‘Vladimir’ Review: Rachel Weisz and Leo Woodall Heat Up Netflix’s Boldly Prickly, Fascinatingly Slippery Deconstruction of Desire
#Vladimir Netflix #Rachel Weisz #Leo Woodall #Julia May Jonas #limited series #feminist perspective #psychological drama #desire deconstruction
📌 Key Takeaways
- Netflix released 'Vladimir,' a limited series starring Rachel Weisz as a professor with an obsessive crush on a younger colleague
- The show is an adaptation of Julia May Jonas' acclaimed novel, directed by Shari Springer Berman and Robert Pulcini
- Weisz's character is portrayed as complex and morally ambiguous, challenging traditional feminist narratives
- The series explores themes of desire, power dynamics, and self-deception through an intimate character study
- The show's distinctive point of view immerses viewers in the protagonist's increasingly obsessive mindset
📖 Full Retelling
Netflix released the limited series 'Vladimir' on March 5, 2025, featuring Rachel Weisz as a married English professor who develops an all-consuming crush on a younger colleague played by Leo Woodall, in an adaptation directed by Shari Springer Berman and Robert Pulcini from Julia May Jonas' acclaimed novel. The series explores complex themes of desire, power dynamics, and self-deception through its protagonist, a creative writing professor who finds herself increasingly obsessed with Vlad while her husband John, played by John Slattery, faces accusations of sleeping with his students at their liberal arts college. The show presents its antiheroine as both sharply funny and morally ambiguous, challenging traditional feminist narratives through its intimate character study that reveals her inner callousness and self-delusion beneath her polished exterior. Across eight half-hour episodes, the series immerses viewers in the protagonist's increasingly unmoored mindset as she neglects her professional duties, family relationships, and even her husband's disciplinary hearing to pursue her infatuation, ultimately presenting desire not as connection between people but as a mechanism for understanding oneself.
🏷️ Themes
Feminism, Power dynamics, Psychological exploration, Desire and obsession
📚 Related People & Topics
Rachel Weisz
British actress (born 1970)
Rachel Hannah Weisz (; born 7 March 1970) is an English actress. Known for her roles in independent films and blockbusters, she has received several awards, including an Academy Award, a British Academy Film Award, a Golden Globe Award, a Screen Actors Guild Award, and a Laurence Olivier Award. Film...
Leo Woodall
British actor (born 1996)
Leo Vincent Woodall (born 14 September 1996) is an English actor. He gained recognition with his roles in the second season of the HBO satirical anthology series The White Lotus (2022) and in the Netflix romantic drama miniseries One Day (2024). Woodall has since starred in the Apple TV+ thriller se...
Entity Intersection Graph
Connections for Rachel Weisz:
🌐
Netflix
2 shared
🌐
Vladimir
2 shared
👤
Peaky Blinders
1 shared
👤
Brendan Fraser
1 shared
👤
Tyler Gillett
1 shared
Mentioned Entities
Original Source
Share on Facebook Share on X Google Preferred Share to Flipboard Show additional share options Share on LinkedIn Share on Pinterest Share on Reddit Share on Tumblr Share on Whats App Send an Email Print the Article Post a Comment Near the end of Netflix’s Vladimir , the lead, played by Rachel Weisz , has an epiphany about the not-quite-love triangle she’s found herself in. Her much younger colleague Vlad ( Leo Woodall ), she realizes, has been telling himself one thing about their mixed-signals flirtation. Her philandering husband, John ( John Slattery ), has been telling himself another. Both have only viewed her as a supporting player in their narratives, which they presume will unfold according to their plans. But, she warns, “there are forces beyond their control,” chief among them our unnamed protagonist herself. An antiheroine as sharply funny as she is willfully blinkered and as oddly compelling as she is repellent, she has a voice that defines Julia May Jonas’ adaptation of her own novel — elevating it into something knottier than the feminist cancel-culture treatise might appear at first glance, and all the more insightful for it. Related Stories Movies Matthew Macfadyen Joins Rachel Weisz in Tomas Alfredson's 'Seance on a Wet Afternoon' TV Netflix Shares First Look Photos, Release Date for Rachel Weisz, Leo Woodall Limited Series 'Vladimir' Vladimir The Bottom Line Brainy and lusty. Airdate: Thursday, March 5 Cast: Rachel Weisz, Leo Woodall, John Slattery, Jessica Henwick, Ellen Robertson, Matt Walsh, Kayli Carter, Tattiawna Jones, Mallori Johnson Creator: Julia May Jonas The backdrop to her sexual obsession is a situation that, amid cancel-culture campus dramas like Netflix’s The Chair and Tár and After the Hunt , ought to feel very familiar indeed. At a tony liberal arts institution, John, previously head of the English department, stands accused of sleeping with his students. The women, most of them several years past graduation now, say his behavior wa...
Read full article at source