US TV

An archive of articles about US television programmes and production.

US TV

Review: The Following 1×1 (Fox/Sky Atlantic)

23 January 2013 Rob Buckley 10 Comments

In the US: Mondays, 9/8c, Fox
In Canada: Mondays, 9/8c, CTV
In the UK: Tuesdays, 10pm, Sky Atlantic

Serial killers. Aren’t we done with them yet? Haven’t Silence of the Lambs, Saw I-XXV, four seasons of Profiler, and 2,435 seasons of Criminal Minds and its spin-off mined everything this group of particularly sick and crazy people of all they could contribute to narrative?

Apparently not, because Kevin Williamson (yes, the creator of Dawson Creek and the TV version of The Vampire Diaries, but also of the Scream and I Know What You Did Last Summer film franchises) has decided that enough isn’t enough, and we need another serial killer, preferably smart (not average IQ like most real serial killers), British (like Anthony Hopkins but unlike practically every real serial killer in the US) and merely sadistic (unlike most serial killers, who have sexual motivations for their crimes). And what better than to have a law enforcement operative, preferably with their own problems, trying to catch him with the help of less-inspired police-type people (cf Will Graham, Clarice Starling, Samantha Waters, Patrick Jane et al)?

So far, so entirely derivative. In fact, it was originally the script for Scream 3. So what, if anything, does Williamson’s reheated new show, The Following, have to offer? Well, it’s got the rather marvellous James Purefoy from Rome, Camelot and The Philanthropist, as the Edgar Allen Poe-obsessed killer, and the return of Kevin “centre of the universe” Bacon to network TV after 30 years (or something) away. It’s also got another innovation – a cult of serial killers that Purefoy has been nurturing over the Internet from jail for all this time, a cult the members of which are prepared to lie in wait for years, getting close to people, until Purefoy tells them to leap into action as part of his new, sinister plan.

But apart from that, it’s exactly what you might be expecting of a serial killer show: lots of incredibly nasty violence and women being victimised while a lone investigator and his band of dull assistants try to stop the worst from happening (usually not in time). Here’s a trailer:

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Wednesday’s “Pilot green lights, cancellations and Alex Kingston to recur on Arrow” news

23 January 2013 Rob Buckley Post a comment

Doctor Who

Film

Film casting

Trailers

  • Trailer for Olympus Has Fallen with Gerard Butler and Morgan Freeman
  • Trailer for Ghost Team One
  • Trailer for The Liability with Tim Roth and Peter Mullan
  • Trailer for Hansel & Gretel: Witch Hunters with Gemma Arterton, Jeremy Renner et al [NSFW]
  • Clip from Beautiful Creatures with Emmy Rossum

Theatre

Canadian TV

UK TV

US TV

US TV casting

New US TV shows

New US TV show casting

Tuesday’s “Zombieland TV show, Toby Jones back for Captain America 2 and more Lilyhammer” news

22 January 2013 Rob Buckley Post a comment

Film casting

Trailers

  • Trailer for Stoker, with Nicole Kidman, Matthew Goode and Mia Wasikowska
  • Promo for A Good Day To Die Hard

International TV

  • Casting on Lilyhammer [minor spoilers]

UK TV

US TV

US TV show casting

New US TV shows

  • Amazon developing Zombieland TV show
US TV

Reviews: The Carrie Diaries (The CW) 1×1

21 January 2013 Rob Buckley 4 Comments

Young Carrie Bradshaw from The Carrie Diaries

In the US: Mondays, 8/7c, The CW

Sex and the City? Remember that? It’s a little known HBO show that’s practically vanished into obscurity now, so just in case you need reminding, it featured four female 30/40-something best friends, including one Carrie Bradshaw, a columnist for a New York tabloid who writes about sex, dating and relationships in that city. Hence the title.

Based on the books of Candace Bushnell, it was notable for its giving a women a rare forum of their own to discuss their attitudes towards sex, men, relationships, shopping, jobs, family, friendships, social occasions, vacations… Life basically.

It was also notable for being if not always massively explicit with its sex, at least being explicit with its dialogue about sex.

So what should we make of The Carrie Diaries on The CW? Yes, it’s again based on books by Candace Bushnell, but since her books never resembled Sex and the City too much, that’s not much of a recommendation.

It also features a 16-year old Carrie Bradshaw so is set during the mid-80s – horrifyingly enough, that’s over 20 years ago now and yes, the maths on that do not add up in the slightest – making it less relevant to the typical audience of The CW, who are in their mid-to-late teens and early 20s.

There’s also no Miranda, no Samantha, no Charlotte – yet – just Carrie, so perhaps the most important group of female friends in TV history isn’t going to make an appearance or have much to do with the show.

And just to reiterate some of those facts again for a final point, it’s on The CW, it’s going to be watched by teenagers, it features a 16-year-old girl as its lead – exactly how sexually explicit in thought, word and deed do you think it’s going to be?

In short, just how much of a pale shadow of Sex and the City is this show going to be?

The quick answer is very pale, with little that’s remarkable or interesting to draw you in. Even the Twin Towers have been erased from the 1980s New York skyline just in case they upset anyone.

Having said that, despite all the worst fears you might have had about it, The Carrie Diaries is still perfectly acceptable fare. Here’s a trailer. You may notice Freema Agyeman from Doctor Who in it. You may also notice she’s lost all trace of acting ability since.

Continue reading “Reviews: The Carrie Diaries (The CW) 1×1”