the direction often feels lifeless. Every emotional moment, from betrayals to deaths, plays out with the same tone. There’s no real tension or rhythm. Even when the story builds toward something dramatic, the editing undercuts the emotion by moving too quickly to the next plot point. The series wants to be an epic, but it lacks the passion and energy that make an epic truly memorable.
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If there is one thing that will keep audiences tuned into French drama Néro, is the acting. Pio Marmaï gives a decent performance as a man tormented by his past. He brings stillness and strength into his character, although the storyline keeps him from displaying much depth. Camille Razat, as the one-eyed witch, is likely the least uninteresting figure on the show. Her unnerving calmness and variable personality bring some zest into the otherwise uneventful current. Her character could have been the focal point of the narrative, yet she ends up hanging without a purpose or meaning by the finale.
Alice Isaaz as Hortense also suffers from the slim material, bringing the political plot just a little bit of energy. Yet, despite the excellence in acting, the problematic script can never be entirely rescued. In the past, the language too frequently echoed too formally or too tediously, and little humour or spontaneous interaction among people was on the horizon. For that reason, the show is more history lesson than a fertile, vital world.
What I was frustrated with the most in the series Néro the Assassin is that it sets up interesting premises, religion versus magic, power versus sacrifice, and the ethical corruption of institutions, and then never goes deep enough. It obviously wants to make the statement about how fanaticism can kill off truth, and the quest for salvation can blind individuals. But these remain on the surface.
Even in the later episodes, when the Perla sacrifice is aimed at bringing forth rain and reviving “magic,” the emotional and symbolic feel is jarring. It is not that there is any setup that would make such a climax be effective. It is the kind that should have you wanting to ponder or weep, not one that will have you somewhat confused and uninvested.
What is particularly disappointing in the Netflix series Néro the Assassin is that the premise had such potential. A world where religion conflicts with forsaken sorcery, a witch who is potentially something more, and a killer in need of redemption, all these are present. But the show never quite incorporates these into a cohesive, rewarding narrative. It wanders through slow portions of tedious travelling sequences, then hits frenetic running sequences that have no impact on the level of feeling.
The editing is similarly inconsistent. Central scenes, such as Perla’s transformation or the judgments of Néro, occur so quickly that you barely have time to absorb them. It is choppy narration, as if central scenes were left on the cutting-room floor.
Netflix Néro the Assassin Review: Summing Up
Overall, the Néro the Assassin was disappointing. Effort is put into the performances and the visuals, but the story is lacking heart, and the pace robs any emotional oomph. For a show that is all about self-sacrifice, religion, and magic, the show is surprisingly stripped bare. It’s not bad, as we get glimpses that have promise, but the show never realises the fantasy drama that it promises.
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