Atticus Freeman meets up with his friend Letitia and his Uncle George to embark on a road trip across 1950s Jim Crow America in search of his missing father.Atticus Freeman meets up with his friend Letitia and his Uncle George to embark on a road trip across 1950s Jim Crow America in search of his missing father.Atticus Freeman meets up with his friend Letitia and his Uncle George to embark on a road trip across 1950s Jim Crow America in search of his missing father.
Aunjanue Ellis-Taylor
- Hippolyta Freeman
- (as Aunjanue Ellis)
Michael Kenneth Williams
- Montrose Freeman
- (as Michael K. Williams)
- (credit only)
Jeffrey Johnson
- Mister Lads
- (as Jeffrey S.S. Johnson)
Charles Ambrose
- Deputy Jimmy
- (as Jason Ambrose)
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaThe speech played during the montage of Tick, Leti, and Uncle George driving toward Massachusetts is an excerpt of Black intellectual James Baldwin's famous debate with white conservative intellectual William F. Buckley at Cambridge University's student debating society, the Cambridge Union Society. Aired live on the BBC 12 June 1965, the motion put forward for debate regarded whether the American Dream had "Been Achieved at the Expense of the American Negro." Baldwin and Cambridge University student David Heycock argued in the affirmative (and ultimately prevailed by a vote of the students present, 540 to 160) against their opponents Buckley and student Jeremy Burford.
- GoofsThe book that Tic picks up and finds an old photo in is The Count of Monte Cristo with a slip cover on it. When he looks at the same book later, on the bed, it is a different copy, without a slip cover and has a more classic binding.
- Quotes
Atticus Freeman: Stories are like people.
Atticus Freeman: Loving them doesn't make them perfect. You just try to cherish them, overlook their flaws.
- ConnectionsFeatured in The 73rd Primetime Emmy Awards (2021)
- SoundtracksSh-Boom
Written by James Edwards, Carl Feaster, Claude Feaster, James Keyes, Floyd McRae
Performed by The Crew Cuts
Featured review
"What the Moon Brings"
I haven't done episode by episode reviews for a new show since "Watchmen" and so, getting similar vibes from the first episode of "Lovecraft Country" - I've decided to give it the same treatment.
Having recently returned from serving a country that still hates him for the colour of his skin, Atticus Freeman (Jonathan Majors) returns to Chicago to investigate the disappearance of his father. A series of leads point him in the direction of a remote area of Massachusetts and along with his Uncle George (Courtney B. Vance) and childhood friend Leti Lewis (Jurnee Smollett-Bell) he sets off across country. But these are dangerous times to be an African American, and the more remote the location, the more hostile and flagrant the racism becomes.
So I am getting immediate "Watchmen" vibes from the show, given that similarly it looks at the historical experiences of Black Americans, through the prism of a science fiction lens. Performances in this first episode are really good. I've not seen Jonathan Majors before, but looking at his previous roles, there's a couple of movies I've meant to get to for a while. I liked Smollet-Bell in "Birds Of Prey" and Courtney B Vance has been great in everything for decades. The period recreations looked good and the visual effects, when required were OK. I liked the opening dream sequence a lot and the usage of different era musical elements heighten the other worldly feeling.
I've not read the source novel, and I'm not that well versed in Lovecraft's writing either (although I can recognise a Cthulhu when I see one). . There was lot of scene setting in this first episode, as you might imagine (although I'm still not entirely clear why Leti ended up going with them?). But the episode ends in an explosion of carnage that I fear might shake off some of the audience, if they weren't aware what they were getting themselves into.
We're way too early into the run to consider it as coming close to how majestic "Watchmen" was, but so far, so good. Back next week.
Having recently returned from serving a country that still hates him for the colour of his skin, Atticus Freeman (Jonathan Majors) returns to Chicago to investigate the disappearance of his father. A series of leads point him in the direction of a remote area of Massachusetts and along with his Uncle George (Courtney B. Vance) and childhood friend Leti Lewis (Jurnee Smollett-Bell) he sets off across country. But these are dangerous times to be an African American, and the more remote the location, the more hostile and flagrant the racism becomes.
So I am getting immediate "Watchmen" vibes from the show, given that similarly it looks at the historical experiences of Black Americans, through the prism of a science fiction lens. Performances in this first episode are really good. I've not seen Jonathan Majors before, but looking at his previous roles, there's a couple of movies I've meant to get to for a while. I liked Smollet-Bell in "Birds Of Prey" and Courtney B Vance has been great in everything for decades. The period recreations looked good and the visual effects, when required were OK. I liked the opening dream sequence a lot and the usage of different era musical elements heighten the other worldly feeling.
I've not read the source novel, and I'm not that well versed in Lovecraft's writing either (although I can recognise a Cthulhu when I see one). . There was lot of scene setting in this first episode, as you might imagine (although I'm still not entirely clear why Leti ended up going with them?). But the episode ends in an explosion of carnage that I fear might shake off some of the audience, if they weren't aware what they were getting themselves into.
We're way too early into the run to consider it as coming close to how majestic "Watchmen" was, but so far, so good. Back next week.
helpful•54
- southdavid
- Aug 19, 2020
Details
- Runtime1 hour 9 minutes
- Color
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