Un homme, un vrai

A director, a script, and decent actors. There you go.

I see some people in here whining about how it isn't factually accurate. ? This isn't a documentary, it's entertainment. Clearly it departed from the book too and that's ok.

Entertain me.

Some might find the use of interweaved storylines confusing. Personally, I appreciated that approach.

Were the court scenes far from what would have happened? Sure. So were the banker's meetings, but the barbs thrown in those banker's meetings were effing hilarious.

Jeff Daniels does his usual work. I'm not a fan of Lucy Lui, but I liked her in this movie. Diane Lane was ok, not terrific.

Direction just pushed the story along, fine. Script was tight. Lots of laughs. The "serious stuff" was a little off but made for an interesting counterpoint.

The only thing I'd complain about was the easy-way-out ending, but that's fine.

Looking for entertainment? This fits the bill. Want to relive your life's experiences in Atlanta, or watch a documentary about real estate development, this isn't for you.

It was interesting to note the script for this new limited series was written by David E. Kelley, the guy responsible or who'd participated in so many series over the years. A lot were vanilla but all very watchable.

This one was very watchable, and thankfully no messing around with incremental releasing of episodes, so we're able to binge the whole thing now if we wish. My style for sure.

It's not as representative of the "underbelly" of political goings on in Atlanta as I'd had hoped, or America for that matter. It sort of forgot about itself on the way and ended up too vanilla. And it then has an ending. Which is good. Most series don't.

Most importantly, I did appreciate some of the unmistakable nods to the current political situation in the USA in very small ways which hit the mark and made me smile each time. When you watch, or if you've seen it, you'll know what I mean. Funny. I hope there's more of this type of thing coming on films soon. We need more humour.

I have always been a Jeff Daniels fan, but I also looked at him as a middle-of-the-road actor who could do lots of things well but nothing outstanding. The Purple Rose of Cairo, Fly Away Home, Pleasantville, Terms of Endearment, and of course Dumb and Dumber all are some of my favorite movies he was in.

But here in this six-part miniseries, set in Atlanta, he is the central character and the whole project depends on how well he channels Charlie Croker, and he does it admirably, and with both lots of menace and lots of humor.

Charlie, just turning 60, is a former Georgia Tech football star. He has developed himself into a big businessman who never shies away from debt. As this story starts he owes one bank $800 Million, and several smaller ones a few hundred million additional. Along the way he has made a few friends but also a few enemies and now some want to take him down, foreclose on his assets, see him bankrupt.

But if Charlie is nothing else, he is a fighter. The whole series is mostly about his enemies trying to get the best of him while Charlie fends off the attacks.

This is definitely an adult show, lots and lots of cursing and at least a couple of very graphic simulated sex scenes, but overlaid on all that is a very funny and entertaining presentation.

My wife and I watched it, streaming, and thoroughly enjoyed it.

BTW, if anyone still doesn't know, Jeff Daniels is a talented guitarist, song writer, and singer. For a good example do a web search on the four words "jeff daniels kelly clarkson", watch the video and you might be amazed.

Charlie Croker sits at the top of his business empire, but it's crumbling, debts are being called in, and the vultures circle. In a position of relative weakness, Charlie is played by those in power.

This series has gained notoriety, mainly for a flash in episode six, but there's been a lot of positive chat, and for the most part, it's a decent series.

Episodes one and two build up Charlie as this huge, divisive, charismatic figure, Jeff Daniels plays him perfectly, but as the series develops, the focus comes away from him, and the story meanders somewhat.

Conrad's story takes over, and comes out of nowhere, it really does detract from Charlie's story.

It's watchable enough, I had just hoped for so much more, without the powerhouse performance form Jeff Daniels, I think it would have fallen flat.

Perhaps I should have read the book.

6/10.

To see what you're being offered. Put the accents aside. Somewhere in the middle of this series - we're not looking at the problems of One Southern Man from the Past. We are being invited to look deeper - into the lives of real people in today's Atlanta, today's America.

The fluidity with which black and white characters interact - some color blind, others finely tuned, exquisitely conscious of every nuance. This is quietly striking - a surprise that lifts this story beyond standard television fare.

And finally - you have a stellar cast all embedded in their roles - inhabiting them - but gradually transcending them as the series proceeds. Without this ensemble - stunningly directed - this story would be perfect Tom Wolfe fiction: effective, compelling but odd-angled, perspectives altered for dramatic effect.

Luckily, we're treated to something more important: a mirror on our lives today. David Kelly has never been more present, less humorous, textured.

And whatever minor qualms we might have about accents, Jeff Daniels grounds the whole story by making a larger than life, borderline ridiculous anachronism the medium for telling this enticing series. Just sit back and enjoy it. It's a gift.