Top Of The Lake

In my opinion, Top of the Lake is some of the best TV that’s been made this millennium. Perhaps this is because it is not really TV, but rather a miniseries in which each episode could stand alone as its own film. It was aired on the Sundance channel last year, and consists of 6 episodes, which revolve around the investigation of a missing, pregnant, 12 year old girl: Tui. The show was written and directed by Jane Campion, whose previous work has won her awards and consisted almost entirely of feature films.

The center of Top of the Lake is really the location. Set and shot in New Zealand, the landscape is almost as important as the plot. For example, where much of the action focuses is in a place called “Paradise” where a group of middle aged women whose lives are in shambles live with the spiritual leader GJ (Holly Hunter in an amazing performance), in hopes of getting their lives back on track. The women live in giant empty shipping containers on the shore of the lake. This set up is exceedingly cinematic and lends itself to the breathtaking natural beauty which cinematographer Adam Arkapaw is able to draw out in every single shot. 

Another striking feature of the show is how the characters are all split into groups who seem to know something about where Tui is. There’s GJ, and her clan as mentioned above, Det. Robin Griffin (Mad Men’s Elizabeth Moss), and the police department. Then there’s Matt, Tui’s father, whose family makes drugs in their basement and are all around crazy, and then additionally Tui and her friends. All of these groups seem to be hiding something from Robin. This structure allows for the plot to build slowly in all of these different places.  We learn about Tui and why she is pregnant and running away, through bits of information from each one of these groups. This slow-burn narrative style of building action and suspense makes the show almost unbearably addictive. This is something that could not have been achieved if the show were a film.

The mini-series style is perfect for this story because it allows Campion to spend 6 hours on something that would otherwise have been condensed into one and a half. She uses this extra time to introduce us not only to the main characters but to a lot of secondary characters as well. It also allows her to give information slowly and more organically, rather than explaining it all very quickly and neatly. The show also allows for the episodes to end on cliff-hangers which take the story in many different directions. In a film there would not have been this many opportunities to lead the audience away from what is really happening.

Top of the Lake is a must see show. It is riveting, beautifully shot and excellently acted. More importantly it is an original show with stories and ideas that will keep you interested from the moment the first episode plays to the moment it ends.

The Doorway

This Sunday season 6 of TV's brilliantly mod drama Mad Men premiered.  I'm a bit of a fan.  If by "bit of a fan" includes owning 3 seasons on DVD and dressing up as Don Draper for halloween.  I think AMC's 4 time Emmy winner is the smartest, sleekest, and best TV show ever.  Taking place in the 1960's Mad Men follows the advertising world of New York City's Madison Ave.

The show's creator Matthew Weiner didn't just suddenly appear with a hit drama, he served as producer and writer on the HBO hit The Sopranos for 2 years prior to taking his talents to AMC in 1960.  The stories are elegantly told, with brilliant cinematography and a cast of characters that really make you wonder who is a good guy and who is bad.

One of the things I love about this show is it's historical accuracy and it's depiction of a totally different world than we live in today.  Other shows attempting to set their drama in the 60's era (The Playboy Club and Pan Am) seemed to use minor details to convince audiences of the world around them such as hair, clothes and cars.  Mad Men gives the look and the feel that you have literally time traveled for an hour and stepped into the world of social change and cultural phenomenas.   One of my favorite scenes from season 1 that really shows you how the world has changed is during a birthday party for one of Don's children.  A child who is attending the party is running around the house playing and accidentally knocks over a drink.  A man who is not the child's father immediately slaps the boy across the face as punishment. The real father of the boy then comes over and asks the child to apologize to the man who slapped him.  He then scolds him and tells him to run along and says "and tell your mother to come clean this up."

The show brings up very topical issues but puts them in a completely different context and shows the struggle with these issues from a different decade.  It deals with African-American rights and equality in the workplace.  Women's rights and a woman's struggle to enter into a career path.  It discusses divorce, homosexuality, single parenting, and adultery.  But it shows these topics how the 1960's handled them. I really feel like it's a history lesson every week when I watch.

The characters are what really keep the show going, and all actors give equally compelling performances.  Overall between the 6 acting categories at the Emmy's the cast of Mad Men has earned 25 acting nominations yet has not won a single one.  Jon Hamm and John Slattery are always nominated, as well as continuous nominations for Christina Hendricks and Elizabeth Moss.  Although the show it's self has won Best Drama Series 4 years in a row (Only to be beaten my Homeland just his year) It's actors have not gotten the full recognition they deserve.

I will continue to watch Mad Men and hope to show my children this utterly phenomenal show because I think I've learned more about the 60's watching an episode of this show, than I ever did in my high school US History class.