Take 4 TV: Deadwood
Deadwood: Season One (2004)
What's Going On?: Montana Sheriff Seth Bullock and his friend Sol Star travel to the lawless town of Deadwood, South Dakota to establish a hardware store. They find out quickly that people there don't wear white hats or black hats...only infinite shades of gray. They quickly become embroiled in the nefarious deeds of the locals, including shady tavern-owners, famous gunslingers, and hookers with hearts of gold.
Leading the Line-Up: While this truly is an ensemble cast, Tim Olyphant (who plays Seth Bullock) and Ian McShane (who plays owner of "The Gem" saloon, Al Swearengen) are pretty much the leaders of the cast. The former represents law and order, and the latter truly embodies lawlessness and how one can get ahead by not playing by the rules. Olyphant seems a little wooden at times, but you grow to like him as the hero, while McShane is brilliant as the man you love to hate...and that you do occasionally find yourself rooting for. Can't go without mentioning Keith Carradine as Wild Bill Hickock, either...probably one of the most recognizable figures in the series.
Things to Look Out For: Historical accuracy. Many of the characters, including Bullock and Star, are pulled straight from the history books. The series really does try to paint a realistic picture of what life in Deadwood could have been like. A lot of this comes out in the special features...speaking of which...
Special Features to Catch: Out of the twelve episodes on the first five discs, there are four commentary tracks. The tricky part for me is listening to these (and doing my due diligence for these reviews) and not getting the story ruined...which is part of what I enjoy. So, in the first episode, the guy who is giving the commentary gives away information about two of the characters that die...I wasn't happy about that. So skip the first two (unless you watch them at the VERY end, as they contain "spoilers"), but catch the last two commentaries. The sixth disc is a special features disc, which includes "Making Deadwood," a behind-the-scenes look at Deadwood (not vital to watch), "The Real Deadwood," a featurette on the history of Deadwood and some of the real historical figures who appear in the series (definitely catch if you found the series interesting), "The New Language of the Old West," which talks about the use of language and cultural symbolism in the series (kind of interesting, but gets a bit academic), and "An Imaginative Reality," which looks at joining historical and fictional characters into one cohesive setting (if you're interested in acting theory, this may catch your attenton).
Random Trivia: For a long time there was a bar called Bullock's Tavern in Amherstburg, Ontario, which was originally owned by Seth Bullock's parents and was also the place he was born.
And I Quote: Seth Bullock: "There's a blood stain on your floor." Al Swearengen: "Yeah, I'm... I'm gonna get to that."
Life Lessons From Deadwood: 1) Never sit with your back to the door of a saloon; 2) Pigs are to criminals in the Old West as cement shoes are to gangsters in the Roaring 20's; 3) Don't mess with smallpox.
Curt's Take: "Worth Considering" - Was surprised I enjoyed this as much as I did, and got into it as much as I did. Picture "The Sopranos" meets "Oz" in the Old West. Kind of. The final episode was really electric, though...it was like the entire series had laid these trails of gunpowder all around town, and then multiple fuses were lit. There's a scene where all the major players are drawn from their environments (the hardware store, the bars, the hotel, etc.) and gather, one by one, in the street...you truly see how all the characters lives intersect in this small town. Literally gave me chills. I also liked the use of language in the series, most of
which could never appear on network television. While some viewer groups objected to the use of such harsh and intense language in a western, the creator points out in his commentary that most of us are used to the westerns that came out of the golden age of cinema...which weren't about to drop the F-bomb on an audience.
Next Time on Take 4: Three seasons of a great sitcom that brought the late, great Phil Hartman to prime-time television.
What's Going On?: Montana Sheriff Seth Bullock and his friend Sol Star travel to the lawless town of Deadwood, South Dakota to establish a hardware store. They find out quickly that people there don't wear white hats or black hats...only infinite shades of gray. They quickly become embroiled in the nefarious deeds of the locals, including shady tavern-owners, famous gunslingers, and hookers with hearts of gold.
Leading the Line-Up: While this truly is an ensemble cast, Tim Olyphant (who plays Seth Bullock) and Ian McShane (who plays owner of "The Gem" saloon, Al Swearengen) are pretty much the leaders of the cast. The former represents law and order, and the latter truly embodies lawlessness and how one can get ahead by not playing by the rules. Olyphant seems a little wooden at times, but you grow to like him as the hero, while McShane is brilliant as the man you love to hate...and that you do occasionally find yourself rooting for. Can't go without mentioning Keith Carradine as Wild Bill Hickock, either...probably one of the most recognizable figures in the series.
Things to Look Out For: Historical accuracy. Many of the characters, including Bullock and Star, are pulled straight from the history books. The series really does try to paint a realistic picture of what life in Deadwood could have been like. A lot of this comes out in the special features...speaking of which...
Special Features to Catch: Out of the twelve episodes on the first five discs, there are four commentary tracks. The tricky part for me is listening to these (and doing my due diligence for these reviews) and not getting the story ruined...which is part of what I enjoy. So, in the first episode, the guy who is giving the commentary gives away information about two of the characters that die...I wasn't happy about that. So skip the first two (unless you watch them at the VERY end, as they contain "spoilers"), but catch the last two commentaries. The sixth disc is a special features disc, which includes "Making Deadwood," a behind-the-scenes look at Deadwood (not vital to watch), "The Real Deadwood," a featurette on the history of Deadwood and some of the real historical figures who appear in the series (definitely catch if you found the series interesting), "The New Language of the Old West," which talks about the use of language and cultural symbolism in the series (kind of interesting, but gets a bit academic), and "An Imaginative Reality," which looks at joining historical and fictional characters into one cohesive setting (if you're interested in acting theory, this may catch your attenton).Random Trivia: For a long time there was a bar called Bullock's Tavern in Amherstburg, Ontario, which was originally owned by Seth Bullock's parents and was also the place he was born.
And I Quote: Seth Bullock: "There's a blood stain on your floor." Al Swearengen: "Yeah, I'm... I'm gonna get to that."
Life Lessons From Deadwood: 1) Never sit with your back to the door of a saloon; 2) Pigs are to criminals in the Old West as cement shoes are to gangsters in the Roaring 20's; 3) Don't mess with smallpox.
Curt's Take: "Worth Considering" - Was surprised I enjoyed this as much as I did, and got into it as much as I did. Picture "The Sopranos" meets "Oz" in the Old West. Kind of. The final episode was really electric, though...it was like the entire series had laid these trails of gunpowder all around town, and then multiple fuses were lit. There's a scene where all the major players are drawn from their environments (the hardware store, the bars, the hotel, etc.) and gather, one by one, in the street...you truly see how all the characters lives intersect in this small town. Literally gave me chills. I also liked the use of language in the series, most of
which could never appear on network television. While some viewer groups objected to the use of such harsh and intense language in a western, the creator points out in his commentary that most of us are used to the westerns that came out of the golden age of cinema...which weren't about to drop the F-bomb on an audience.Next Time on Take 4: Three seasons of a great sitcom that brought the late, great Phil Hartman to prime-time television.
posted by Curt at 11:04 PM
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
<< Home