We had to finish this before we dug into "Ozark."
I almost wrote about "Ozark" last night, we're not quite two episodes in, so please don't e-mail me about stuff and ruin it, but what got me so excited, what made me want to communicate with you, was how they got the family stuff exactly right. The only show to do this on an equal level, at least that I've seen, is "The Sopranos." You remember when Tony asked Meadow what her punishment should be and she suggested taking away her gas credit card? Tony and Carmela agreed and then Meadow went into her bedroom, called a friend and said how she'd completely snowed her parents, that they were clueless, that this wasn't much of a sacrifice at all.
Well in "Ozark" you see two styles of parenting, the good cop and the bad cop. Justin Bateman and Laura Linney. That's how it is in most families, and even though the father might mete out punishment he's usually clueless, or he's like my dad, who went from zero to a hundred instantly and took off his belt and whipped me. But in this case, it's the mother, Ms. Linney, who keeps pushing, Mr. Bateman is the softy, trying to see down the line, envision the consequences.
And then there are the children. Who are never completely aligned, They share their status as underlings, and sometimes they're united and sometimes they're not, sometimes they positively hate each other.
Have you been in the midst of a family argument where your two parents are on different sides of the issue, at least re punishment? I certainly have, and they nail this in "Ozark."
But "Spotless" is completely different.
I'd never heard of it. Then Karen Bliss e-mailed me about it, and I watch nothing on sheer recommendation, I went to the data, and on RottenTomatoes "Spotless" got a critics score of 100% and an audience score of 94%. This we had to watch, and we did.
It's a crime story. And by the end of the first episode you think you know where it is going. But ultimately you don't, which is what keeps you hanging on.
AND THE TENSION!!
You know it's not real, but you can't help but get wound up.
But really I'm writing about the performances, most especially Denis Ménochet as the ne'er-do-well brother. He's the glue that holds the show together. At first he appears to be a bumbling, uneducated nincompoop, but as the show progresses you realize he's incredibly wise, incredibly street smart.
And at times charming.
The rules don't apply to him.
So you want to be him.
Not that he's a beautiful specimen, like in an American series, hell, he's got a big belly, but because he is never afraid of speaking his truth, he doesn't play by society's rules, he's willing to go all in on his position.
Not that he's stupid. He knows when it's a losing proposition. But if there's any chance of things going his way, he'll play the odds.
His brother Jean wants to go to the cops, but Ménochet, as Martin, says that in his experience nothing good ever comes from going to the cops. I have to say I agree with this. The cops are not on your team. They are not looking out for you. They'll be charming, play like they're on your side, when that's completely untrue. Not that I won't dial 911 in an emergency, but shy of that...one thing I know for sure, THE POLICE WON'T COME! Ever since 9/11 police have been portrayed as gods, I don't think so.
And Martin can appear a buffoon, a bull in a china shop, and then he can smile ever so slightly, stare at you with those eyes and you're on his side.
And you can count on him. Not when you want to, but when it looks like you're screwed, he reads the situation and shows up, when it truly matters.
And he can relate to the children in a way their parents cannot. Maybe because he's an overgrown child himself, but also because he's got better insight into life than their parents.
Now you know how it is with guests, with family, they can come and stay, but only for a few days. But Martin keeps hanging on and on...
And he gets Jean into trouble. With the bad guys. The equivalent of the Mafia. And you know how that plays out. Certainly Martin does, he says they kill you in the end, and you've got to be prepared for it.
That does not mean Martin doesn't screw up. He's constantly trying to fix the situation by doing the dirty work behind the unknowing Jean's back, but it always blows up in his face.
As for the rest of the characters...
Brendan Coyle as the underworld Nelson Clay is utterly fantastic. Because he's subtle, he doesn't overplay his hand, or the role.
You know, bad guys are always hotheads, or pure evil, or if they're calm it just takes one thing to set them off, but Nelson... He's almost always soft-spoken and dignified, he dresses just like a businessman. There's power in his quietude.
And the kids! Jemma Donovan as the daughter Maddy is rebelling against her parents who are too rarely available, never mind understanding, while testing the limits of society all the while.
Meanwhile, her brother Oliver becomes fatalistic and is into blood and gore and...
You know that Martin and Jean are going to be brought in deeper, but how it plays out...the twists and turns, like I said, are not always foreseeable.
Now the only problem with the series is the ending. It's obviously a set-up for a second season which never happened, you see the original outlet, Esquire, went out of business - at least the one and only season can now be seen on Netflix.
But this is show is an unknown winner, check it out.
And despite being a Canal+ production, it's in English, although you might want to turn on the subtitles!
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