Apples Never Fall

There is absolutely nothing groundbreaking about the show, but it is enjoyable, well acted, interesting, and the perfect length at seven episodes. I did not read the source material yet, but I never compare books and movies for the sake of determining which one was "better", so that really doesn't matter to me anyway. I've always loved Annette Benning and Sam Neill, and both have certainly become better with age! The rest of the cast supports them well.

As for the low scores... completely ridiculous. I probably would've rated this a 7, but I gave it an extra point just to counter some of the unfair reviewers. One person in particular rates it a 2, and goes off about Hollywood culture war, blah blah, rich white people are being demonized blah blah. Well, I'm white, and I don't see that at all. Some people just need to get a life.

By episode one it's basically figured out. This could have been done into a 2 hr movie I would have passed on. The story is dull and too predictable. It's peacock so yeah... I had some hope given the cast and I'm sure if you like shows like American idol or America's got talent this will probably blow your mind. But for people who enjoy watching quality work this is not that. We started watching this because for all mankind was just getting so slow, drawn out and boring. Too many of these shows need to be condensed into movies. There is way too much filler content. They suck you into the show with intrigue and just leave you with a dull ending while spending hours on pointless character development.

Look, I'm all for good character development when you have a really good story to tell but these micro stories are just built around filler content and I'm sorry but nothing in this show is original.

Two award-winning veteran actors, Annette Bening and Sam Neill drag this predictable plot along, supported by their soap opera children. Robert Taylor, Sheriff Walt Longmire that was, has a small supporting role late in the show.

It's watchable enough, when Annette disappears and the family self-destructs. There are a couple of interesting twists in the backstory as the scenes switch from "then" to "now", but that part of the plot is unbelievable in the end. Everyone swearing to do better and the renewed happy family final scene is laughable. Mom was always taken for granted and left cleaning up after her ungrateful spoiled brats of a family. Mom and Dad's toxic relationship DNA has reproduced to some degree in the children. It's a cautionary tale and one probably familiar to lots of wives and mothers. Not awful, just could have been a lot better.

Yes, ignore the low ratings from folks. This has a lovely slow burn. Easy to digest and follow even when it goes back from Then to Now and vice versa. Each episode focuses on a character and their vantage point or pov. Each tell a part of the story which if was spoken or shared, we would have figured out the mystery sooner. But this story is about what's done in the dark, the secrets you keep, the self preservation of yourself affects your life and your family. The decisions we make alter the perspective of others. How they see us and how they see themselves. All of this plays into the telling of the story.

To be honest I thought the ending was going to fall short. But it didn't. They could have however, had an eight episode entitled Savannah. The only mystery is the life and the character of Savannah which is never fully developed or shown. To see her then and now would have warranted a 10/10.

I'll definitely be watching this again. And as a father and husband reminding myself that all my actions and words have a bigger impact and butterfly effect that I could ever imagine.

This series started well and pulled me in for the first half. Sadly it is another example of a series that ends poorly leaving the viewer wondering what the heck did I just watch. The family dynamics are truly sad with each person being totally self absorbed and the Father, Sam Neill, being truly dislikeable. In the middle of that lot you have the interloper who no one questions. This, in my view, makes the series totally unbelievable. After a complicated six episodes of family dynamics, which, in parts, was full of suspense, the whole lot fell flat with several things left unanswered. This left me wondering what I had just watched.