I'm really surprised at some of the reviews. Perhaps it's because I binge watched all the episodes instead of waiting week to week, but my husband and I enjoyed it immensely. It's the story of a family in crisis as it deals with the discovery that one (or more) of them may be involved in a string of notorious serial killings. As is always the case, there are subplots and mini dramas aplenty. The Hawthorne family closest is full to bursting with skeletons. But as a good mystery should, you're not really sure those skeletons are what they seem.
There are no gimmicky special effects. No mysterious sci-fi elements. No flashy cinematography to distract from the story. No gratuitous sex or violence. No unnecessary graphic scenes at all. Just straightforward storytelling. Amazing, huh? So, I guess for some people that equals boring TV. Although, how a macabre 11 year old who wants to be a pathologist can be boring I have no idea!
I saw someone comment that they felt the filming seemed all gray. ? I don't see that. It didn't seem like that to me. Yes, a great many scenes take place at night, or in places that may not be brightly lit. It also takes place in Boston in the fall - cloudy, overcast weather is pretty common here for that time of year. Not a lot of opportunity for brightly lit spaces, but colors seemed true to me.
I don't feel the acting is bad at all. I do feel that the director made a choice to have the actors hold back and open up as the show progresses. You definitely get to know them better as the show goes on, as would happen in any show, but I felt the actors bloomed slowly with each new episode and that it was deliberate. It made it very interesting.
This is not the most riveting drama or mystery you will ever watch, and for my fellow New Englanders, Deirdre Lovejoy's Boston accent will be cringe worthy, but it's a good show with an interesting plot and diverse characters (Dana in DNA is a hoot!) and plenty of mystery to keep you guessing. I recommend you give it a try.
******* SPOILERS ********
For the person who commented on the harm to animals:
1. Obviously, no actual harm was done to any animal, so calm down.
2. Also obvious is the set up of Jack as a deeply disturbed child. Most serial killers and other psychopaths have a history of harming animals in their youth, so..... it's setting up Jack's psychopathy. Also, again, obviously, the cat wasn't actually harmed. (Jack is supposed to have cut the tail off of the neighbors cat in a 'medical experiment' and his father takes the cat to have the tail sewn back on)
3. Many people trap raccoons and other animals that cause problems on their property. The traps they showed were humane, and should not cause harm to an animal. In the story, a raccoon got part of himself caught in the trap and Gunther killed it rather than see it suffer. Sometimes things like that happen. Of course, nothing was ever shown, not even a raccoon in the yard. So I have no idea what the fuss was about.
Certainly the show is not encouraging violence against animals. They were moments that furthered the story for each of those characters. Animal lovers need not worry. My three cats are not offended.
5 out of 7 found this helpful.
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