OT: True Detective Season 2. Anyone watch?
So I thought nothing of True Detective Season 1 when it was announced. I mean Matt McConaughey was a rom com guy and Woody Harrleson hadn't done much serious before this. Then I watched; superbly acted, great score, cool theme and an amazing story with the two lead characters having vastly different yet great story arcs. Unlike anything that's been on TV for a while. The whole Carcosa and Yellow King stuff was way out there.
I enjoyed the first episode of the new season, it could go in a lot of different ways. if you haven't seen it yet, I would recommend it. Helps fill the Game of Thrones void.
I have high hopes.
Sent from MGoBlog HD for iPhone & iPad
Liked:
* The chauffeured corpse - Very David Lynch (notice they passed the exit for Mulholland Drive) meets Weekend at Bernie's with some secret society stuff tossed in for good measure (that freaky bird head mask will come up again - I'm picturing a flashback to the orgy at the city planner's house with all the men wearing animal masks)
* Ray and his kid - We've seen this before, but Farrell really nailed this. Being a new father of a son, I was probably more affected than some others by these scenes.
* Rachel MacAdams playing against type. I'm not 100% sold yet, but it was a good start.
* Vince Vaughn's character
Disliked:
* Vince Vaughn's character arc; so far the whole high speed rail plot seems like a major McGuffin.
* The hippie commune stuff; maybe this will play better with those who live in Southern California, but I've seen this New Age stuff done better in other places (Inherent Vice most recently but also on a silly CBS show like The Mentalist)
* The direction; major step down from season one; though the highway and factory aerial shots were beautiful, if they continue throughout the season it's going to get old quick
* The writing; some hits, mostly overwritten misses
Overall, I'm on board.
So far it's solid premium cable fare, just not a work of art that transcends the medium (which is now I viewed season one, especially from an art direction point of view).
Sent from MGoBlog HD for iPhone & iPad
Didn't the director and writer leave after season 1?
Not surprised if the show takes a nose dive this seasonl.
Director did; writer/creator is still the same guy.
Saw it. Seeing McAdams and Vaughn so much made it almost impossible not to recap almost every Wedding Crashers scene in my head, which was a massive mind f*ck of a juxtaposition relative to this overly glum downer of a show. I mean, did anyone crack a smile the entire episode aside from the hot Latina when so and so exposed his Viagra enhanced package?
By pretty much everyone early on. In that sense it's probably a small step down so far, but it's still very enjoyable TV. I will say I latched onto Colin Farrell's character really quickly, so I'm invested in figuring out how that develops. Will have to wait and see on the other characters.
My expectations for Season 2 were all over the place, heightened by the revealed cast but tempered by the proposed plot. A southern California film noir is just the kind of thing you're either into or not into.
Vaughn, Farrell, Kitsch and MacAdams form a refreshingly random core, but the strength of the first season was, for me at least, the chemistry between Harrelson and McConaughey. Chemistry between leads does for television what glasses do for already attractive people, magnifying the subject's appeal. So it would seem the "success" of this season will depend on whether anything similar develops between any of the main characters. I am more hopeful after the second viewing, and it would seem the MacAdams-Farrell dynamic is where this season will sink or swim.
The broken male trope (infertility, impotence, etc.) is a bit overdone, and I really have no idea why the city manager's body was dumped in such a random location; although in the case of the latter, I'm putting some faith in Pizzolatto. I didn't mind the missing girl subplot, but as others have mentioned, the hippie guru father was grating. And did it not seem strange that Farrell's kid not only looks nothing like him but also nothing like his wife's rapist?
I'm confident the overall product will improve over the course of the remaining episodes, but I'm also okay with a slow burn. Farrell is a dynamite actor, and what I'm most keen to discover is whether Vaughn can consistently hold his own in scenes without the benefit of his usual comedic mania.
Ultimately, it will be Vaughn's character's wife who ends up as the final piece of the puzzle.
Sent from MGoBlog HD for iPhone & iPad
Not sure about Bell, but Vulture claims it's based (in part) on Vernon, CA, which has 100 (!!) homes, many of which are own by the city and zero parks.
Sent from MGoBlog HD for iPhone & iPad
Sent from MGoBlog HD for iPhone & iPad
I like it better when Vince Vaugn play funny
of Season 1 last night. Fantastic. Matthew McConaughey is really something. And I'm old enough to remember when Woody Harrelson first showed up on Cheers (after Coach died). He was great as Woody Boyd, but I never would have guessed then that he would have the career he's had.
Loved Season 1. The first ep of season 2 didn't really do it for me. it was ok, but there is potential for it to be good. All three HBO shows that premiered were a little underwhellming. Ballers was average, and the Brink was average. I can't wait until next year, when JJ Abrahms' and Jonathan Nolan's Westworld comes out. If that show is anything like Nolan and JJ's Person Of Interest, it may become the best thing on HBO. Sad to hear Hannibal season 3 will be it's last unless it gets picked up by a streaming service. I can see where a lot of people aren't diggin this season, but I love it.
on HBO's youtube channel. Some 30 second character spots for the four main actors (Farrell, McAdams, Vaughn, and Kitsch). Have to say they got me a little more excited for learning more about the other characters than I was before.
We've really become a society of "impatient, I want it now" people these days. I'm shocked to hear all the negativity (not on this site but by the critics online, etc).
This could be the greatest show of all-time or a complete dud but how about we let more than 10% of a season play out before we start calling it a flop. This would be like watching the first 10-15 minutes of a highly anticipated movie then turning it off and saying that it was awful.
There's quite a few well known actors this season especially for this being an HBO show. They obviously needed more time this year to introduce all of these major characters. Sure they probably could have done it in less time but by the end of the season I doubt because episode one moved a little slow will have anything to do with how good the entire season was or wasn't.
At this point I think I can point to nearly any fandom of any book series, video game, tv show, movie, etc. and find a lot of divisive discussion at play. I understand they are "fanatics" and not "rationals" but it feels slightly worse now than in recent memory.
I do like the modern-noir feel they are going for... kind of a testament to the cinematic move to LA.
Overall, I wasn't grabbed by this episode. It seems a bit too busy. I understand that it's going to be deep, but in comparison Season 1 seemed to give you something to be interested in while getting deeper. I don't care who among these people are screwing who. I didn't care why bike cop went on his 100 mph helmetless screaming ride, and I wouldn't have cared if he had been hosed off the pavement (yeah, that wipe out looked perfectly legit.)
Frankly, no character has given me one reason to care about them or their troubles. Perhaps that is another nod to LA though...
Sent from MGoBlog HD for iPhone & iPad