it’s all in the keys

the cursor sat blinking before I started writing this post. I’m not sure what to say without giving away the plot to this thriller, family drama original, now available on netflix. it is called BLOODLINE, and like one of its predecessors, HOUSE OF CARDS, it is one of the most brilliant shows to line up in my netflix queue. the acting alone is phenomenal.

the Rayburn family has done some things. “John Rayburn”, one of the brothers is heard throughout the promos, “we’re not bad people, but we did a bad thing.” in thirteen episodes, the first season, you’ll meet each Rayburn family member and by the thirteenth episode you’ll know the bad thing, or will you? is there just one bad thing, one black sheep, or maybe there is a wolf in sheep’s clothing among them?

the cast is diverse with show stoppers, Sissy Spacek and Sam Shepard playing matriarch and patriarch, and their grown children are portrayed by actors, whose rosters you may or may not be familiar with. the performance by Ben Mendelsohn as “Danny Rayburn” is extraordinary and should be recognized during awards season. just mail him the award, already!

it all takes place in Key West where there is a big house, a couple fish, a loading dock, a boat, a few cops, more than one shady neighbor, drug dealers, and traffickers, and childhood secrets swept under the sand, but you know what they say….

the sea will tell

a game of wits

there was that game of wits between Hannibal Lecter and Clarice Starling.

SILENCE OF THE LAMBS (based on the book by Thomas Harris) swept the coveted Oscars in its day and remains on the list of one of the best movies of all time, whether you liked it, or not. the story, yes, gruesome enough, was less about the skinning of women (which of course was horrific), and more about the psychological ping pong between the serial killer and the young FBI agent. I tried to find media articles about this movie, what I could find online, anyways. there is this one from the LA Times outlining the outrage from special interest groups about possible stereotypes portrayed in the film. click here for a dusty review from 1991.  oh, hollywood!

Richard Schickel, acclaimed film critic, who once wrote for Time magazine, and now goes beneath the headlines over at truthdig. ( click here to dig it ), and is also author of CONVERSATIONS WITH SCORSESE, commented in the 90’s LA Times story, “No intelligent person will make the connection between the status of that psychopath and the minority group in general, just as we didn’t walk out of GOODFELLAS thinking that all Italian Catholics are bad.”

click ahead, people! it’s the era of netflix  (holy moly, it is magnificent!), we have on the couch on demand viewing of movies (with unlimited homemade popcorn). I have found the BBC produced crime dramas to be some of the best in the genre, with some of the best acting performances. HAPPY VALLEY and HINTERLAND are fantastic. and then there is…

THE FALL

THE FALL, created by Allan Cubitt, is another psychological game of wits between a serial killer, Paul Spector and a seasoned detective, Stella Gibson. two nail biting seasons are currently available for streaming now. THE FALL has won the IFTA (Irish Film and Television Academy) for Best Drama, and Best Actor.

Allan Cubitt, creator of THE FALL said, “I knew The Fall would disturb, but I didn’t want it to exploit.” more here from Cubitt, on women and violence

THE FALL does not exploit women, like it’s long ago predecessor, SILENCE OF THE LAMBS, it is a dark psychological game of wits.

Paul Spector will only speak to Stella Gibson for the interrogation because he knows her, knows who she is, just as Hannibal Lecter nibbling on some fava beans, dreaming about a glass of Chianti, knew Clarice Starling.

THE FALL takes place along the gritty streets of Belfast and has a brooding ambiance, an unsuspecting wife, innocent children, an obsessed babysitter, a man eater female detective, a deranged husband, and at least one psychopath.

be sure to keep your wits about you

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