Tag: seriesreview

3 Mistakes The Idol Committed

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The Idol was supposed to be the show of the summer, but instead, it ended up being a murky mess. The show’s biggest sin wasn’t that it was gross or controversial – but rather that it was overwhelmingly boring. With Sam Levinson at the helm, I figured that it would’ve been interesting, after all, he created Euphoria which is a show I loved – so I decided to go into the show with no preconceived notions or expectations. After watching all the episodes I can say that this show

LONG SCENES

Don’t get me wrong, long scenes can be good when said long scenes are actually INTERESTING and not so boring that you’re looking at your clock wondering why the final episode mostly consisted of a glorified talent show that lasted 45 minutes. Many of the scenes in The Idol were simply too long. The only long scene that I liked and that actually showed characterization and needed to be long was in Episode 2 when Jocelyn is

TRYING TO BE BASIC INSTINCT

From the very first episode, they tried to act as though this series was a modern take on Basic Instinct. The problem is, that in order for a sexual thriller to work, there needs to be chemistry between the characters (sorry but no one would credibly believe that Jocelyn would ever hook up with Tedros in real life) and you need the thriller part and this series lacked both. In the last episode they really tried to lean in on the Basic Instinct part by having Jocelyn dress in a white dress and headscarf combo with sunglasses that looked like it had been swiped from Sharon Stone’s movie closet. But just because you can dress the characters to look like a certain character doesn’t mean you actually pulled off in making the series be sexy or thrilling.

TERRIBLE DIALOGUE

I don’t know about you, but much of the dialogue for this series was seriously subpar. I kept getting pulled out of the series every time people spoke in ways that seemed so cringe. Basically, anything Tedros uttered was eyeroll-worthy or simply made me want to mute the TV. Bad writing overall, and I wish I could overlook bad writing but ever since I’ve been focusing on screenwriting and paying attention to dialogue even more so in series or movies, this is something I simply cannot overlook.

Other issues with the series:

  • Why wasn’t it set in 2003, when a pop star like Jocelyn would’ve made more sense? Especially her music? We live in a world where Taylor Swift is a megastar, and it makes no sense that someone like Jocelyn would actually be a huge star in today’s current climate.
  • What’s up with the insta-love between Jocelyn and Tedros? Not to mention that they had her hate him for all of episode 5, to then pull a complete 180 in the last few minutes and call him the “love of her life” in front of her adoring fans. Again, makes no sense whatsoever.
  • Why wasn’t this series longer? I feel like we needed at least 8 episodes to fully flesh out all the characters and situations they had happen, instead, we got an extremely rushed ending that made ZERO sense.
  • They had an 85 million budget, and the whole show was shot in 4 locations (the Weeknd’s real house, So-Fi Stadium during the Weeknd’s real gig, Rodeo Drive Valentino shop, and music video lot).

And no, not hating this show because the internet has loved to hate it, but finding it to be extremely disappointing when Sam Levinson has been riding the Euphoria high and this was utterly BORING.

Have you watched the series? What did you think?

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Review: Interview with the Vampire (TV Series)

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Anyone who knows me knows how obsessed I am with Anne Rice’s novel, Interview with the Vampire as well as with the 1994 movie adaptation. There was a time in my life when I watched the movie once a day for nearly three years, and that’s why I can quote the two hours film verbatim even after all these years. So when I learned AMC was going to have a TV series based on Anne Rice’s novel, I was both excited and skeptical. Would I love it? Or would I hate it? Throughout the months I heard about the changes they were going to make (change of the century, Louis is a POC, and Claudia is no longer a young child but a teen). I didn’t know how to feel about these changes, however, I decided to dive into the series.

The first episode felt jarring, these characters I loved for so many years had fresh faces as new actors brought them to life. But the moment we see Lestat (Sam Reid) reach out and kiss Louis (Jacob Anderson) passionately by the end of episode one, I was both seduced and compelled to keep on watching.

The new actors have managed to embody Anne Rice’s characters unlike any other actors before (and I thought Tom Cruise and Brad Pitt did a good job at the time). But there’s something about the way Sam Reid manages to create an accent that would truly be one that Lestat would have, how he manages to be both repulsive with his violent behavior, yet enthralling when he’s charming. Jacob Anderson does an excellent job of showing Louis’s vulnerability and guilt but also demonstrates his inability to truly get away from a toxic relationship.

I think Anne Rice would be proud of this adaptation, especially since we finally get the true toxic romance that she was only able to hint at but couldn’t be completely explicit about (same with the movie).

Meanwhile, I’ve fallen back into my former obsessive tendencies in regard to this book. I’ve already rewatched the series three times, and have lost count of how many times I’ve specifically watched the scene where Louis and Lestat have their final dance.

If you haven’t checked it out, I completely recommend it. After all, as Lestat says, “I’m going to give you the choice I never had.”

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Series Review: Them – Covenant

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Them is receiving many comparisons to Jordan Peele’s US – but the only thing that the two have in common is a similar poster and a black family dealing with a brutal home invasion. Where Jordan Peele managed to both horrify and crack the audience up – Them only manages to make us feel uncomfortable as we witness all the horrific acts of violence that white characters bestow upon the black characters throughout the duration of the series.

Them is closer to the film Antebellum than US – in depicting black trauma and suffering with no slices of comic relief. Them follows the Emorys relocating from North Carolina after a traumatic event – to Compton, California in the 1950’s. Each character not only has to deal with real horror (overt racism and past PTSD) but also with evil supernatural forces.

The series is a non-stop violent marathon, and even for seasoned horror viewers like myself who has enjoyed watching Hostel a billion times – doesn’t prepare you for the sick dread feeling you’ll experience if you choose to watch Them. Personally, I would’ve liked some moments of levity in between all the violence. I would’ve liked to have gotten to know each of the Emorys in a way that wasn’t entirely focused on their trauma and suffering. Even when Lucky was at Hazel’s home and seemed to be having fun, suddenly she was reminded of the traumatic event that caused them to move – or I would’ve liked to see Ruby triumph when she upstaged her white classmates with her knowledge, rather than be brutally mocked and humiliated.

I wanted the Emorys to have little triumphs in the midst of darkness. Instead – what we’re left with after viewing ten episodes is feeling utterly exhausted and haunted and yes, a little traumatized. Horror should scare us – but it should also entertain. Where Them falls short is that we’re well aware of the real life horrors of racism, we haven’t been able to look away ever since there were some high profile incidents in the past year.

Some Black reviewers question who the series was written for since they don’t feel like it was written with them in mind. If Little Marvin wanted to depict the evils of the white man, then he did a superb job. But after all the horror, a bit of levity and triumph would’ve been the balm we needed.

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Series Review: Firefly Lane

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Recently, I was asked to view an advanced screening of Firefly Lane, the newest series to hit Netflix in February, based off of the New York Times best-selling author Kristin Hannah’s 2008 novel of the same name. I purposely didn’t read a plot summary before diving in, but I did decide to watch it based off of the fact that Katherine Heigl (Grey’s Anatomy fame and early aughts rom-com queen) and Sarah Chalke (Scrubs and Rick & Morty) star as the two best friends, Tully Hart and Kate Mularkey.

The show is split in three time frames, present 2007, past 1982, and childhood past 1974. The show, like the novel, shows the spanning of a 30-years-old friendship between two best friends who first met at the pivotal age of 14 when living on the same street, Firefly Lane.

Tully Hart has always been ambitious and beautiful, the stark contrast of Kate Mularkey who’s intelligent but mousy. The two have always envied the life of the other. Tully envies Kate’s family, while Kate envies Tully’s beauty and charisma.

I only got to view the first two episodes, but episode one shows us meeting the protagonists at their lowest points. Tully is a successful talkshow host but is worried that her beauty is diminishing and feels like her talent is wasted on the talkshow, while Kate is trying to deal with a divorce and trying to navigate work again after being out of the workforce for the past fourteen years.

FIREFLY LANE (L to R) ALI SKOVBYE as YOUNG TULLY and ROAN CURTIS as YOUNG KATE in episode 102 of FIREFLY LANE. Cr. COURTESY OF NETFLIX © 2020

Both actresses excel in their roles and compliment one another. My favourite aspect about this show is the enduring friendship between the two protagonists and how even the possibility of a love triangle doesn’t seem to derail how they feel about each other. If anything, this series focuses on how maybe your soulmate is your best friend and not your romantic partner, and that the greatest love story you’ll ever live is the one you have with your childhood best friend. At a time when women are always seen competing against one another on shows or movies, this is refreshing. Again, I’ve only viewed the first two episodes, so I ope that they continue on this course and don’t derail into the normal tropes that I despise about female friendships.

One of the moments I loved best about the show is when Tully, noticing that Kate is feeling frumpy, decides to swap dresses with her so that her best friend can feel beautiful in a more attention-seeking dress. Or when Tully is speaking with Kate’s daughter, and Kate’s daughter is complaining about her mom and calls her a bitch and Tully stops her and says, “Hey, don’t talk about my best friend like that. Your mom is nice, she was nice at 14 and no one is nice at that age.”

If you’re someone who loves friendship stories, I think you’re really going to love this series and you should definitely check it out.

*Thank you to Netflix for advance screening!

Watch Firefly Lane starting February 3, Netflix.

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