A while back, the Australian Prime Minister went for a swim in the sea and was never seen again. No one much seemed to notice, although amusingly they did name a municipal swimming pool after him. True story.
I mention this because after struggling through four episodes of "Secret City" I've only just figured out which of the bland, nondescript characters in it represents their PM, so I guess the producers of this show were aiming for realism, at least in regard to the general lack of charisma in its civil servants.
Unfortunately that is where the realism ends. This show, which I earnestly wanted to enjoy, tries way too hard to be like Homeland, 24, The West Wing, Madam Secretary, House of Cards, and many other American political thrillers, and fails in almost every regard, other than its reasonably slick (though unimaginative) visual style and the fact that it is laced with realistically strong language that the superior American shows can't get past the network censors.
It's a shame that the Aussies couldn't make this show work, as there was a lot of potential here. There is always a need to shine light on the corrupt nature of politics and national "security", and to keep emphasising through intelligent (and entertaining) drama how badly run most countries are, and how their governments continue to act against the best interests of their citizens.
But sadly this show was poorly conceived, sloppily written, lazily directed, and mostly miscast. There are one or two good actors in it, but they are wasted due to bad dialogue and direction.
The most interesting character - by a country mile - whose presence could have added multiple layers of extra depth, not to mention countless opportunities for good drama and chances to shine a light on particular areas of governmental abuse, gets killed off way too soon, and that untimely exit struck a fatal blow to my already strained ability to endure.
I eventually gave up, having not quite reached the finale.
I mention this because after struggling through four episodes of "Secret City" I've only just figured out which of the bland, nondescript characters in it represents their PM, so I guess the producers of this show were aiming for realism, at least in regard to the general lack of charisma in its civil servants.
Unfortunately that is where the realism ends. This show, which I earnestly wanted to enjoy, tries way too hard to be like Homeland, 24, The West Wing, Madam Secretary, House of Cards, and many other American political thrillers, and fails in almost every regard, other than its reasonably slick (though unimaginative) visual style and the fact that it is laced with realistically strong language that the superior American shows can't get past the network censors.
It's a shame that the Aussies couldn't make this show work, as there was a lot of potential here. There is always a need to shine light on the corrupt nature of politics and national "security", and to keep emphasising through intelligent (and entertaining) drama how badly run most countries are, and how their governments continue to act against the best interests of their citizens.
But sadly this show was poorly conceived, sloppily written, lazily directed, and mostly miscast. There are one or two good actors in it, but they are wasted due to bad dialogue and direction.
The most interesting character - by a country mile - whose presence could have added multiple layers of extra depth, not to mention countless opportunities for good drama and chances to shine a light on particular areas of governmental abuse, gets killed off way too soon, and that untimely exit struck a fatal blow to my already strained ability to endure.
I eventually gave up, having not quite reached the finale.