I went into this series thinking that with the combined
talents of Nick Nolte and Sela Ward as the two main stars it would offer
something insightful, thought provoking and offer a wonderful satiric look at
Washington, D.C. and those who inhabit that location. I got none of that. Oh
sure, the performances of all involved and in particular Nolte are wonderful to
see. But this ended up being no meat and all low brand instant potatoes.
The concept of the show GRAVES is pretty simple. Nolte plays
ex-President Richard Graves, a cross between a Ronald Reagan and George W. Bush
style Republican. Out of office for over 20 years he’s been relegated to making
speeches for other politicians and just causes and he’s grown weary of it all.
Graves feels his life has no meaning and hates all the things his past duties
have forced him into now from making these speeches to being surrounded by
Secret Service agents.
Now if you are to believe this series a single night of
getting high with a millennial waitress who lives in a trailer coupled with his
visiting several website that proclaim him the worst President ever causes
Graves to wake from his self-imposed moral coma and his way of thinking doing a
complete 180. Yes, that’s all it takes. Suddenly he complains about defense
spending saying the solution to cure cancer is to use that money there, he
stands up for illegal immigrants, he supports though doesn’t endorse gay
marriage, etc. This is the main crux of the series.
Along the way we also find that his wife Margaret (Ward) is
approached to run for the Senate and possibly the Presidency itself down the road.
She may be a little more flexible on the issues but her husband’s antics are
not helping any. We also have Richard’s new assistant Isiah Miller (Skyler
Astin) on hand, an idol worshipping conservative of Graves who is seeing his
hero in the flesh for the first time. Add to that their daughter Olivia who has
recently split with her cheating Rockefeller husband, son Jeremy the spoiled
brat who’s just returned from the military and a myriad of other obstacles and
you have what is supposed to be a comedy. At least that’s how it’s described at
imdb.com
The problem is…it just isn’t funny no matter what your
political viewpoints are. For liberal viewers I would think that a show that
offers little depth on any issue and glosses over each this way would be insulting.
For conservatives the attack on any and all things you believe in depicted
through the eyes of someone who was supposed to represent you offers nothing
humorous. This has been a problem of late with political comedy. Whereas
comedians of the past made a point of poking a stick into both sides it has
changed to focusing only on one these days. David Frye made a career out of
making fun of both LBJ and Nixon. Today only Nixon would get the barbs. The
worst thing is that this conscious decision to play an us versus them mentality
in entertainment as well as news was what gave rise to the whole Trump
movement. Not trying to see and depict that there are two sides to every issue
and slamming anyone who disagrees does not sow the seeds of compromise.
This series is unlikely to reshape the hearts and minds of
anyone it decided to skewer. It will most likely find praise and adulation from
those who agree with the sentiments it expresses rather than taking a critical
eye at just how badly it is done. In reading reviews posted online I’ve found
that those that praise it also tend to slam anything that leans right at the
same time. It offers a smug “My way of thinking is the only correct way to
think and if you think differently then you’re stupid and a joke” mentality.
Again, more preaching to the choir and altering no one.
Technically speaking it looks great and is well acted.
Thematically it lacks a ton.
Click here to order.
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