thedeadlyhook (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
thedeadlyhook) wrote2007-03-20 11:55 am
thedeadlyhook) wrote2007-03-20 11:55 am
The Riche$
It's raining today. Not a bad rain, but rain. Yech. I swear, rain makes me want to stay indoors way more than snow ever did. I'd be terrible in a really wet climate unless I had, say, a gym to flop around in, or a martial arts studio to practic my kung fu. One can get bored with TV.
Speaking of which... last night, I caught The Riche$, the new FX show. Given how much I loved Nip/Tuck and Dirt, I was expecting to really dig this one too, but....
Based on the second episode, my reaction was:
1. Um, it's The Beverly Hillbillies. Only the family doesn't really have money.
2. Without a bank president to cover for them, the family has to figure out how to fit into society on their own. So... it's The Beverly Hillbillies meets The Grifters.
4. The "gypsy" thing allows the story to avoid talking about actual working poor people who might like a shot at the American Dream. Because that would be a bummer.
5. Trailer park antics. Whilst simultaneously making fun of the rich and their gated communities. Win-win!
And you know, I can see the bones of a good story here, but also too many stereotyped ideas about "poor" people, what they're like, and what they want. I don't get an impression for a minute that anyone on staff has seen or talked to an actual gypsy, or knows anything about what their lives are like. I'm seeing a hall-of-mirrors instead - the poor as seen by the rich, and then dressed up in drag to impersonate the rich. Kind of like Victor, Victoria!, now that I think about it.
It's well-acted, beautifully filmed, and I like all the performers involved, but... no.
Speaking of which... last night, I caught The Riche$, the new FX show. Given how much I loved Nip/Tuck and Dirt, I was expecting to really dig this one too, but....
Based on the second episode, my reaction was:
1. Um, it's The Beverly Hillbillies. Only the family doesn't really have money.
2. Without a bank president to cover for them, the family has to figure out how to fit into society on their own. So... it's The Beverly Hillbillies meets The Grifters.
4. The "gypsy" thing allows the story to avoid talking about actual working poor people who might like a shot at the American Dream. Because that would be a bummer.
5. Trailer park antics. Whilst simultaneously making fun of the rich and their gated communities. Win-win!
And you know, I can see the bones of a good story here, but also too many stereotyped ideas about "poor" people, what they're like, and what they want. I don't get an impression for a minute that anyone on staff has seen or talked to an actual gypsy, or knows anything about what their lives are like. I'm seeing a hall-of-mirrors instead - the poor as seen by the rich, and then dressed up in drag to impersonate the rich. Kind of like Victor, Victoria!, now that I think about it.
It's well-acted, beautifully filmed, and I like all the performers involved, but... no.