Alright, I know I’m a bit late to the curve on this one. But I’ve been meaning to watch Euphoria for a while, and with the current airing of season two, I figured it was time to catch up. Although I was a little put-off at first by the amount of blatant nudity throughout the show, to be honest, I’ve really enjoyed the first season as well as the first two episodes of season two. There’s definitely a lot of exaggeration and over-the-top sequences with drug-use, sex, and violence. But underneath all that rated-R material is a group of teenagers that are truly, deeply struggling. And it’s because of that struggle that you can’t pull your eyes away and even though they make some of the worst decisions possible, you still feel for them. At least, most of them (if you’ve seen the show, you know who I’m referring to).
One of the things I love most about the show is the amount of subplots they have running at once. The key storyline follows Rue (portrayed by the queen Zendaya) and her struggle to stay clean off drugs after spending the summer at a rehabilitation center. Each episode begins with her giving a mini-monologue about one of the other students or people that live in her town. It’s through this that we get an insight into each character’s life and get to see how their troubled past plays a part in their current decisions. Sometimes with a large cast of characters, it can get pretty exhausting trying to keep up with each of their struggles and circumstances, I had no troubles with Euphoria. Each of their characters was so unique and personal that I had no problem recognizing who was who. That alone is something to be applauded.
The other component that really makes the show stand out is its artistic cinematography. It’s clear that every single sequence is thought-out and so much is explained simply through how the show is shot. For example, in a scene where Rue gets high, as she’s walking down a hallway, the walls start to turn around her. At one point, she’s walking on the ceiling while the rest of the crowd is still walking on the floor. I thought this was a really creative way to show how disorienting using drugs can be. I’m sure that this has a lot to do with one of the companies involved in the show’s production, A24. A24 has been known to create some amazing (and often trippy) films in the past, including Midsommar, Hereditary, and The Lighthouse. Seeing their involvement in the show was a large part of the reason I started watching it.
Although Euphoria has been criticized for romanticizing drug-use, I don’t believe that’s the case at all. Yes, it portrays teenagers enjoying getting high. But it also shows Rue, overdosed, and her sister stumbling upon her prone body. It has scenes of her mother describing how her addiction has torn apart their family. Unless the viewer is cherry-picking the scenes that include the teenagers partying, then I don’t believe anyone could come away from seeing the show thinking that it holds a positive opinion of drug use.
Euphoria is not for the faint of heart. It has a lot of disturbing sequences and it definitely pushes the TV rating of “mature” to the next level. Although I think it’s a really unique and interesting watch, I understand it may not be for everyone. That being said, if you think you can handle some party sequences and a misfit cast of characters, then I highly recommend checking out the HBOMax original Euphoria.
Spoiler Alert is an Opinion culture column used to give reviews for movies, television shows, or other related media.
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