Back again! More about tv, anyone?

OK, so I am trying really hard to keep blogging and not give up just because I only have 6 followers. These things take time, and I am willing to wait. I have been so busy anyway, family visiting, my daughter's fourth birthday, my ten year anniversary, a massive barbecue this weekend and preparing for my trip with my husband to Bath for our first time away on our own for a whole weekend without the kids!

Enough about me, I want to write more about the television viewing I have managed to squeeze in over the last few days. There was another episode of Mildred Pierce on Saturday.

 It was a difficult one to watch as she goes through the motions of her divorce and the tragedy of death. Kate Winslet obviously brings a lot of herself into this character. When she breaks down while discussing her divorce with her husband the pain on her face is so real. So I can see this series starting to get better already.

I am still not convinced by the actress playing her older daughter Veda, I'd rather they speed it along until she is replaced by Evan Rachel Wood.

I am also watching a new series on TV called the Talk. Looks exactly like Loose Women which is also based on Barbara Walter's original show, The View. We've never been able to watch the view over here in England which is an absolute shame. Loose Women is ok if you watch loads of soaps and love celebrity news but seriously I would like something with a bit more to chew on. The View has been notorious for its political banter and they have really impressed me with the topics they talk about. We need something like that, where its like The Wright Stuff but with only women! I'm pretty sure British women aren't as thick as what's represented by the lousy demographic on Loose Women!

I'm looking forward to watching some more Felicity later, reminiscing about the 90's and my student days while I catch up on my ironing. So what are you watching at the moment? I'd love my new blogger friends to post something about what they love watching on TV. Call it research. Tell me what you want to see a drama about that no-one else has done yet!

Mildred Pierce

So the remake of Mildred Pierce was shown on Sky Atlantic this weekend. When it was announced that this was coming to tv I had just finished an assignment analysing the original Joan Crawford version for my film class. I loved the film. It was done in a film noir style in 1945 and was quite glamorous, earning a an Oscar nomination for Crawford. I wouldn't necessarily agree with the message in the film, that women who aim to achieve more than their male counterparts will be karmically punished for it.
The film is based on a novel by James M. Cain.

The story goes that Mildred is a housewife who kicks out her cheating husband to try and raise her two kids and pay the bills on her own. She works hard, in a job she feels is beneath herself and makes enough money using her wits and intelligence and builds her own restaurant business. But it is her oldest daughter Veda whom she has spoilt through the years that betrays her and humiliates her. You really have to see or read it to get the whole gist of the story. Crawford's version of Pierce is punished for her endeavours and I wonder if this new version with Kate Winslet will be different.

Already the critics are not impressed with the new version's bleakness and lack of convincing storyline. I think this is the intent. This time it's not film noir, it's post modern irony. Winslet's Pierce's struggle through the depression to try and get a decent job with just her home-maker skills echoes with myself and millions of mothers out there who are dealing with own reality with the current recession. I  found this version much more depressing, but a part of me is urging Winslet to bring some glimmer of hope to us mums who are watching this. Surely things right now are nowhere as bad as the Great Depression? Or should we prepare for worse to follow?

I urge everyone to at least watch the original film. Its probably the first black and white film I have really ever enjoyed!

TV TV TV, Give Me More!

Alas my favourite TV show Game of Thrones has just finished its first series. It was fantastic, I had been waiting for the fantasy party to get going and it ended with wonderful finish that left me wanting more! At least I still have the book to finish reading in the mean time.
I've been reading it on the Kindle, which I love but I had no idea how big the book was until I saw it in a book store recently. So wow, its a heavy book with plenty of detail and insight into all the characters.










While I'm waiting for the next series to come out there are so many other shows I love watching. Here's a list of a few that I'm loving:

1. Caprica
2. Smallville
3. Fringe
4. Parenthood
5. Brothers & Sisters
6. Big Love
7. Being Erica
8. Spartacus: Blood and Sand
9. In Treatment
                                 
Its not in any particular order. I like to analyse the shows to see if I could ever write something like them. I think I could never write sci-fi as I just don't think I'm clever enough. I think I'm more inclined to write something like Being Erica where the main protagonist is a female my age. I do like to watch old tv series as well and I'm currently rewatching Felicity. I love this one as it was so similar to my own experiences at University. Also because for years I thought I would end up at NYU so its like watching an alternate universe of my own life where I did get to go. Her character is so similar to my own, but I think its meant to be like that, where the target audience just do. I also love that its one of JJ Abrams first TV shows and many of his favourite actors are in it, Jennifer Garner, Greg Grunberg, Amanda Foreman.

If you are wondering, where are the British shows, well there are a few that I like, Doctor Who and some of the ITV dramas, but there is not much else I watch. Though Made in Chelsea is definitely my guilty pleasure!

My TV obsession

Ok, so I have to talk about my obsession with TV because its just who I am. I grew up in NY where we had 24 hours of lots of channels to watch and plenty of educational programs that I watched continuously from the age of 5. After I left the States, the TV withdrawal was horrific. I cannot even begin to explain it. But with the dawn of the internet and Sky television, my hunger for specifically American dramas just grew and grew! I make excuses about it now, because I want to write for TV. I will be starting a writing for television module at University in the next year or so. So my obsession is justified. Its homework!

My current favourite has to be Game of Thrones. I am reading the book and watching Game of Thrones series.  The first book is fantastic. Its been such a journey and reading it alongside watching it is so enriching. They can't put every detail into the TV series, so I love reading the characters thoughts and little stories intertwined into the main story. I enjoy reading fantasy novels anyway, this is heavily about war and politics but the little spices of magic and dragons thrown in make it really enjoyable. The details are very clever and the author has clearly worked hard at defining each of the characters. It really reminded me of the Belgariad and the Mallorean written by David Eddings. Those are my favourite fantasy series I have to say. Maybe one day I'll be writing my own!