'The Perfect Couple' on Netflix lacks one major element we anticipated
Contains spoilers for 'The Perfect Couple'
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA: Nicole Kidman and Liev Schreiber starrer 'The Perfect Couple' is the latest addition to Netflix's crime thriller genre. While the show delivers an intriguing mystery, you may be disappointed if you expected a wholesome romance and chemistry, as the title suggests.
The lead pair is Nicole Kidman as Greer Winbury and Liev Schreiber as Tag Winbury, married for years and parents to three children. Their eldest son, Thomas (Jack Reynor), and his wife Abby (Dakota Fanning) are expecting their first child. The series opens with the wedding prep of their middle child, Benji (Billy Howle) and Amelia Sacks (Eve Hewson). While things may seem rosy on the surface, these couples are far from perfect.
Greer and Tag's relationship in 'The Perfect Couple' is a sham
Despite being married for decades, Greer and Tag aren't just meant for each other. But for some reason, they don't go their separate ways. Only in the final episode of 'The Perfect Couple', Greer comes clean about the history of their marriage which sends their children in shock.
It turns out that Greer used to work as an escort and her brother was her pimp. Interestingly, Tag was among her many clients before they married each other.
Over the years, Tag had multiple extramarital affairs, including one with Merritt Monaco (Meghann Fahy), the best friend of his son's bride. It wouldn't be a surprise if he was involved with Isabel Nallet (Isabelle Adjani ) too, whom he referred to as a 'family friend'.
While Tag would mess around, Greer would fix everything and look after the entire family, even paying for their luxuries. She hides behind the facade of a happy marriage to protect her public image as a novelist.
The newest lovebirds in 'The Perfect Couple' don't love each other enough
Amelia and Benji are the youngest couple among all, ready to walk down the aisle. But they too don't have a happy ending. They eventually split up and the wedding is called off. By the end of the series, we see Amelia moving to London and working at a zoo.
Anyway, their split didn't hurt us as they didn't make a good couple in the first place. Amelia wanted to get married soon because of her mother's cancer diagnosis.
In fact, her chemistry with Shooter Dival (Ishaan Khatter) was more attractive. What they shared was true love and they may have ended up together if the series had more episodes. Shooter was a better match for her as he never showed off his money. With him, she wouldn't even have to change herself or sign NDAs like it happened with Benji.
'The Perfect Couple' doesn't end well for Abby and Thomas either
Abby and Thomas were in the initial years of their marriage. But their honeymoon period was over sooner than it should have. Thomas is a good-for-nothing son and husband. He owes $2.5 million to Isabel and just like Greer, Abby decides to take charge of the mess created by her husband.
Thomas is just like his father and is fully dependent on Abby, who handles everything for him. In the end, she is found guilty of Merritt Monaco's murder. Her motive for the brutal crime was money to pay off the debt.
So, there's no perfect couple in the Netflix series despite the title suggesting otherwise. Then why is the show called that? Probably to make us believe that all these couples were perfect until the reality unfolded.
'The Perfect Couple' is now streaming on Netflix