After watching Sharp Objects a few weeks ago I was hungry for more HBO drama and the obvious choice to begin with was Big Little Lies. I didn't pay much attention when this show was first released, but in its second season, I remember watching a trailer with a bunch of well-known actresses including Merryl Streep, Nicole Kidman, among others and it seemed interesting. It was until last week when I finally decided to give this show a try.
The story is set on a very wealthy community, there are 5 different main families, 1 of them is new and has just arrived in this city. If American Crime Story season 2 is a gay drama, this show is a rich drama. Of the 5 main families, 4 are very rich. Each of these households has its own private dramas and issues but the spark that begins to unravel the real problem is a conflict that begins with 2 children.
This conflict will get more toxic as the episodes continue to advance, involving the parents and generating very ugly hostility between some of them which results in taking stances based on friendships or enmity. I also perceived there were 2 alpha females on a constant tension between them. This will be easy to spot from the first episodes. A good twist is also in place for the season's finale.
The editing work is amazing which is to be expected from an HBO show. There are some excellent moments like when Laura Dern's character gives something close to an iconic moment when she says "I said thank youuuu!... It is a really cool moment not only thanks to her top-notch acting but also thanks to the editing work that comes afterward. Sadly, I was unable to find the video with the complete scene, but if you want to see what I am talking about, check this video from 0:16 to 0:23 and then this other short video of 6 seconds that doesn't have the first few seconds of the short scene but it does have the editing work that comes right after the yelling.
Laura Dern is the actress that I enjoyed the most in season 1, her character is so authentic and has intense scenes that seem totally real. An amazing actress for sure. Reese Witherspoon also did a good job playing an overbearing woman that tends to annoy most people. Nicole Kidman was good with her role, although her character was very passive most of the time. Passive, but very important nonetheless. There are other secondary characters and I couldn't find a flaw in them, the entire show is well done, it is noticeable this is Premium TV.
All in all, season 1 was a really entertaining experience. Drama lovers need to see this show, it would be almost impossible to find something better in this genre and the performances from these popular actresses were awesome. Merryl Streep doesn't appear in season 1, so I am expecting a great performance from her as well in season 2.
The best
- One of the best drama series of recent years.
- Excellent cast with amazing performances.
- Beautiful setting.
- The use of flashbacks and dreamlike sequences from a key character is very well done.
The worst
- I was hoping for a major disaster, the show even implied something much worse was going to happen. I mean, bad things happened but I was expecting more.
More information: https://www.themoviedb.org/tv/66292-big-little-lies Review: AAA In numbers: 8.5/10