Post by Rey Kahuka on May 24, 2021 13:18:46 GMT
ZeroZeroZero (2019), the Amazon series about a large-scale, international drug operation, which is basically 3 separate stories that are inexorably linked - the buyers, the sellers and the brokers who are responsible for getting the shipment from Point A to Point B. It's a good show, not perfect, it's a bit too proud of its narrative style and it causes moments of being over-directed, over-worked, over-scored. Plus, the story about the sellers is pretty by-the-numbers and isn't particularly compelling or well-acted, and it's the most far-fetched of the 3 tales.
That said, I admire the fact that each of the stories is uniquely shot and paced and almost feels like 3 movies coalescing into one. Like Cloud Atlas, only not frustratingly stupid or pretentious. The standout is the story about the brokers which is consistently the most interesting story in no small part to Andrea Riseborough and Dane Dehaan. Riseborough is excellent, as she always is, the relationship between her and her brother (played by Dehaan) is really a driving force of the whole series. Their relationship feels very lived-in, you can tell they have great chemistry together. It gets a little melodramatic at times, but I felt very involved whenever their story was being depicted. Plus, the fact that Riseborough is such a superior actor to Dehaan (who is fine in this, don't get me wrong) works really well given the fact that she's the superior one within their dynamic.
It showcased how nobody is ever truly 'in control' of their situation no matter how hard they try. The Lynwoods' story was probably the most unrealistic only because they survived all that shit, but every episode took you to another dark corner of the world where you see the trickle down effect of the drug trade. Fascinating stuff. From Italian mob bosses to shady US businesses to Mexican special forces to corrupt harbormasters to Senegalese crimelords to terrorists in the Sahara, everyone is shown from the perspective of just doing what they have to to get by, all of them making the world worse without realizing it (or at least without caring).
After the first episode I wasn't sure I'd care what happened to any of the central characters, by the end I appreciated all of them, even Don Minu. The great thing about the final resolution is that everyone won and everyone lost. Minu's plan succeeded, but he had to kill his own grandson. Stefano protected his family in the end, but had to pay the ultimate price. Emma protected the family business but lost her brother. Chris, who was dying anyway, found a little happiness in his final days and got to go out helping Emma and the family. Manuel is ascending in the world of the cartels, but had to sell his soul to get there-- having just found an appreciation for life with the birth of his friend's child.
Everyone, every side character feels real. Just people making choices that are the best opportunity for them, often under duress or coercion. Nobody was twirling their mustache except for the Leyra brothers, and they weren't really featured heavily. Manuel was the most disappointing character for me, because he might have been my favorite character after two episodes. Early on he was depicted as this conflicted, corrupt soldier hoping the voice of God could drown out all the terrible things he has to do. He eventually became colder and colder, before ultimately becoming this generic 'now it's my turn to be in charge' type of character. He was much more interesting when he felt trapped beyond his fate. (Though I do have to say I started loling when his crew attacked the party at the end. "They're totally going to shoot a clown," I told my wife. And they did!)
I enjoyed the narrative style going non-linear (or at least parallel storylines revealed in succession), though I can see how those connecting scenes could be viewed as self-indulgent. They did make for some great moments (Chris showing up to save Emma after the shootout with the terrorists, Emma walking out with Don Minu to greet Stafano), though. Whenever a show or a film has a great score, I always give it the benefit of the doubt. Are they leaning too heavily on the score to convey the emotion of the scene, or is it just a great score? Maybe it's both, but I'm ok with that. Honestly I think a lot of the best stuff these days is a tad over-directed as everyone is trying to showcase their artistic flair, but again it's all good in my book. Give me great story, cinematography, music and of course performances. It's what I'm watching for. There's such a thing as trying too hard, but it's better than mailing it in.
Minor gripes:
1. Why do the Lynwoods have such a terrible fashion sense? Emma's haircut is a nightmare and she's always wearing those weird giant mom jeans. Chris looks like a backpacking college student in 1996. Wasn't their dad grooming them to take over the family business, why do they look like such slobs? I'm assuming they gave Emma that awful haircut because it gave her an edge, maybe they thought the actress was too pretty to be believable in some of those situations, so they had to scruff her up a bit? Not a deal breaker, it just distracted me at times.
2. Why were there no repercussions for Manuel when he killed is CO? Sure the rest of the group was with him, but there's still the entire Mexican military/law enforcement to contend with. "Hey, whatever happened to that chopper we sent to stop that shipment of drugs?" "No idea. Moving on..." I guess you could argue the Leyras bought more people off, but why wouldn't they have done that in the first place? Nobody ever asks what happened to Manuel and his unit? The pregnant woman thinks he's still going to work every day like nothing ever happened. For that matter, why was there no blowback on the Lynwoods for carrying contraband on their ship? The Mexican authorities didn't tell anyone else they were going to seize an American owned vessel in international waters? It's actually a huge plot hole if you think about it for too long.
Overall the show was just spectacular, one of the better crime dramas I've seen in a while. I read that there's no season 2 and as much as I loved it, I'm glad they're stopping here. There are always more crevices in society to be explored, but they covered so much ground in season 1 that anything else would feel repetitive. And like I said, I'm more interested in the people struggling with survival and moral dilemmas than the story of crime bosses trying to stay on top.
As an aside, I think this series shows why being a fixer (freelance or for any organization, though government fixer is ideal) is probably the best and the worst job in the world, no matter where you are. You have your hands in everything and you never know where the next job will take you. If you have the stomach for the moral ambiguity of it all, you'll never be bored. But it could get you killed.
After the first episode I wasn't sure I'd care what happened to any of the central characters, by the end I appreciated all of them, even Don Minu. The great thing about the final resolution is that everyone won and everyone lost. Minu's plan succeeded, but he had to kill his own grandson. Stefano protected his family in the end, but had to pay the ultimate price. Emma protected the family business but lost her brother. Chris, who was dying anyway, found a little happiness in his final days and got to go out helping Emma and the family. Manuel is ascending in the world of the cartels, but had to sell his soul to get there-- having just found an appreciation for life with the birth of his friend's child.
Everyone, every side character feels real. Just people making choices that are the best opportunity for them, often under duress or coercion. Nobody was twirling their mustache except for the Leyra brothers, and they weren't really featured heavily. Manuel was the most disappointing character for me, because he might have been my favorite character after two episodes. Early on he was depicted as this conflicted, corrupt soldier hoping the voice of God could drown out all the terrible things he has to do. He eventually became colder and colder, before ultimately becoming this generic 'now it's my turn to be in charge' type of character. He was much more interesting when he felt trapped beyond his fate. (Though I do have to say I started loling when his crew attacked the party at the end. "They're totally going to shoot a clown," I told my wife. And they did!)
I enjoyed the narrative style going non-linear (or at least parallel storylines revealed in succession), though I can see how those connecting scenes could be viewed as self-indulgent. They did make for some great moments (Chris showing up to save Emma after the shootout with the terrorists, Emma walking out with Don Minu to greet Stafano), though. Whenever a show or a film has a great score, I always give it the benefit of the doubt. Are they leaning too heavily on the score to convey the emotion of the scene, or is it just a great score? Maybe it's both, but I'm ok with that. Honestly I think a lot of the best stuff these days is a tad over-directed as everyone is trying to showcase their artistic flair, but again it's all good in my book. Give me great story, cinematography, music and of course performances. It's what I'm watching for. There's such a thing as trying too hard, but it's better than mailing it in.
Minor gripes:
1. Why do the Lynwoods have such a terrible fashion sense? Emma's haircut is a nightmare and she's always wearing those weird giant mom jeans. Chris looks like a backpacking college student in 1996. Wasn't their dad grooming them to take over the family business, why do they look like such slobs? I'm assuming they gave Emma that awful haircut because it gave her an edge, maybe they thought the actress was too pretty to be believable in some of those situations, so they had to scruff her up a bit? Not a deal breaker, it just distracted me at times.
2. Why were there no repercussions for Manuel when he killed is CO? Sure the rest of the group was with him, but there's still the entire Mexican military/law enforcement to contend with. "Hey, whatever happened to that chopper we sent to stop that shipment of drugs?" "No idea. Moving on..." I guess you could argue the Leyras bought more people off, but why wouldn't they have done that in the first place? Nobody ever asks what happened to Manuel and his unit? The pregnant woman thinks he's still going to work every day like nothing ever happened. For that matter, why was there no blowback on the Lynwoods for carrying contraband on their ship? The Mexican authorities didn't tell anyone else they were going to seize an American owned vessel in international waters? It's actually a huge plot hole if you think about it for too long.
Overall the show was just spectacular, one of the better crime dramas I've seen in a while. I read that there's no season 2 and as much as I loved it, I'm glad they're stopping here. There are always more crevices in society to be explored, but they covered so much ground in season 1 that anything else would feel repetitive. And like I said, I'm more interested in the people struggling with survival and moral dilemmas than the story of crime bosses trying to stay on top.
As an aside, I think this series shows why being a fixer (freelance or for any organization, though government fixer is ideal) is probably the best and the worst job in the world, no matter where you are. You have your hands in everything and you never know where the next job will take you. If you have the stomach for the moral ambiguity of it all, you'll never be bored. But it could get you killed.