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The Undoing has now had bigger ratings in the UK than Game Of Thrones and is on course to be Sky Atlantic’s biggest US series ever.
Not bad for an adult mystery show with no special effects or built in franchise audience.
You can all complain all you want about the finale but its achieved more than many shows of its nature can only dream of..
https://variety.com/2020/tv/global/nicole-kidman-high-grant-the-undoing-sky-1234842085/
ReplyCopy URLLoved this limited series to no end, but I kept my expectations in check about it. Not so much for the prestige angle, which it at least looked expensive with A-list stars, HBO $$$ to spare, and scenic pre-covid NYC, but for the thrill ride of the year that general audiences were clamoring for. Kudos to all involved for crafting a genuine word-of-mouth hit! That’s not too easy to do in this disposable streaming era, so I tip my invisible hat. Twitter was lit AF last night, which was exciting to watch unfold instead of this dull place. I’m looking at across-the-board Emmy nominations for Kidman, Grant, Sutherland, and if we’re fortunate enough to have nice things in 2021, Noah Jupe and the Earth-shattering breakthrough performance of Noma Dumezweni will also become future Emmy nominees. I think that all of them can go the distance if this hits well with both Globes & SAG. Kelley and Bier might have a harder time. The winter move was a perfect timing strategy that worked wonders for the show’s ultimate success.
Still reeling over the series finale, which I thought was fantastic. It’s always the husband, right? They said that in the damn premiere, and sure enough! You should have known. Jonathan should have jumped off of that bridge lol! I had the working theory of Sylvia as the killer, but I also thought she was Jonathan’s other lover. That plot point was unfortunately left dangling for no good reason, but it would have given Lily Rabe far more material to work with than her backstage reveal. Any basic actress could have played Kidman’s BFF, but to also be her husband’s other lover and scorned mistress/killer? I guess the irony of brilliant Dr. Grace not knowing about the “white mess” within her own home worked for what it was. Could that have all been more impactful with a final coda? Perhaps. I call foul to that ridiculous bathroom scene where the dodgy prosecutor based her entire cross-examination of Grace on pure hearsay. She had no way to know that Sylvia was telling the truth about Grace’s phone call with Jonathan’s mother, and Sylvia was a third-party to that call’s contents anyways. Clever to have Grace testify for the defense instead of being a hostile prosecutorial witness, so spousal privilege was off the table. I don’t know if that’s David E. Kelley shenanigans or from the book, but I don’t care, b/c this afforded Kidman her best moment of the entire series on the witness stand. I wasn’t entirely sold on Grant’s about-face until the car chase sequence, which had me on the edge of my seat despite how preposterous it all was. Did no one think Jonathan might be a flight risk? Why didn’t Grace have Henry under lock and key after turning on Jonathan? Why would Jonathan insist on a DNA test for the murder weapon before knowing Henry tampered with it? Does Franklin just have helicopters at his disposal at a moment’s notice? What a rich old boss lol.
If this had been “The Practice”-era Kelley, Grace would have stood by Jonathan to the oblivious end, Haley would have won her case, and then the bitter truth would have been revealed about Jonathan without the double-cross. Anyways, at least Haley got the great last line in about the murder weapon and the betrayal not being her fault. Dumezweni was HBIC here, and I can’t wait for what she’s afforded to do next. Ramirez was completely wasted, and one throwaway scene for Tony winner Annaleigh Ashford? So many red flags and dangling plots (that bumbling public defender, the doctor friend, putting Miguel on the stand unnecessarily, Fernando and the baby, and on and on). I still don’t know what to make of Elena, or what the series was “saying” about the problematic, aloof, exoticized, “foreign” mistress, since we saw so little of her in the premiere. I hope that Grant’s performance holds up and grows in complexity with repeated viewings knowing what we know now. I’ll admit that the more nitpicking I give this series, the less I’ll probably like it, but I’ll choose to take this as the psychological thriller it was intended to be and succeeded at, as opposed to the prestige drama that it floundered somewhat in pulling off.
ReplyCopy URLThe Undoing has now had bigger ratings in the UK than Game Of Thrones and is on course to be Sky Atlantic’s biggest US series ever. Not bad for an adult mystery show with no special effects or built in franchise audience. You can all complain all you want about the finale but its achieved more than many shows of its nature can only dream of.. https://variety.com/2020/tv/global/nicole-kidman-high-grant-the-undoing-sky-1234842085/
Bigger than the opening episode of Game of Thrones in 2011 when it wasn’t a global phenomenon*
ReplyCopy URLBigger than the opening episode of Game of Thrones in 2011 when it wasn’t a global phenomenon*
Game of Thrones was always massive on that channel though from the beginning. I mean arguably even bigger than it was in the US at the time. It did become much bigger as it went on but The Undoing beating the launch of GoT AND Big Little Lies should not be ignored (although the show has been far better received in the UK by critics than in America).
ReplyCopy URLFYC OSCARS : PROMISING YOUNG WOMAN IN ALL CATEGORIES (ESP. ACTRESS – Carey Mulligan AND ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY — EMERALD FENNELL), VANESSA KIRBY FOR "PIECES OF A WOMAN", ESSIE DAVIS FOR "BABYTEETH"
It was also bigger than True Detective and Big Little Lies in the UK.
Meanwhile the budget for the opening season of GOT was probably 100 times the budget of The Undoing. Give the show some credit..
Not sure why some people are so intent on nit picking everything they can about this show even when it comes to its high ratings..
ReplyCopy URLThis was a mess from start to finish but was entertaining most of the time except that atrocious episode 4. I thought the finale did its job althougth the ending was too abrupt.
The acting was overall decent enough but Grant didnt convinced me. Nicole was much better, tho she seemed on auto pilot most of the time.
ReplyCopy URLThe irony that Ramirez’s name was in the trailer yet he had the most thankless role on the show.
In a way I don’t hold his lack of material against him but Dimezweni really made the most pf every scene she was in. I know this might be an unpopular opinion but she deserves to be nominated.
ReplyCopy URLFYC OSCARS : PROMISING YOUNG WOMAN IN ALL CATEGORIES (ESP. ACTRESS – Carey Mulligan AND ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY — EMERALD FENNELL), VANESSA KIRBY FOR "PIECES OF A WOMAN", ESSIE DAVIS FOR "BABYTEETH"
The irony that Ramirez’s name was in the trailer yet he had the most thankless role on the show. In a way I don’t hold his lack of material against him but Dimezweni really made the most pf every scene she was in. I know this might be an unpopular opinion but she deserves to be nominated.
The past few pages have identified her as a favourite / highlight. I don’t think this is unpopular
ReplyCopy URLThe past few pages have identified her as a favourite / highlight. I don’t think this is unpopular
Good point. Honestly Dumezweni has been quite underrated in her career but she hasn’t really been given the opportunity outside theatre to prove herself. Hopefully that changes now.
Considering the finale no wonder HBO wants to release Mare of Easttown this season. Outside of acting (and maybe costumes or cinematography) this show getting any nominations would be appalling.
ReplyCopy URLFYC OSCARS : PROMISING YOUNG WOMAN IN ALL CATEGORIES (ESP. ACTRESS – Carey Mulligan AND ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY — EMERALD FENNELL), VANESSA KIRBY FOR "PIECES OF A WOMAN", ESSIE DAVIS FOR "BABYTEETH"
Nicole keeps delivering hits for HBO
Well I mean to be fair who isn’t going to watch a programme starring Academy Award winner and Hollywood A-lister Nicole Kidman?
ReplyCopy URLFYC OSCARS : PROMISING YOUNG WOMAN IN ALL CATEGORIES (ESP. ACTRESS – Carey Mulligan AND ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY — EMERALD FENNELL), VANESSA KIRBY FOR "PIECES OF A WOMAN", ESSIE DAVIS FOR "BABYTEETH"
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