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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.

This is... not that good to be honest. The script is uneven and pretty flat, and if you've seen enough films in your day you will be able to predict a lot of what is going to happen.

Some events are pretty interesting, especially when the story ventures into the absurd, like the coupling of horses scenes or the infamous scene in the last episode, but other than that this feels pretty procedural.

The only thing that really hooked me was the prison storyline, that felt genuine and interesting all the way, and I always enjoy seeing Anthony Heald as well.

Jeff Daniels carries this show on his shoulders and he does his best, dominating the scenes he is in with his enormous presence and charisma. But it is clear for all to see that he is severely limited in his performance when the script is not up to it.

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.

I read the novel when it came out in the mid '90s and enjoyed it very much. This series took a 700something page book and tried to shoehorn it into six 45minute episodes. The result seems disjointed and basically just incomplete. The first episode opens as if it assumes no character development is needed; that all of the viewers are already aqcuainted with the players and how they came to be who we now see. The novel has several sub-plots that intertwine well throughout, but this Netflix series offers us only two which really seem to have little connection with the other, other than some characters moving back and forth between them. My take is the series was budgeted much to small to spend the time and money to do Tom Wolfe's novel the justice it deserves.

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.