Tiny Beautiful Things

This series mirrors Cheryl Strayed's real life with a few variations. It has a lot of similarities to one of my all time favorite movies/books, "Wild", by Cheryl Strayed. However, the direction is subpar and the screen writers constant switching from past to present is mind numbing at times. In my mind, Reese Witherspoon perfectly personified Cheryl, so it's hard for me to wrap my head around anyone else playing her. Don't get me wrong, I love Hahn, but I feel her true character gets lost in the shoddy direction and bad screen writing. Also, Laura Dern will always be Cheryl's beautiful, kind, thoughtful mom; The flashback mom in Tiny Beautiful Things tries hard to relay that same beauty, but falls short unfortunately. The series is entertaining and maybe if I haven't seen Wild 10 times and read the book twice, I would find it better (or maybe worse??) but in my mind nothing compares to the portrayal of Cheryl's life like Wild.

This is one of those shows that make me think there are many fake reviews on here. This show is definitely not 10, or even a 9, or 8. I watched it because of Reese Witherspoon, Cheryl Strayed, and I like the lead actress. However, the main character is just such an unlikeable head case. She is miserable, has a chip on her shoulder, and blames everyone but herself for her problems. I felt sorry for her daughter having such an embarrassing train wreck of a mother. She was a jerk to her best friend and cheated on her husband. It just wasn't believable that her hot husband wouldn't have divorced her much, much sooner.

I really wanted to like this show, but it left me totally cold. First, while the characters go through major life events and *talk* like they're deep, they're actually all thinly written ciphers--after watching all 8 episodes I honestly wouldn't describe any of the characters as having a distinct personality. The main character spends half the series mourning her mother, but their relationship is so underwritten that it's hard to really feel the impact of her death other than that we're told it was devastating. The out of order nature of the flashbacks also makes the story hard to follow and left me ambivalent about what was happening. (How can you care about characters who suddenly appear out of nowhere? Or about a character's mistakes when the show skips right past the consequences? For example, why bother telling us about someone's heroin problem if we don't learn anything more about it?) Hahn is fine here, but I don't think she's doing anything particularly new and she's really not even doing that much--Sarah Pidgeon as the younger version of Hahn's character does most of the heavy lifting and while she's very good, good performances aren't enough to elevate what's actually pretty thinly written material. The last episode also hints at a major backstory that barely gets explained (and a result leaves Hahn's character looking crazy), the brother and sister have a weird incest-y vibe, and, though I adore Merrit Wever, she feels miscast and way too young to be playing the mother.

Imperfectly perfect series. Life is messy, life is hard, life is made of choices. Life is pain, life is love.

It was so, so, so beautifully acted. Kathryn Hahn and Sarah Pidgeon blew my breath away, they deliver flawless and unforgetablle performances.

Also, they really nailed with it with the sountrack.

What a ride. A whole lot of feels after finishing this series in a binge row. It will stay in my mind for a long time.

I still am left with a bunch of questions but I almost don't care. Some moments were flat, but I almost don't care. I almost want a second season and I almost don't want it.

The start of this TV series is incredibly confusing, making it difficult to follow. The writing is poorly executed, and only those with an optimistic outlook might be able to endure it. However, there is a glimmer of hope that emerges later on as the writing improves slightly. Many discussions about the fragmented script are warranted, as there is a lack of likable characters in the show. It's challenging to form a connection with them, and when you do start to feel sorry for them, they disappoint you with their nonsensical actions that make you think they deserve their own consequences.

While the occasional use of an out-of-order narrative can be effective, in this case, it creates an unrealistic portrayal of the main character's mother. She is depicted as perfect, which could be interpreted as the protagonist's idealized memory rather than reality. Nevertheless, the entire story feels disjointed, with disconnected elements such as the brother, mother, father, and rebellious daughter. It simply fails to come together in a cohesive manner, leaving the audience feeling unfulfilled. It's a chaotic mess that relies too heavily on excessive swearing, sex, and unmet expectations.