A Few Words About A few words about...™ Sharp Objects - in Blu-ray (1 Viewer)

[Robert Harris]

Once in a very long while, a cable series appears that hits all the right notes for me.

I like my films dark, and this one fills the bill.

The most recent is Sharp Objects, courtesy of HBO, created by Marti Noxon, from the novel by Gillian Flynn, directed by Jean-Marc Vallee, and featuring a cast that plays akin to a fine symphony orchestra.

Deftly, moving from police procedural, to psychological drama, to near-horror/thriller, the six episode series moves leisurely, dropping crumbs of information along the path.

For those who feel that one set of end credits is like any other, don't bypass those attached to the sixth and final episode.

Shot with an Alexa, HBO's two disc set is perfect. I might have liked to see a bit more background, and possibly a meatier doc on the production, but one can't have everything.

Sharp Objects is the cinema version of one of those novels that you can't put down.

And shouldn't.

Image - 5

Audio - 5

Pass / Fail - Pass

Very Highly Recommended

RAH

 

[Robert Crawford]

I watched this series when it played on HBO and it's good, but I'm not sure I want to revisit it again on disc.

 

[Josh Steinberg]

I watched this series when it played on HBO and it's good, but I'm not sure I want to revisit it again on disc.

I really enjoyed it as well, but I also see it as a “one and done” type of program for myself.

 

[Robert Harris]

I really enjoyed it as well, but I also see it as a “one and done” type of program for myself.

I can understand your position, from a storyline perspective, ie, once you’ve found mother in the fruit cellar...

But I was taken by the editing, combined by the breadcrumb concept of narrative movement. Hundreds of very short - half foot - cuts, moving back and forth in time, between several characters, inclusive of the adult Amy Adams, and her teen self, played by the It girl, Sophia Lillis, as well as other characters, both alive, and returned from other places.

 

[The Drifter]

Part 1 of my SO review; I wrote this up after first seeing the series late last summer:

SO is amazing, twisted, and disturbing. I wouldn't expect anything less from an HBO series, but this show is exceptionally well-done. I haven't read the book the series is based on, because I wanted to be genuinely surprised by the storyline.

The idea of going back to the area where you grew up - after a long absence - is something I'm sure a lot of people can relate to. In the case of this show, it's obvious the Camille Preaker character (AA) had a lot of personal demons that she had been dealing with (re: her voluntary stay at the psych hospital, bouts with depression & attempted s., etc.), and even before this was fully revealed - I suspected a lot of her issues have to do with events that happened to her as a child/young adult growing up in Wind Gap.

As a huge fan of Led Zeppelin & Classic '60's/'70's rock in general, I appreciated the scenes when AA is driving around in the car with Led Zep playing; I especially liked the opening intro. of "In the Evening" which we've heard at least a couple of times. I first became a fan of the group as a teen in the late '80's, and then re-discovered them when their albums were re-released/remastered in 2014-2015. This music definitely give the series an old-skool vibe, even though it's obviously set in modern times. Going along with the classic rock "theme", I liked the scene towards the end of EP04 when the father put on a vinyl record, which played The Doors' iconic song "Riders on the Storm", which he accompanied on his piano.

Going along with this - the town of Wind Gap is definitely anachronistic, as are a lot of small towns in the U.S. The old storefronts (some of which look abandoned), old signs where the pain has obviously faded away, older houses (some of which have air conditioners in the windows, like back in the day), etc. make it seem like the town is trapped in the '70's/early '80's. This is obviously offset by the very modern I-phones, laptops, etc. that everyone has.

The series also has a "southern gothic" vibe/tone to it, though I know it doesn't take place in the South. Very creepy & atmospheric. The town obviously has secrets that are hidden beneath the surface, and things are not as calm/peaceful as they initially appear.

The film's scenes when characters are driving around in cars listening to music, the stream of consciousness flash-backs, the fantasy/dream sequences, etc. all remind me slightly of a great independent film from the early '90's, Clean, Shaven - about a mentally ill man who had just gotten out of an institution. I wonder if the makers of SO were "inspired" by that film somewhat, since the visual style is somewhat similar - but only at certain times.

 

[The Drifter]

Part 2 of my SO review:

Re: the SO finale: Truly amazing. This show was brilliant - one of the best TV series I've ever seen, and that's saying a lot. Really liked how the penultimate ending scene where Amma said "Don't tell Momma" featured the beginning notes of Led Zep's "In the Evening" playing in the background, and then continued into the song itself as the credits rolled - we had heard the beginning of "In the Evening" in earlier episodes, but the song quickly stopped....until this scene.

Also was very impressed at the editing

Spoiler: SPOILER

re: having the scenes with the murders of the two girls (by Amma & her friends) unexpectedly show up after the credits rolled...the very last scene showing Amma wearing white & walking back into the woods was chilling.

Spoiler: SPOILER

Never read the book, so was genuinely surprised by these ending scenes. So, to encapsulate this:

Adora was guilty of poisoning & killing her young daughter years before & of slowing poisoning Amma for years....and quickly poisoning Camille in the finale.

But, she was not guilty of the murders of the two girls in the town - that was all Amma & her two roller-skating friends; the pliers the LE found in the house was used to pull the teeth of the two girls, but it was Amma who used them, not Adora.

And, Amma also killed her St. Louis friend at the end (which is why the mother couldn't find her).

The scene where Camille looked at the doll-house (after finding the doll-house rug?! in the trash) and saw the floor made of teeth was quite sickening - so, that was where Amma put the teeth she pulled from the girls. Horrific.

 

[Lord Dalek]

I really enjoyed it as well, but I also see it as a “one and done” type of program for myself.

Yeah I can rewatch Big Little Lies (and am in fact doing so since its coming back next month) pretty easily. Sharp Objects...not so much Note: this is not a comment on the series quality, which was excellent, its just that the final twist was only effective once*.

*

Spoiler

And yes I'm well aware that Vallee elected to omit the book's epilogue altogether, electing instead to close with Camille's shock revelation that Amma's been playing her for a fool the whole time. A "Simon Oakland Ending" like the one Flynn gave us would probably ruin it.

BTW RAH -- if you enjoyed Sharp Objects and haven't watched Big Little Lies season 1 yet, I'd heartily recommend it. Same production team and very similar style.

 

[Worth]

I liked Big Little Lies much more than Sharp Objects. I certainly don't mind dark, but this felt very flat and one-note.

 

[Robert Harris]

Yeah I can rewatch Big Little Lies (and am in fact doing so since its coming back next month) pretty easily. Sharp Objects...not so much Note: this is not a comment on the series quality, which was excellent, its just that the final twist was only effective once*.

*

Spoiler

And yes I'm well aware that Vallee elected to omit the book's epilogue altogether, electing instead to close with Camille's shock revelation that Amma's been playing her for a fool the whole time. A "Simon Oakland Ending" like the one Flynn gave us would probably ruin it.

BTW RAH -- if you enjoyed Sharp Objects and haven't watched Big Little Lies season 1 yet, I'd heartily recommend it. Same production team and very similar style.

I'll give it a shot. Thx!

 

[Dan_Shane]

Yeah I can rewatch Big Little Lies (and am in fact doing so since its coming back next month) pretty easily. Sharp Objects...not so much Note: this is not a comment on the series quality, which was excellent, its just that the final twist was only effective once*.

Ah, but there are so many Easter Eggs hidden throughout the series that a revisit is practically essential for full enjoyment. Did you pick up on all of the subliminal text messages briefly appearing depending on where the Amy Adams character happened to be looking? They aren't necessarily "clues" that foreshadow plot points, but they definitely provide a richer and deeper understanding of her mindset.