Many have tried, and many have failed; the tale of the “∫” knockoff remains as old as time, at the very least since 1988 when the action pioneer made its way into the public consciousness and initiated that exhaustive debate still ongoing as to whether it exists a Christmas film.  This exhaustive, endless list surely warrants its own article, and in 2013 B-movie dynamo Gerard Butler took on the starring role in yet another, that being Antoine Fuqua‘s “Olympus Has Fallen,” one of two “White House under Siege” films of the year (alongside Roland Emmerich‘s “White House Down“), and debatably a far more fun effort; “Olympus Has Fallen” remains an enjoyable throwback to the glory days of ’80s and ’90s-era schlock, crammed with the perfect blend of cheese, genuinely thrilling setpieces and Butler’s well-timed one-liners without any one element overwhelming the others.  Unsurprisingly, a franchise would soon emerge, with 2016’s “London Has Fallen” and 2019’s “Angel Has Fallen” significantly diminishing in quality; now, fulfilling the promise that this so-named “Has Fallen” universe would make the jump to the small screen before long, the target has now been placed upon France, with “Paris Has Fallen” Hulu’s eight-episode venture to see if such a show might work removed from the core storyline of the films that lay the runway, in addition to Gerard Butler, though he does show up to the revelry as a producer.
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In setting itself apart from that central narrative, “Paris Has Fallen” plays like any thriller, procedural, or international manhunt of the past several decades; as a result, little exists that might allow for a genuine sense of individuality and in its place a permeating feel of redundancy flows throughout.  The pilot wastes little time before the intensity ratchets up more than a handful of notches, opening amid a soiree at the Parisian British Embassy complete with mimes and a dance number set to “Song 2.”  Predictably, said event has been infiltrated by terrorists, led by Jacob Pearce (Sean Harris), heavily scarred from an as-yet unknown skirmish and intent on executing a specific list of high-ranking dignitaries, beginning with the attending French minister.  However, his bodyguard Vincent (Tewfik Jallab) has already whisked him to presumed safety, and thanks to quick assistance by Zara (Ritu Arya), another undercover agent fortunately on the good side, the two quickly find themselves a team, watching as Harris tracks down every name on his list while piecing together his modus operandi.
Those scars hold the key to his motive; following the death of a group of men amid an Afghan mission gone haywire of which he was in charge, coupled with the demise of his family in a subsequent car bombing have the villain filled to the brim with a wish to avenge, exact revenge, or any manner of “venge” you can place within the sentence.
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Owing plenty to the expressionless foe Harris brought to several entries within another franchise dangerous close to becoming a pseudo-sibling, “Mission: Impossible,” Harris’ reliability as the somewhat specific “baddie with substance” far removed from the faceless threat permeating many of those early copycats overflowing from that list never comes into question. 
There’s menace present every time he speaks, whether in ordering one of his targets over the phone to carry out his plan or in simply gazing out over the Paris skyline; it’s rare to see the wheels turn in such a way, imagining less a mental rundown of his checklist but rather the torturous descent into which his life has spiraled. 
On the inverse, Jallab and Arya have a palpable chemistry, though the necessary detours into personal lives meet a mixed result; though a secretive relationship Jallab maintains soon proves relevant to the story at large, Arya’s can’t help but feel far less so.  Attempts are made for their characters to find footing; if anything, the quirk of Arya’s stab at a periodic joke produces the sensation of Butler’s Mike Banning, but with all the impact of a deflating balloon. 
Meanwhile, the connective tissue between scenes shifts from Vincent and Zara’s desk, to their superior’s office, following up on leads…in short order, much like the three films that precede these Fallen days of Paris, it all can’t help but blend, even as it feels less like the mindless action of decades prior and more like any forgettable procedural occupying a network primetime spot.
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Yet, “Paris Has Fallen” fails to bog down the narrative with an overabundance of story; nothing onscreen leaps off as difficult to follow, just as it never once feels akin to anything in the realm of uniqueness.  By taking “Has Fallen” in a new direction, it somehow becomes far less interesting, never quite reaching the farthest depths of that dreadful second sequel but existing simply as a show hardly in need of joining the world Gerard Butler first began. If growth remains the intention, it oddly might be time to bring Mike Banning back. [C]