Lupin: Assane Smelling His Father’s Gloves Is Secretly Heartbreaking

Warning! Spoilers ahead for Lupin part 1.

Assane Diop smelling his father Babakar’s gloves in Lupinpart 1 was secretly heartbreaking. The Netflix series sets up the father/son relationship from the get go. Babakar, a Senegalese immigrant, had settled in Paris with Assane and taken a job with the wealthy Pellegrini family. However, Babakar was accused of breaking into Hubert Pellegrini’s safe to steal the very expensive necklace once belonging to Marie Antoinette. Suffice it to say that Babakar didn’t stand a chance against the powerful Pellegrinis, who framed him to collect on the insurance money for the necklace.  

Considering that Babakar died by suicide shortly after being imprisoned, his relationship with Assane is largely explored through flashbacks. Assane’s connection with his father is forged through the literary works of Maurice Leblanc, who created Arsène Lupin, the gentleman thief Assane draws inspiration from to pull off his heists. Lupin establishes that Babakar gifted one of the books to Assane early on. However, while the father/son relationship seems strong, there’s a lot of heartbreak when the audience realizes that Assane and Babakar are barely seen interacting outside the confines of the Pellegrini home. Babakar worked a lot while caring for his son and this is showcased when Assane is exploring the grounds and the pool area so as to occupy himself while his father tended to the Pellegrinis.  

At one point, Assane takes hold of his father’s gloves and brings them up to his face to inhale the scent. The gloves seem to bring comfort to Assane, who wants to feel closer to his father while working to prove his innocence. The act is also pretty devastating because the items were Babakar’s work gloves, suggesting that Assane’s memories of his father are all tied up in his work. Babakar’s job as a chauffeur was as much a part of his lasting legacy as raising Assane and it’s heartbreaking to realize that a lot of the duo’s shared moments occurred while Babakar was in the employ of the Pellegrinis, who ultimately betrayed him. Even as an adult, the only thing Assane has left are what his father left behind from work.

Class division is something Lupin part 1 explores in detail throughout its first five episodes. Because he was a working class Black man, Babakar was not given the benefit of the doubt regarding the theft and was quickly sentenced to prison for a crime he didn’t commit. No one really bothered to believe his side of the story and he took the fall so that a rich man and his family could save themselves.

Conversely, Hubert Pellegrini was able to get away with sending an innocent man to prison, collect on the necklace’s insurance money, and silence the police lieutenant without suffering any consequences. Assane smelling and holding onto his father’s work gloves in Netflix’s new show Lupin is symbolic of that class divide and an example of how work can get in the way of quality family time. What’s more, everything Assane is doing in the present day is due to the mistreatment his father faced at his job 25 years ago. It created a wedge and a tragedy that didn’t have to happen and revealed that, if Babakar had been as rich as Pellegrini, he and Assane may have enjoyed moments that weren’t tethered to a job.

About The Author

Mae Abdulbaki
(1107 Articles Published)

Mae Abdulbaki is a movie reviews editor with Screen Rant. She previously wrote about a variety of movies and TV shows for Inverse, CinemaBlend, Pajiba, and The Young Folks, where she wrote reviews, features, news pieces. Her other work can be found at The Mary Sue, Film School Rejects, UPROXX, Heroic Hollywood, Looper, The List, and Bam Smack Pow, among others. Mae has also appeared on television segments, podcasts, and panels to discuss all things entertainment.

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