Julie and Scott spend eight precious hours of their lives watching Series 1 of Broadchurch. They are not disappointed!
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This is something that popped up on my social media radar. Seems like most of what I watch is because of mentions from friends.
ReplyDeleteI have not been tempted to watch the American version and I am now confirmed in this.
I loved this series since I generally like character studies. When they are well-acted character studies even more as this is. All around I can't think of a weak performance in this show. As a mystery it was good, but again ti was the characters that had me enthralled.
I also agree with Scott about Luther - intense but also a character study.
Thinking about this it is hard to think of an American show quite like Broadchurch. The closest I I can think of is Longmire on A&E. There is a mystery involved in this as a series story arc, but mainly I like the characters dealing with the situations.
I tried Longmire but I found both the characters and the mysteries so much weaker that both my husband and I just didn't care enough to continue after a few episodes. In terms of fascinating characters, I'd say that both House and The Good Wife are as good as Broadchurch. And in terms of generally excellent writing for the first few seasons.
DeleteI liked the source material for Longmire, but didn't stick with the TV series. I read the first book only: "The Cold Dish" by Craig Johnson. It's another example of a book that's not so much about the mystery but about the characters. Small town Wyoming, made me laugh out loud a few times.
DeleteOn another topic the comparison between the British short seasons and the typical American full seasons. I guess I am both/and on this as I appreciate both since they both have their strengths and weaknesses. Short seasons can be much more focused I image for writers and no doubt it is much harder for consistent excellent with a full slate of shows."
ReplyDeleteStill I draw the line at the Sherlock 3 episodes a year.
Both/and ... perfect! Me too, including the lack of Sherlock. I guess we're lucky that the stars like doing it so much that they keep trying to carve time out of their schedules for it even though they're so much better known.
DeleteBoth/and for certain. Clearly the perfect answer!
DeleteI was so excited that you chose this - I just discovered Broadchurch last month and quickly devoured it. I especially loved the way it was shot and edited - those long, lingering shots gave you room to sit and ponder (or brood) - very much giving the series its 'novel' feel, as Scott noted. And they were beautiful. Most American TV dramas are so entrenched in being formulaic and procedural, so crime and death can become banal and routine pretty easily. The spouses of most murder victims in American crime dramas don't often seem any more traumatized than if they had been shaken mildly by a bad Halloween prank. And it's getting rarer to have more than a couple seconds with any single camera angle. Even the most recent series of Downton Abbey started to make me dizzy after a while, with so many short scenes cut together in quick succession.
ReplyDeleteThe soundtrack and sound design were also phenomenal, and were largely responsible for the atmosphere of the series. Music can make or break a show or movie, and when done well can really hit a sweet spot with the impact of the story. I'm a bit of a film score junkie, so Broadchurch tinkled this sense. I was appalled when I saw the preview for 'Gracepoint,' as the completely different sound design and choppy editing made it look like a bad parody of Broadchurch (which so many of these American remakes end up as). And David Tennant with an American accent is just...weird.
As both of you discussed, British dramas are so good at making things 'real,' and that was a huge factor in why I enjoyed Broadchurch so much. None of the characters were caricatures, and everyone had their hidden faults. I think this is partly due to the fact that so many British actors have a foundation in classical theatrical training, and continue to work in theatre throughout their film careers (many Americans have this background as well, but you'd hardly know it since Hollywood doesn't have much fodder for this kind of talent, whereas in Britain it's very much considered part of a proud national artistic heritage). Call the Midwife is another favorite of mine - also based on a book, but nonfiction.
Great discussion, as always!
Oh, also - I highly recommend the RSC company production of Hamlet starring Tennant. I'd seen it previously, so was excited to see him in dramatic action again in Broadchurch. He's actually a tremendously versatile actor.
DeleteYou make a great point about how spouses or friends of murder victims are portrayed on American shows. That hadn't occurred to me but maybe that is part of the appeal of Broadchurch. Because they stay with the community through the ordeal, we see how it shakes up everything in everyone's lives, in a very realistic way.
DeleteThank you for mentioned the sound and music! I meant to do that. Olafur Arnalds did the music, and here's a bit: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MoPxUsrkz6E Powerful and wonderful.
DeleteAnd you mentioned Call the Midwife - I watched the first few episodes of that, and thought it was terrific. There are a few series of that now?
Great comments JoAnna and Jeff, and an excellent episode Julie and Scott! I'm a fan of TV and film scores myself, and Broadchurch has great scoring. Call the Midwife also has lovely music and is about to start it's 4th season Mar 29th on PBS. The first 3 seasons are available on Netflix streaming and I can't recommend it highly enough. I'm currently listening to the 3rd book in the Midwife series now, and all 3 are fascinating and moving.
ReplyDeleteI'm a bit of an anglophile, so I do prefer British shows to typical US stuff, but I also think we are having the best stuff curated for us over here. I particularly like how the Brits shoot with so much shallow depth of field, the way they frame their scenes is very photographic. I'm more on the side of the short seasons they have, with tighter and more focused storytelling. I also like how it leaves me wanting more and looking forward to the next season, whereas a 22 episode season can leave you worn out and looking forward to a break.
Another BBC show in the same vein is Top of the Lake, filmed and set in New Zealand and starring Elisabeth Moss- a terrific actress. Season 1 is available on Netflix.
The Killing is a great show, too. It originally aired on AMC and wrapped up with it's 4th season on Netflix, also available to stream in it's entirety.
And lastly, the Broadchurch Season 2 Premiere is available to stream right now on BBC America's site: http://www.bbcamerica.com/broadchurch/guide/season-2/episode-1-2/
Great show y'all!
Hello Philip!
DeleteThanks a million - putting Top of the Lake in my queue, and will finish Call the Midwife. You're right - what I've seen of it is excellent.
Thanks for the link to Broadchurch Season 2!
Has anyone seen a series called Orphan Black? I haven't - was wondering what people thought about it.
ReplyDeleteI've seen all of it, and like it well. The series is anchored with amazing acting by Tatiana Maslany, and delves into science and ethics, while being surprisingly witty and humorous. The pace is good also, where a lesser show might get bogged down on particular plot points, it keeps on moving. Unfortunately, I think it's streaming rights are exclusive to Amazon Prime.
ReplyDeleteWow, so many good series that I have scribbled down on my Post-It! I've only heard of Call the Midwife which my daughter Rose has recommended several times. She's also recommended Doc Martin several times.
ReplyDeleteI'd also like to mention, in terms of original series, The Booth at the End which you can watch on Hulu. It only ran 2 seasons that I know of and since it is an internet show each season amounts to about 2 hours. But it is simply fantastic. It's on my "Good Story" list.
ReplyDeleteWow, this is great. Hamlet with Tennant, Call the Midwife, Orphan Black, The Booth at the End, and Longmire - lots of great stuff lined up for me. Thanks everybody!
ReplyDeleteAnd don't forget the rest of Broadchurch, Season 2!
ReplyDelete