Talkback – HBO’s Westworld

Sunday night HBO debuted their new sci fi/western Westworld. There’s been a lot of hype around this show and not all of it has been positive. It’s no secret that HBO is looking for their next big drama, especially now that Game of Thrones’ days are numbered *sob* and they had a pretty high-profile flop with Vinyl, which despite its expensive price tag, solid cast, and pedigree was a huge mess. True Detective looked like it could be a flagship show after its first season, but went off the rails in its second season and now has an unclear future. Westworld wasn’t a cheap investment for the network; its pilot alone cost about $25 million and the estimated cost for the entire first season hovers around the $100 million mark. The road to debuting Westworld hasn’t been smooth either; the show was originally supposed to hit the airwaves in 2015 and production was shut down earlier this year to rework some of the scripts. With expectations high and an ever higher price tag, there was a lot of pressure on Westworld to be the newest watercooler show. Could it live up to the hype?

Admittedly, I wasn’t 100% sure if Westworld would be for me. While I didn’t know a ton about the premise of the show, its science fiction bona fides gave me some pause as that isn’t a genre that I am necessarily at home in. Of course, I didn’t think I really liked fantasy either, but I’m a huge Game of Thrones fan, so I was willing to take a flyer on the show even if it didn’t automatically scream my name. HBO had done a great job with westerns with Deadwood and if they had any of that magic left in the bottle, Westworld would be worth at least a glance.

Generally, Westworld is about a fictional theme park that has the feel of the old west and that is populated by realistic robots (aka Hosts) that cater to the whims of the paying visitors (aka “Newcomers”). The Newcomers can do whatever they wish to the Hosts without fear of retribution; some Newcomers use this as a chance to fulfill their Wild West fantasies, some of which are a lot darker than others. The series also focuses on the programmers that oversee Westworld and how they handle bugs in their androids – which are becoming more frequent. The series boasts a huge cast and includes Evan Rachel Wood, James Marsden, Ed Harris, Anthony Hopkins and Luke Hemsworth (a third Hemsworth brother!). The show is modeled after the 1973 movie of the same name from Michael Crichton (which I haven’t seen).

There was a lot to pack in the pilot episode and while it didn’t all work for me I’m definitively in to see where the series goes from here. The premiere episode is absolutely gorgeous; it’s clear that the higher end cost was money well-spent. The science fiction aspect so far hasn’t been too overwhelming; robots and artificial intelligence are in the wheelhouse of what I can comprehend. I liked that there was initially some ambivalence about who in the cast is a Host and who is a Newcomer, as well as what people’s true motivations are. The actors all do a great job and I’m already intrigued about what this all means and they journey that the storytellers are taking the viewer on.  Because there is so much ground to cover and so many characters to introduce, some of the plotting was slow going or a bit repetitive; I’m hoping that is just a momentary setback and not a series-long issue. There is definitely sex and violence on the show, including sexual violence which may be disturbing to some viewers. There is an implied sexual assault that happens off-screen in the pilot that wasn’t necessary for character development or plotting– it’s already pretty clear that the perpetrator is not a good guy before the incident. But overall, despite some missteps, I’m in on Westworld for the foreseeable future. The show has real potential and has already sparked numerous fan theories after only one episode. I feel much more confident about this show than I did after watching the first episode of Vinyl, which may be a harbinger of better things to come.

Now it’s your turn – what were your initial reactions to the Westworld pilot? Does it get a season pass on your DVR or was it not for you? Let us know what you liked or didn’t like in the in comments.

Hitchcock – A Review

Who knew that a movie about the master of suspense could have so many laughs?

I went into last night’s screening of Hitchcock, starring Anthony Hopkins and Helen Mirren, expecting a straight drama. With the pedigree of the actors involved and the subject matter, I don’t think that would be an erroneous assumption. Hitchcock, however, is a much lighter film; if you are a fan of Alfred Hitchcock, I doubt that you’ll learn anything new here. The movie isn’t very deep, but it is fun. Not exactly what I thought I was getting, but still a movie that I enjoyed.

Hitchcock focuses on the time period when the director (Hopkins) was struggling to make what would be his most famous movie – Psycho. At sixty, Hitchcock is trying to prove to the studio – and perhaps himself – that his best years are not behind him and that he can still do innovative projects. When he decided to adapt the book Psycho, based on the murders of Ed Gein, there are doubts. The subject just seems too horrific to be a film and Hitchcock has to finance the film himself to get it made. The only person who is confident that Hitchcock can pull this off is his wife Alma (Mirren), who has been his sounding board and behind the scene partner for over 30 years.

While the film chronicles the time period when Hitchcock was working on Psycho, the real focus of the film is on the Hitchcock marriage. Psycho really only serves as a backdrop for watching the interactions of Alma and “Hitch.” Their marriage is an interesting one – Alma is fully involved in all of Hitch’s projects, but rarely gets the credit for her contributions. Instead, she is often pushed in the shadows and is forced to watch her husband receive all the accolades and leech after all the pretty blondes that he casts as his leading ladies. Hitch, meanwhile, is becoming increasingly uncomfortable with Alma working on a project with another writer; he is convinced that there is more to this relationship than simply a creative collaboration and he is not used to not having Alma at his beck and call for his projects.

The film makes some attempt to get into the psychology of Hitchcock, but it is one part of the film that really doesn’t work. Having Hitchcock carry on imaginary conversations with Ed Gein seems out of place with the rest of the film and the device is simply silly. While making an attempt to explain the inner workings of Hitch’s brain, it really only serves as a distraction. Nothing in these scenes seems at all credible; rather, it feels like the director has decided to use some of what he has learned in an undergraduate psychology survey course. It’s all beyond goofy and detracts from the rest of the film. Thankfully, the device is used sparingly and I simply paid little to no attention to those scenes.

Anthony Hopkins is very good as Hitchcock, though he never completely disappears into the role. He doesn’t look much like the famous director – though they did give Hopkins Hitchcock’s legendary figure – but he doesn’t necessarily look like Hopkins either. It’s kind of a weird amalgam, but it works. Hopkins’ voice is closer to the director’s, but again, is just enough off that it isn’t completely convincing. I don’t think that is necessarily essential to a successful performance –it’s more important to capture the spirit of the person, which Hopkins does nicely – but after watching Daniel Day Lewis’ personification of Lincoln, you do notice when the actor is more present in a role. Mirren is outstanding as always, though she is definitely a more attractive version of Alma. She and Hopkins pair up nicely and it is a delight to watch them together on screen.

Some other thoughts:

• Hitchcock also sports a pretty impressive supporting cast: Scarlett Johansson as Janet Leigh, Jessica “Mrs. Timberlake” Biel as Vera Miles, Toni Collette as Hitch’s assistant, Danny Huston as Alma’s writing partner and a brief – and surprising – appearance by Ralph “Karate Kid” Macchio as the writer of Psycho’s screenplay. Macchio’s appearance caused quite a stir in the theater; people have apparently missed him.

• Ed Gein made quite an impression; not only is he the model for Norman Bates, but he was also the inspiration for Leatherface in Texas Chainsaw Massacre and Buffalo Bill in Silence of the Lambs. And that concludes today’s installment of “Get to Know a Serial Killer.”

• I am such a sucker for the clothes during this time period; I’m sure that they weren’t all that comfortable, but they are so pretty. I’d wear dresses every day if I could, which is a complete 180 from when I was a kid.

• If you watched HBO’s The Girl, Hitchcock gives a very different look at the famed director. There are mild hints of some of the obsession that Hitchcock had for the women he cast in his films, but for the most part his relationship with Leigh was depicted as totally professional and there was none of the drama on the set of Psycho like what Tippi Hedren allegedly had to put up with in The Birds. If you haven’t seen The Girl, I recommend it.

• I did enjoy the nods to Hitchcock’s hosting of the television program Alfred Hitchcock Presents at the beginning and end of the film.

• I definitely am going to have to dust off my Alfred Hitchcock: The Masterpiece Collection box set and re-watch some of these classic films. It’s been far too long since I’ve seen Psycho or Vertigo.

While I enjoyed Hitchcock and thought the movie was a lot of fun, it didn’t have the gravitas or depth of story that I expected. While it is an interesting character study, there isn’t a lot of story here. I’m somewhat surprised that they picked this time period; though Psycho was the film that Hitchcock is probably best known for, there isn’t a lot to tell about its production. I get the sense that a lot of the drama in Hitchcock was fabrication or dramatization of actual events. In a way, the story squanders the immense talent that is up on the screen; I think with this cast they were capable of telling a much more interesting and in-depth story. Regardless, I think Hitchcock is worth seeing and is ultimately an agreeable film, even if it doesn’t quite live up to its potential. Not covering a lot of new ground, but everyone had a lot of fun during the film’s 90 minute run. Hitchcock is affable, but not innovative.

Hitchcock opens nationwide today.