Low Winter Sun

Why was this cancelled!!!! So many really bad series lately, ya finally get a really good one, and it's cancelled! Either ya love it, or ya hate it. We loved it!

If you are looking for an edgy and gritty amc show on the level of the walking dead or breaking bad you will be sadly disappointed. Given there has only been 1 episode to date, I've decided to write this review because I'm not really sure I will keep watching this show further. Nothing about this series screams original or interesting in any way shape or form.

While some of the acting and writing seemed fairly well done, other parts of it seem over board, forced, and not well thought out. For example, how did the guy on the security video get back into the house with no keys, as his keys didn't arrive till after he got in. These guys are suppose to be the "best" at knowing these details but really struggled to put it to reality in the script. When you are looking at holes like this, and know that IA is looking at them it just draws red flags of poorly written out. The black lady detective already questioning things and trying to put the pieces together because something seems "off" and this forced want to be tension going on in the bar together combine for a an almost stale show as I really didn't care, aka gave me no reason to be interested in it, about anything that was going on there.

One of the leads Mark Strong didn't come off to me as a very strong actor, in some sense he was over shadowed by Lennie James. However James character is a bit over dramatized. He honestly looks guilty through out the show in the cop scenes and in the office. Hawkins didn't really impress me either, however that could be more due to the script then her acting. I think the most realistic part of the show was the cops standing around doing nothing for a good bit.

With the amount of quality shows on TV today and original concepts, returning to this show will be difficult. I predict this show will end up like many of the AMC we tried really hard but the writing/idea just wasn't there flops. I think a few years ago they tried with hell on wheels and well, this is about the same quality. The production quality is there but the rest is not.

AMC is still my 2nd favorite network to watch for their quality of shows but knowing that breaking bad is ending has them reaching. This show is a result of that. I believe that AMC does a much better job with original series especially ones they create. This was brought over from the BBC and probably should have stayed thee.

Low Winter Sun, on paper, has a lot going for it. Mark Strong & Lennie James lead a strong cast of great actors you'd recognize but not know by name. The cinematography matches the grittiness of our locations. The theme from the pilot is super thick. It's "A" grade material on paper.

So if that's all there, why am I left with C+ results?

First off, Low Winter Sun, I don't think really knows what show it wants to be. It kicks off with the murder by a policeman by two other detectives. From there, we learn it was a revenge plot. Cool. The internal affairs is investigating. Great. Then... we don't EVER stay focused on that, we constantly veer to side stories that are so loosely connected to the main story that it gets VERY frustrating. Especially when it burns so slowly.

Breaking Bad, The Wire, The Sopranos, The Shield, Damages etc. These shows ALWAYS linked things back, not only to the main story, but our main CHARACTERS. I know these are some of the best shows ever written, but when you throw your hat into the "crime drama" ring, you face off with these shows.

Low Winter Sun doesn't throw an punches that haven't already been thrown and it doesn't do it as well. Too Bad.

There have been some solid American remakes of UK TV shows: All in the Family to Life on Mars. But there's also shows like "Coupling" too. This series seems to fit somewhere in the middle.

On the plus side, the acting isn't bad. The storyline has its multiple levels: it doesn't dumb itself down for the audience. And Detroit is an excellent choice of settings for this US remake.

On the negatives: my kingdom for a steady-cam. Are directors so infantile as to still believe the tired trope from Hill Street Blues that the more amateurish the guy holding the camera, the more it's supposed to feel like a documentary. Fail #1.

Fail #2: good directors make you care about the characters involved and some of the storyline before the blood and guts come out and create a visceral reaction. Unfortunately, this show opted straight for the violence as a cloying attempt to capture you're interest immediately -- except that it's performed on characters you know nothing about and have zero investment with. Maybe if I was 7 years old, but not as an adult.

Fail #3: the best dark shows often have comedic elements -- even if it's dark comedy -- to lighten up the pace. But this show is written with no redeeming moments -- no mood lighteners, no dark humor, no cracks. As such, it's a bit like listening to a 60-minute bass solo. Maybe you love bass, but it loses it's strength if that's all you get all the time. Darkness just has more impact when you get a reminder of the light once in a while. There is no light in this show.

Fail #4: Closing scenes where the actors emote to the soundtrack. Cheesy to the extreme.

This is without a doubt 1 of the best dramas of 2013. A compelling story spread out over 10 episodes, with complex characters, a solid storyline and a satisfying ending.

What to me stands out the most about this show is the story. This is not some cheesy drama with bits and pieces stitched together or some crap show where they started off with a good story and then scrambled to fill the pages. There is no scene that doesn't really add up, or make sense in the larger story; There is no little annoying episodic arc story that only lasts a few episodes and doesn't fit in to the greater arc of things; there is no moment where you feel that a character has acted out of turn, said or done something you know that they wouldn't. All those things that make you feel like you're watching some hammy, episodic, so- called-drama which has no substance and will probably carry on for years without going anyway. No, this show is not like that, this for a change, is a good show.

To go along with that, the acting and directing is fantastic. Lennie James is brilliant as Joe Getties, 1 of the most interesting characters to come on TV in the past few years.

Sadly I don't think this show will get picked up for another season, as it always is, very few people appreciate a good thing. Honestly though, I don't mind, it's better to go out on top rather than have multiple season of crap. The show doesn't end in a cliffhanger, or have any loose ends, so even if it does get canceled, this season will still be satisfying to watch.

In short, you'll like this if you like good, fast passed, well told, well acted, drama.

(Season 1 review)