Latest news with #UnderHisEye
Elle
20-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Elle
What Are The Eyes In 'The Handmaid's Tale'? The Reason Gilead's Secret Police Are Integral To The Final Series
There's so much dystopian symbolism in The Handmaid's Tale it can be hard to keep up. But one of the most unnerving and omnipresent has to be the 'Eyes'. In Margaret Atwood's novel and the TV adaptation of The Handmaid's Tale, there's a constant feeling that the characters, particularly the handmaids, are being watched. In The Republic of Gilead, the 'Eyes of God' or simply 'The Eyes' are the secret police. A paramilitary security service, their role is pure surveillance, tracking down anyone who opposes the regime and punishing them. The Eyes are made up of former CIA members who had helped the Sons of Jacob to overthrow the US Government in the Second American Civil War, which paved the way for the totalitarian state of Gilead. Their identity is either obvious – think of the typical image of a Secret Service agent in black suits, dark sunglasses and you've got the Eyes. When in uniform they drive matte-black Ford Transit vans with tinted windows and winged eyes painted on the sides. If that isn't creepy enough, some Eyes operate as plain clothed agents to better infiltrate the rings of dissent and spy on their fellow citizens. FIND OUT MORE ON THE ELLE COLLECTIVE There's no doubt the Eyes add to the paranoia and fear of Gilead's residents. There is constantly the feeling that they're being watched; as Offred notes anyone can be an Eye, even Marthas who spy on wealthy households, but they're normally loyal men willing to do anything, torture included, to protect the republic and patrol its borders. 'Under His Eye' is also used frequently as a farewell between Handmaids and refers to the all-seeing presence of something altogether more powerful, and evil. As the final season of The Handmaid's Tale comes to a close, it's Nick's status as an Eye, which has been ambiguous throughout the series, that really comes into question. How much is the Commander a dedicated Eye on the one hand, and how strong are his ties with Mayday, the rebels fighting against the secret police force and everything Gilead stands for, on the other? And will we ever find out the whole truth before we have to say 'Under His Eye' to the whole series which has kept us captivated for years? ELLE Collective is a new community of fashion, beauty and culture lovers. For access to exclusive content, events, inspiring advice from our Editors and industry experts, as well the opportunity to meet designers, thought-leaders and stylists, become a member today HERE.
West Australian
17-05-2025
- Entertainment
- West Australian
Screen Queen: Girls, Nine Perfect Strangers, Sirens, The Handmaid's Tale and The One That Got Away
You couldn't pay me enough money to redo my twenties. Yes, they were fabulously fun. But they were also incredibly tough. I was out there trying to carve a place for myself in the world, but really just floundering about, playing pretend — I cringe to think about it. A few years after I'd aged out of this era, Lena Dunham's excellent of-its-time drama Girls hit screens in 2012. I dipped in, watching through slitted fingers as her character Hannah lived a life that looked eerily similar to the one I'd just escaped. It was triggering as all get-out. Recently, on a flight, I decided to dive in for a rewatch — and it hits different this time. Instead of being embarrassed for the central characters, I wanted to reach out and give those deluded pretend-adults a great big hug, to scoop them up, set them on the right path, and slap them out of all the myriad bad decisions they (I?) made through their coming-of-age years. The show is so keenly observed, so pitch perfect, so cringingly awful, I couldn't look away and I'm now three seasons into my binge watch, absolutely relishing my time with Hannah, Marnie, Shosh and Jessa. In fact, the more I watch, the more I realise Dunham may well have been the 'voice of a generation' her character professes to be in the show's pilot episode — the writing is SO GOOD. Turns out I'm not the only one loving a rewatch — TikTok is full of people in their thirties and beyond taking another gander, having similar reactions. Gen Z has discovered it too, and it turns out the more things change, the more they stay the same: reports from the trenches confirm nothing much has moved on in the decade or so since this dropped. Dunham has a new TV project in the works titled Too Much, based on the next phase of her life — her thirties — which she spent in the UK. It's on its way to Netflix and dropping July 10. Can't wait to cringe-watch this one, too. If you caught this unhinged series the first time around, you'll definitely want to tune in again. Nicole Kidman's Masha is up to her old tricks, this time running a retreat at an alpine sanitarium in Austria. Season one covered what transpired in Liane Moriarty's novel, so it will be interesting to find out how they've moved the story along from that source material. This season sees a whole new cast, including The White Lotus' Murray Bartlett, who has packed his suitcase (and hopefully won't be fouling it during the course of his stay!) for a stint at Masha's new retreat. Book me in! Julianne Moore, Meghann Fahy and House Of The Dragon star Milly Alcock star in this dark comedy, about a woman (Fahy) who becomes concerned her younger sister (Alcock) may have been taken in by a cult-like figure (Moore) at her deluxe seaside home. This week's penultimate episode is setting things up for one heck of a finale. I'm absolutely LIVING for this series, so will be tuning in with the rest of you as it all unfolds. Under His Eye. This great Welsh drama is the perfect addition to ABC's crime line-up. Absolutely living for the URST (that's unresolved sexual tension) between the two central characters.
