High Society

starring: MARIA BARSEGHIAN & CHASE MATTSON

Adele agrees to pose as the long-lost sister of the ruthless Duke Cesare Buonaparte to save her friend and escape poverty. But pretending to be family gets complicated when the attraction between them is impossible to ignore.

REVIEW

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Well no Frank or Bing here. This is kind of a vertical Pygmalion, as Duke Cesare tries to mould Adele into a society girl.

I so admire @reelshortapp for this, this is ambitious and really pushes the envelope with look, feel and style. In particular the costume team under @hannahgreenecostumes have worked magic - it's phenomenal

And we have a great story for our star pairing to work with. This is by far my fave role so far for @mariabarss - Adele is tough, doesn't fall for Cesare's many advances, and there is a super scene where we see how much power she has over him when he gets on his knees to beg. And actually the moment where we see how much she loves him is when she bursts into tears because of the amount of work he is having to do to deal with Esdra

The missing Hemsworth brother, sorry @chasemattson has a super role as Cesare. You believe he commands this whole island, the ruthlessness isn't hidden away, see the dispatch of Adele's teacher. Which means that there is so much more to enjoy as a viewer as Cesare slowly falls for Adele, and realizes a quick fix isn't going to be enough. Plus Chase Mattson has the commanding physical presence to sell this role. And it works so well in contrast to Maria who is tiny!

@celineplanata finally gets a juicy Villain role to sink her teeth into and does terrible terrible things whilst looking very very good

@andrewj_tong lands the punch of the year on Cesare, despite being lumbered with a lot of frilly shirts. At least he has that amazing vintage car

Also shout out to @kates2ndact for being an ally for Adele, and at least trying to find a wheelchair.

This is great fun,and looks stunning. It could possibly have been cut but about 10 episodes, some of the story feels a little flabby

But overall this is just refreshingly new and different and bold, with a good romance at the heart of the story

Top work team and director @raghav.puri

💖 Top swoonworthy moment:

Aw he fights it, but Cesare you are a goner. Because Adele stands up to you, and sees right through the displays of power and wealth. And the best bit near the end is that Cesar always includes Clarissa. He knows how important she is to Adele. Also good catch from that balcony fall.

🦹🏼‍♂️ Top villain award:

Celine Planata is a camp, vamp joy as Lucrezia, offing maids, immediately trying to kill Adele, and invoking the Ocean Goddess as she slinks around all in black and red.

😂 Comedy gold:

Not really comedy. But Andrew Tong / Esdra wins all the awards for the punch he lands on Cesare which causes him to do a pirouette and then land in the swimming pool. Perfection. Punch of the year.

🎺 Unsung hero:

Firstly the doctor for telling Cesare to stop smoking. And then the costume and production designers - because this all looks amazing, from the vintage cars to endless stunning outfits. Top work team.

✍🏼 DETAILS

Director: Raghav Puri | 2026

Available on Reelshort