Genre Medieval Black comedy Sex comedy
Created by Kathleen Jordan
Inspired by The Decameron (aka L’Umana Commedia) by Giovanni Boccaccio
Showrunner Kathleen Jordan
Cast
Amar Chadha-Patel as Dioneo, Tindaro’s doctor
Leila Farzad as Stratilia, the villa’s cook
Lou Gala as Neifile, Panfilo’s pious Catholic wife
Karan Gill as Panfilo, Neifile’s social-climbing husband
Tony Hale as Sirisco, steward of the villa
Saoirse-Monica Jackson as Misia, Pampinea’s loyal servant
Zosia Mamet as Pampinea, a spoiled noble, arranged to be married to the owner of the villa
Douggie McMeekin as Tindaro, a wealthy hypochondriac
Jessica Plummer as Filomena, a spoiled noble who has lost her entire family to the plague
Tanya Reynolds as Licisca, Filomena’s servant
Recurring
Alfredo Pea as Calandrino, a servant at the villa
Giampiero de Concilio as Andreoli, a messenger
Aston Wray as Jacopo, Stratilia’s son
Dustin Demri-Burns as Arriguccio, a friend of Sirisco
Fares Fares as Ruggiero, a cousin of the viscount
Tazmyn-May Gebbett as Parmena, Misia’s love
Reis Daniel as Stecchi, Ruggiero’s friend
Logan Wong as Bruno, Ruggiero’s friend
Davy Eduard King as Leonardo, Pampinea’s betrothed
Rudynskyi Oleksandr [uk] as Ailes Bendit
Music by Ruth Barrett
Country of origin United States Original languages English & Italian
No. of series 1 No. of episodes 8
Production
Executive producers Kathleen Jordan Jenji Kohan Blake McCormick Tara Herrmann
Production location Italy
Production companies American Sugarcube Tilted Productions
Network Netflix Release July 25, 2024
The year 1348 couldn’t have been much fun in the five princely states that made up most of what’s now northern Italy. The church and nobility were fantastically corrupt, the states were constantly feuding, and that occasionally would bubble up to pitched battles. And just because the joy never ends, the Black Plague was in full rampage.
So a comedy set in that time and locale might be expected to be a bit bawdy and a bit dark.
A disparate group of people flee convulsing, diseased Florence to the imagined safety of a large garden estate in the country. However, the owner of the estate isn’t there to greet them, having buboed his way into an early grave a day or so earlier. The guests, both invited and not, start conspiring to take control of the estate.
The Decameron is about as black as it gets, complete with some nice steamy sex scenes. Privation, constant death, endless terror and dread tend to make people very horny, a point made right in the opening credits when a vast herd of animated rats create the opening splash pages and winds up with one very sick rat keeling over dead whilst right next to it, two other rats copulate furiously.
Did I mention that The Decameron was a comedy? It’s extremely funny, with needle sharp wit and a terrifying sense of satire. The plot is complicated, starting out as a slamming-door comedy with an edge (we learn very quickly that nobles are not very nice people, and tend to be an amusing blend of nihilism and amorality) but as it goes along and power struggles and deception pile up, it gets darker…and darker…and darker. You’ll find yourself cackling with glee over situations that in real life would scar you.
The acting is perfect. It’s a comedy period piece, so you should expect a certain amount of mugging. La Commedia wasn’t exactly noted for its thespian restraint, and neither is The Decameron. But it’s perfect for the tone this show wants to set. Truly an ensemble piece, the entire cast pitches in with considerable glee. You quickly form opinions on all the main characters, and have those opinions revised and reinforced in a hilarious emotional kaleidoscope. Keep an eye on Pampinea’s mousy little servant girl, Misia (Saoirse-Monica Jackson). She’s full of blockbuster surprises, especially to Pampinea (Zosia Mamet). All the characters are fully realized, if not exactly lovable.
This uproarious comedy is now on Netflix.