Utopia (US) review, Culture Whisper
The cancellation of the surreal conspiracy thriller Utopia (2013-4) ripped out the hearts of nerds and geeks across the country. A US remake had been in development for years, with Gone Girl author Gillian Flynn as writer/creator. But why? Given the troubling history of American remakes of British shows, this could only end in disaster… right?
But Flynn’s version is far from the copy-and-paste calamity it could’ve been. The original bold colours are mostly faded and the innate British grit is re-tailored, but this vision of Utopia is still absorbing, frightening, and pretty damn bleak.
With growing beliefs in conspiracy theories, the conceit of the series is more relevant now than in 2013. And the ominous presence of a flu pandemic mirrors real-life events to an uncomfortable degree, hazmat suits and quarantine tents being currently very close to home.
