# Transatlantic (2023)

> Two Americans and their allies run a scrappy rescue operation in 1940 Marseille, smuggling artists, writers and refugees out of occupied Europe.

Canonical page: https://ember.film/tv/121617

## Facts

- Seasons: 1
- Episodes: 7
- Episode runtime: 50 min
- Status: Ended
- Genres: drama, history
- Created by: Anna Winger, Daniel Hendler
- Network: Netflix
- Cast: Gillian Jacobs, Cory Michael Smith, Lucas Englander, Corey Stoll, Ralph Amoussou, Deleila Piasko, Amit Rahav, Grégory Montel
- TMDB rating: 6.6/10
- IMDb: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt15441266/

## Ember's analysis

- Pacing: measured
- Intensity: moderate
- Complexity: layered
- Violence: mild
- Tone: tense, humane, wistful, dignified

## What critics say

Audiences find the miniseries a well-meaning, historically rich account of wartime refugee rescue, though its uneven execution and scattered focus keep it from strong ratings.

## Synopsis

Transatlantic (2023) is a German-produced historical drama limited series created by Anna Winger and Daniel Hendler for Netflix, adapted from Julie Orringer's novel The Flight Portfolio. Set in 1940 Marseille after the fall of France, it follows American organizer Varian Fry (Cory Michael Smith) and his scrappy band of allies, including American heiress Mary Jayne Gold (Gillian Jacobs) and Lisa Fittko (Deleila Piasko), as they improvise a rescue network for artists, writers and other refugees trying to escape Nazi-occupied Europe. The engine of the story is the constant pressure of forged papers, bribed officials, closing borders and impossible choices about who gets a place on the next boat or over the Pyrenees. Each of its seven roughly fifty-minute episodes is built from these mounting logistical crises, moving between the improvised Marseille office and the routes leading toward Spain and Portugal. The tone is tense and humane, with a wistful, dignified register that lingers on the personal cost of exile and the fragile bonds of a makeshift community. Its historical texture is rich, with real figures of the European intelligentsia woven into the drama. Fans of Band of Brothers, Babylon Berlin and Schindler's List will find resonance in its wartime stakes and ensemble moral urgency.

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