Disclaimer

Dang! I was not aware of the experience I was in for when I started screening this AppleTV+ limited series starring Cate Blanchett and Kevin Kline. "Disclaimer" is based on a novel of the same name by Renée Knight, and it was written for the screen and directed by Alfonso Cuarón. At its core, this is a revenge story. Blanchett stars as Catherine, a journalist whose secrets of her past resurface in an alarming way, causing her to confront that past as it wreaks havoc on her entire life. This was a masterfully told story, taking us along a fascinating journey of discovery as the audience is shown (sometimes in vivid detail) the "events" of Catherine's past. Blanchett, as always, is fantastic in here and Kline puts in a solid performance as well. It was surprising to see Sacha Baron Cohen in a more serious role, but he did it justice. Despite a couple/few minor nitpicks, I highly recommend this series if you like character dramas with some added tension/intrigue. Note: There are some pretty graphic depictions of sex/intimacy shown throughout various episodes. This isn't action-packed, and it did take about half an episode (roughly 30 minutes) before I eventually got "hooked" onto the story. But boy am I glad I stuck around. Video review to come shortly.

Never read the book, so judging the series as a standalone. The series is way too long, stretched way too much. It was intriguing and mysterious for the first few episodes, but by episode five, I was like, "Oh my god, just conclude it already.". Catherine's silence/constantly being interrupt while trying to tell her side feels like just a plot mechanism to keep the story going. Clearly setting up for a "twist".

The constant, detailed sex scenes are just ew. Literally porn. I don't mind sex scenes, but if I want to watch "detailed" sex scenes that last ten minutes, my first choice for that would not be Apple TV+.

It could easily have been reduced to a banal two-hour film. Sex scenes, I would say, definitely too explicit and strong for a TV series, sometimes even less is enough to understand what is happening. I am not a bigot, on the contrary 😉, but I believe that on the visual side sex should always be treated more lightly, we all know how it works 😂. I approached the series thinking of a thriller, with which it has very little to do, we are faced with a drama. The story is well told, the characters well developed and the acting absolutely exceptional, I also like the off-screen speech, it gives a "poetic" and "introspective" touch to the characters directly involved. I still think that a film would have been more appropriate.

Some of the negative reviews seem to suggest the good reviews are a "conspiracy", unable to grasp the simple concept that we all have different tastes.

There are plot holes for sure, but the story hits you hard when you realize every character is a despicable human being, and you see the horrible cruelty, ego, and hate that fester in the human psyche. It's well acted, and the story develops impressively.

The 7/10 score reflects the plot holes, all the things that happened between Katherine and Jonathan were only witnessed by them, yet somehow the grieving mother wrote it up as if she saw every moment, and then it just became fact in the show.

But it is powerful, the emotions it instills, the wonderful way you catch yourself feeling sorry for one of the characters, only to realize they are despicable.

Well worth a watch (I am not a bot or an employee of the production company in case any conspiracy theorists are here).....(that's what THEY would say!!)

After an intriguing start Disclaimer quickly becomes a collection of plotholes and unlikely behaviour, beautifully sown together by a great director. Unfortunately. Cuarón did not only direct the series, but also wrote the scenario. After a few episodes it just becomes annoying to see so many unrealistic events and reactions unfolding.

But as you know there much be some plot twist somewhere you hang in there to the last episode, only to be confronted with not only disturbing events but also a ending that tops all previous episodes in its level of unbelievability.

In contrast, the filming is extremely good. Cuarón knows what he is doing and uses all the tricks in his book to create great looking scenes.

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