‘The Law According to Lidia Poet’ Review: A Period Piece with Too Many Modern Sensibilities.
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Legal dramas have been the fuel of television almost since its inception. The figure of the lawyer as an agent of justice has gone through multiple phases in fiction, and thanks to it, we have been able to experience wonderful stories. From Atticus Finch to Ally McBeal, television has been the home of many fictional lawyers. This time, Netflix is trying to bring another lawyer into the public consciousness, but this time it is actually a real person, Lidia Poet, the first Italian female lawyer.
Guido Iuculano and Davide Orsini created the series, which stars Matilda De Angelis, Dario Aita, Sara Lazzaro, Pierluigi Pasino, and Eduardo Scarpetta. The series tells the story of Lidia Poet, the daughter of a famous lawyer in a family of lawyers, who has decided to take on the profession herself. Lidia studies the law and can graduate and become a member of the order of lawyers in Turin, Italy. However, when she is disbarred under the argument that she is a woman, she would have to find other methods to keep practicing the law and appeal to the order’s decision.
The first thing to notice about The Law According to Lidia Poet is that it is a very beautiful show to look at. The series’ production values are solid, and it seems all departments are doing their best to recreate the Turin of the 19th century. The costumes are amazing and bring tons of flavor and color to each scene. Some of the sets could be looking a bit better. There seems to be little done to make them feel closer to the correct time period. But the show uses so many beautiful old buildings that you can really just ignore some details.
So, with very solid production values to back it up, the series already seems promising from the first episode. Thankfully, while it never reaches the highs of some of the best lawyer shows out there, there is enough here to watch and be fully entertained throughout the entire season of six episodes. This is the major strength of the show. The entertainment factor is quite high, and each of the mysteries that are presented to Lidia in every episode is simple but interesting enough to make you follow her train of thought until the end.
The show also has a number of subplots that make the entire series feel more dynamic. Every episode has a “case of the week” type of structure, and most of them are completely resolved by the end of each episode. However, the show also has an overarching arc that deals with Lidia and her role as a leader of the women who want to partake in the law profession. This is, of course, something that happened in real life and is a big part of the legacy of the real Lidia Poet.
There is also quite a bit of romance, as Lidia is quite a beautiful woman, and as she becomes increasingly famous in Turin society, she starts being approached by more and more suitors. We could say the show has a bit of everything, including humor, mystery, romance, and social commentary. However, when considering that The Law According to Lidia Poet is a period piece, many of the characters and their approach to the story feel very modern, a bit too much at times.
The way the characters express their feelings and emotions and just the way they talk and go about their daily chores, everything they do, feels very modern. This breaks the immersion quite a bit. There is nothing wrong with having the characters behave that way, but at least for me, it really took me out of the story several times. It makes the entire project feel like people playing dress up, which is, of course, what every TV show and film is, but the point is that you shouldn’t feel that is the case.
The only thing that remains clear as day a part of the 19th century is the misogyny our main character must suffer. It is all just because she wants to be a lawyer, but men don’t believe she can be one. Everything else feels like it could be happening right now. De Angelis kills it in the main role. She is not only beautiful, but she also has a great level of charisma that will drag you through every episode until you reach the end of the season. With only six episodes, it seems like a binge-watch is certainly viable.
In the end, The Law According to Lidia Poet is a very entertaining and fabulous show that feels like a welcome addition to the plethora of lawyer shows that can be found on Netflix and other streaming services. The costumes are gorgeous, and the overall production values are quite solid. There is a bit of a disconnect between the period the show wants to work with and how the character behaves, but it is all just minor nitpicks, and most people won’t even notice it. This is a very solid production coming from Italy, which lately has proven to be an excellent source of entertainment.
