GENRE TRENDS | BACK TO CLASSICS
BACK TO CLASSICS | GENRE TRENDS
DRACULA
A YOUNG DOCTOR’S NOTEBOOK
Do you like to drink deeply red tomato juice thinking you are vampire?
Then, especially for you, there is another take on the immortal story by
Bram Stoker. At the end of the 19th century Count Dracula arrives in
Victorian London, where he pretends to be an American businessman,
standing up for progress. He seems to be interested in experiments with
electricity, but also seeks revenge against those who betrayed him centuries
earlier. Having started to implement his plan, Dracula suddenly falls
hopelessly in love with the woman he takes as the reincarnation of his
dead wife.
So here we have classic Dracula with the star of The Tudors Jonathan
Rhys-Meyers and Thomas Kretschmann of Stalingrad. Everything else
is exactly as it should be: blood, sex, and Victorian Gothic. The series
was nominated for People’s Choice Awards. Although it had very modest
rating, 1.8%, which means only about 5 mln (18-49) watched it. Therefore,
NBC has already decided to cancel it.
If you’re fed up with House, M.D. – try A Young Doctor’s Notebook.
It’s English mini-series based on the eponymous cycle of short stories by
Mikhail Bulgakov about a young doctor who finds himself in a remote
village of Smolensk region on the eve of the October Revolution in 1917.
The show tells the story of doctor’s struggle not only against numerous
diseases, but also against his morphine addiction. In the early 20th century,
a young doctor arrives in a small Russian village around the time of the
Russian Revolution to work in the local hospital.
In the lead roles are: Daniel Radcliffe (by the way, a real admirer of
Bulgakov) and Jon Hamm from Mad Men. The series was nominated
in Shanghai TV Fest and Magnolia Award for Best Television Film or
Miniseries. Unlike American TV channels, Sky, where this series was
shown, does not publish exact ratings, but critics valued it high, so let’s put
it in the middle of our top.
Info: 2013–2014; 1 season (10 episodes x 42 minutes)
Info: 2012; 2 seasons (8 episodes x 25 minutes)
GRIMM
WAR & PEACE
That’s a good choice to watch, though a somewhat scary fairy-tale for
the night. It is an American police fantasy television drama series. It started
on NBC in 2011. The show has been described as “a cop drama with a
twist... a dark and fantastical project about a world in which characters
inspired by Brother Grimms’ Fairy Tales exist,” although the stories and
characters inspiring the show are also drawn from other sources.
The plot: homicide investigator Nick Burkhardt of the Portland Police
Department finds out he descends from a line of guardians known as
Grimms, charged with keeping balance between humanity and the
mythological creatures of a world called Wesen, a German word for “being”
or “creature.” Throughout the series, he must battle again and again with
numerous and dangerous creatures, with help from his reformed Wesen
friend Monroe, and his partner Detective Hank Griffin.
During the 1st season the series gathered about 6.4 mln U.S. viewers,
which is really not bad! According to the results of Nielsen Media
Research, with the beginning of the 2nd season Grimm has increased its
adult audience 18-49 by 1.14 points (from 1.58 to 2.72).
It is a six-part adaptation of the work by Leo Tolstoy, in which the
audience’s attention will focus on human relationships and the stories of
four aristocratic families. The story begins during the reign of Alexander
I. In the spotlight there is a love triangle between Natasha Rostova, Pierre
Bezukhov, and Andrei Bolkonsky.
The series was filmed in Russia, Lithuania, and Latvia. It has already
received very positive reviews. A world-premiere press screening of the
first episode was held in London on December 14, 2015.
The six-part series proved a hit with critics and was enthusiastically
received by viewers, with an average of 7.2 mln watching each episode
despite claims of historical inaccuracy.
And another word has already spread: scriptwriter Andrew Davies
would like to return to the BBC1 Sunday evening slot with another epic
and classic – a music-free adaptation of Victor Hugo’s Les Miserables!
Info: 2016; 1 season (6 episodes x 60-82 minutes)
Info: Started in 2011; 4 seasons (71 episodes x 43 minutes)
36 | SEASON SCREEN TV REVIEW | ISSUE 5 FEBRUARY 2016
ISSUE 5 FEBRUARY 2016 | SEASON SCREEN TV REVIEW | 37