Monday, April 27, 2015

TV Review: The Slap

I just finished watching the final episode of this short series. It had an amazing cast and premise.  During a backyard party, an unruly child is slapped by an adult who is not his parent.  The story is about the repercussions from this; legal and emotional on all the parties.
It is more than the story of what happened: it is the story of how it effects each individual and their relationships with others.  It is a story that makes you think.  Where do we draw boundaries?  What is okay and under what circumstances?  It makes you think about your feelings about what is deserved or not.  And you find yourself making judgments about the characters and their behaviors. 
 
Zachary Quinto plays Harry, the man who slapped the unruly child swinging a baseball bat at his own children while the child's parents are oblivious.  He is not a nice guy and IMO, not a likeable one.  But did I think he should go to jail for the situation?  That is the question isn't it?  I am still not sure of my answer.
And then there is the mother - Rosie.  I could not stand her.  All the while she was screaming and sobbing about the 'trauma' to her child, all I could think was it was her reaction that was intensifying the trauma.  And for all she was on and on about how it was about her poor son, it really seemed all about her...
Each episode focuses primarily on one person from the party, their perceptions, and their secrets and pasts and how they are relevant to the current situation they are faced with. 
 
What I liked most about the show is that the characters were rich and complex and nothing in the story was simple.  Including the way I reacted to it.  I think this is a great show for starting a dialog with.
 
And of course, it also is based on a book (which I have not read yet).  The style of the show makes me think of Jodi Picoult and the way she used many POVs in her books to get you to think about the issues.  So, now I am curious to read it and compare.
 
 
Terri

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