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nix-whythisfilm · 2 years ago

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Mini Series that can be watched over a long weekend

Fame Game (2022)

A thriller starring Madhuri Dixit as Anamika, this mini-series was dark and eye-opening from so many perspectives. The show is available on Netflix with just 8 episodes and can be called her significant break on the OTT Platform after her films Kalank and Maja Maa. The series has an air of mystery and an eerie aura throughout. While each secret unravels in every episode, the morose story behind the lives of celebrities is apparent. It is obvious how they have tried to highlight the truth behind the facade they have to carry as a celebrity, along with appearing as a picture-perfect family.

Though I was excited by the prospect of watching Madhuri Dixit on the small screen along with numerous talented actors, I was taken aback by the somberness of the show and how clearly the difference in their lives is showcased. Even the trailer tries to set the reality and the onscreen life of the actress in the show, but it was so much more intricate than one can imagine. While the show is colourful and engages the audience throughout, the end is a little unceremonious. And yet, it makes sense considering the points they established throughout the show.

A Suitable Boy (2020)

The show features the life of a literature student post-independence and the various challenges she faced while forced to make tough decisions for her life. The storyline is based on Vikram Seth's book of the same name and is available on Netflix with just 7 episodes. While the show revolves around Lata, it also pivots into the lives of various youngsters around her, who are her cousins and family friends. In a country that has just recovered from a massive change in government and is on the precipice of significant changes for the future, this show allows us into the minds of individuals in that area wrestling with their own mindsets and expectations.

Having started the show with no expectations, I was pleasantly surprised by the little details that were ingrained into the aesthetics and their lives which makes it so much more insightful into the lives of individuals nearly 8 decades ago. With numerous shows today segregating individuals as either modern or traditional, Lata was a surprising blend of both. Her mind was progressive with expectations above and beyond for her life, while she also stayed constant in her culture and values that would impact her personally. Though her choice of the groom at the end of the show surprised me, it also made sense for the woman she was and the position she was in. Though she had numerous instigators in her life trying to push her into making decisions that they would like, Lata braved the world and made a choice that was her own which struck a chord in me.

The End of the F…ing World (2017)

Seeing the alarming title of the show, I had steered clear of it to avoid answering my parents if discovered watching it by chance for a very long time. This miniseries based on a novel of the same name is available on Netflix and comprises 16 short episodes. While the show starts off on a peachy note, it takes us on a journey with the teenager, James, who firmly believes he is a psychopath. Having conducted his own experiments on himself to confirm his suspicions, his perspective and direction change when he meets Alyssa. While quirky and impulsive on her own, Alyssa convinces James to take a journey to find her estranged father which entails a series of trials.

Funny in its own way and challenging to our monotonous perspective, this show gets to us all. After finally watching it at the beginning of the pandemic, this show stole my heart and made me wish I had a companion as they both had each other in their bizarre situations. While the beginning is as alarming as its title, the show progresses into their minds episode by episode and giving us an insight into how people make their decisions and how life changes so unsuspectingly. With short episodes that barely tire us, it is an amusing watch, all things considered.

Unorthodox (2020)

With no idea what the show was like or what it was about, this miniseries was a shocking revelation into a world existing in a famed city that we all know of. Prominently set in New York and Germany, this show features the story of a Hasidic Jewish girl who flees her community to start a new life. Being introduced to it through a random Netflix suggestion, this show changed my mind in a matter of 4 episodes. A tale that is daunting to those of us living in a comfortable community, this show is a wake-up call on how we choose to educate ourselves and be a part of global platforms.

While the story was unsettling to watch, it was nearly impossible to imagine the control that a community has over you if not checked often. While communities and religion were formed to help humanity to regulate the chaos that we are in and to tackle the world, this show puts a perspective on the amount of power our faith can give to individuals who wield power in any given community. Blind faith has never been the answer and yet is still the most expected commodity out of any individual in any situation. The show at the end of the day shows us the courage of a girl too young in a world that is too large, trying to sway her in every other direction to control her life.

Bombay Begums (2021)

Narrating a tale of four women and a young girl this mini-series puts a perspective on the working of the world and the challenges that are a part of a woman's life, no matter their age, caste, position or power. It starts with Rani and Shai, who are a part of a prominent family in the banking world. Then moves to Fatima and Ayesha, two of the employees in the same organization, and eventually Lily, who is fighting her own war. All the women live in modern Mumbai and fight against struggles that nearly any woman in India or maybe other places also faces. The dialogues hit home as the story moves in an unpredictable direction leaving us with a sharp sting of reality over 6 episodes.

While expecting a show full of politics and deception, the show actually delivered a narrative that was far too real and outstanding. While the show is strictly feminist by nature, it also does not predispose to a narrative that favours women in any way. Though some may call the show dramatic and over the top with the choices some of them make, I believe we all have the power to make those same choices and find realities that might be far more solemn than what is shown here.

Hymn of Death (2018)

A melancholic drama set in the colonial era in Japan-Korea, this show has a way to find a place in your heart, based on the real story of the dramatist Woojin and the soprano Simdeok who had an ill-fated relationship. Having found each other in Japan during their studies amid the Japanese invasion, the two slowly grow a bond with each other. During the many trials they both face, they seem to have fate on their side as they keep finding each other every time. Being set in an era where life was hard and fighting to hold on to their passions was harder, these two find an end to their troubles in each other's presence.

With no idea what the show was about, this mini-series left my heart broken on how unimaginable the world was over a century ago for people in their youths. While the story is primarily about their relationship and its trajectory afterwards, it also sheds light on the expectations that were laid on the individuals of that time, the expected familial duties concerning their own economic situations, the hidden impacts of the invasion and companionship that has nothing to do with romance. Hymn of death might have a poetic tragic ending, but it is still priceless for the stories illuminated through the tale of these two lovers.

Kingdom (2019)

A dynamic series of 12 episodes set in medieval-era Korea, it is a thriller-horror show ruled by politics. A falling nation with the King in hiding and people starving, the story is led by the prince in search of the truth of what is happening in the palace. But with each layer he strips off and every morsel of truth he discovers, he finds that humanity is scarce when it comes to people saving themselves. Released around the same time as the covid pandemic this show features a pandemic of its own kind and the way the people of a small country deal with a disease that spreads ruthlessly and takes lives like a reaper.

With so many influential opinions on the show from critics and on social media, this show was everything and more. It is brisk and strikes down its story clearly. While there was much left in the dark, the story went from a perspective to focus on the bigger picture with every episode. The strong characters and the realistic circumstances keep us on the edge of our seats. As the story swerved into a whirlwind with so many details and brilliant visual direction, it is absolutely binge-worthy and gripping till the end.

Sweet Home (2020)

Another Korean mini-series focussed on a monster outbreak set in modern Korea, this show is imaginative and dark with plenty of gore. While the show is not for the light-hearted, the characters stand out for their uniqueness and will to fight against everything to hold on to their humanity in dire situations. Based on a webtoon of the same name, the show initially focuses on Hyunsoo, a young adult plagued with dark thoughts who moves into a shady apartment with plans of killing himself. With 10 episodes, all spanning 50 minutes, this show is ingenious and a hidden gem.

Even though I had been hesitating to watch the show after hearing about the gore, the show became a surprising favourite. With characters that seem too real and the concept of evolution thrown at us with this perspective, this show can be easily overlooked due to its disturbing visuals. Like any apocalypse story, this show has characters with some stereotypes, but the way they all are shown in their realities and their hidden vulnerabilities makes us attached to them all one by one.

Squid Game (2021)

Well-known for featuring chilling games and the authenticity of people's lives, this show deserved every bit of fame that came in its direction. Known for taking the internet by wildfire, the story features individuals with financial debts being recruited to play children's games, much like gambling, to get rid of their debt if they get to the final game and win it. Sounding simple enough to nearly all the participants, the show starts somberly, initially focussing on the life of Seong Gi-hun. But only once they enter the game do they all realize the reality and risks of the game. With 9 episodes and another upcoming season, this show is bound to keep any audience on the edge of their seat.

Having avoided plenty of shows because it was overrated, this show left me appalled, yet it made sense. While in the end, the character says if he was given the choice again, he would have chosen differently; I believe the realities of their lives often make people make hard choices that they would probably make again despite claiming otherwise. The show exposes capitalism and elite culture around the world from a perspective of a middle-aged man. With unnerving characters, all of whom are fighting for survival, this show is savage and yet enlightening.

My Name (2021)

Featuring the story of a young girl who loses her father to a criminal while being a crime lord himself, it goes on to show the woman she raises herself to bring justice to her father's death. The show is set in urban Korea, where the hidden crime world is exposed and how she has to work through the ranks to get what she wants. While the show has plenty of action and violence, it keeps the core story constant throughout as she makes her way into the world. With numerous characters looking to use her in their own ways and make her a pawn to the existing social structures, Jiwoo finds her own people to help her through her journey.

Unconventional and insightful, this show takes us into the misogynistic world of crime where we quickly find ourselves waiting for Jiwoo to find the truth and her peace. Through the 8 episodes, it is obvious how incredibly hardworking and single-minded she is about her goals. Two things the show evidently focuses on are the way the people around you shape you as the person you are and the comfort necessary for an individual to stay human. Refreshing with a female protagonist who isn't delicate and a complex antagonist, this show is sure to leave an imprint in the mind of any audience.

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jess-moloney · 1 year ago

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Starting years ago it's obvious that Jess's goal is and always has been to become famous for doing little to no work to earn that fame. In 2017 she started a fitness blog with a total of 6 posts before she discontinued it. More than likely because it was not giving her the instant gratification and fame that she was seeking.

Within these posts, you can find quite a bit of problematic statements. One of the biggest red flags is what she has to say about food and her relationship with it.

"I’ve always had a love/hate relationship with food. I eat because I have to, not because I enjoy it – and no, I have never had an eating disorder." - Jess Moloney [Source]

This statement is indicative of two things. The first very clearly being an eating disorder (or disordered eating) as well as absolute denial that she could have an eating disorder or problem with food, immediately after. This pattern of saying something problematic and then following it up with some justification for why it's actually not problematic has quite a history if you bother to read what is written in her posts. If she can't own up to her mistakes, faults, or flaws and is quick to dismiss them as something normal then she is at the very least immature and at the very worst a gaslighter, as well as a narcissist. Especially with statements like this:

Interviewer: What do you do when you hit a wall? I’ve never hit a wall. Interviewer: Come again…? I swear to God. I know I sound like such a c*nt but it’s true. I’ve never hit a wall because I’ve never told myself: I can’t do it. [Source]

Moving on from this and continuing with her fame-hungry ploy from way before she got involved with Jamie, we can see her first attempt to get any sort of recognition (and probably money) was her sucking up to Nike, constantly, as if they owed her a brand deal for the 6 blog posts she made, a few Instagram posts, and the fact that she completed 4-5 marathons (and was training for Iron Man).

She praises them as being an inspiration/motivation to her for continuing her training for Iron Man and also praises them for making her look good when she works out because looking good while working out is important to her (for some odd reason that I suppose has nothing to do with being very egotistical).

Her very last post says that she was injured and had to stop training for Iron Man. That post also goes on to say that it wasn't a bad enough injury to make her stop running for good and she intended to keep training, keep going, and keep running marathons so she could maybe try again to compete in Iron Man. Then she just stopped posting about that at all and her blog was never updated again. Running marathons (even though she wasn't winning awards or a star at it), is still something that takes a lot of talent and perseverance. Why did she stop? Was this not bringing her the instant gratification and recognition she was seeking? She may have been athletic but she was no better at it than any other average person doing the same exact thing. Why did she go so hard for Nike or think she was deserving of recognition for the bare minimum effort she put into trying to market them in the first place?

Moving on you can see this post on her Instagram. For someone who has continually bragged about being an agent for various things like PR and celebrity/talent management, this was her version of advertising a product. One where she does not say what the product is, show herself using it, show the item clearly, or even say why she uses it. One of the comments even believed she was holding up vibrators, not hair straighteners. I suppose it's not surprising that this company never asked her to promote anything again because she had no idea how to do it properly in the first place. This begs the question as to how and why she was ever involved in a job working with high-profile clients at a prominent management agency.

Until she got involved with Jamie, her account had fairly low traffic and engagement. Even her posts about Machine Gun Kelly fell flat most of the time, only ever garnering a couple hundred likes. An article from Distractify says that at the time that article was written, she had 28K followers on IG. Since then, it has doubled and is directly a result of her posting about Jamie and being involved with Jamie.

As previously mentioned, it's very doubtful she's had consistent (or any) employment since 2019. Jamie is her only claim to fame and cash cow. Yet still, as hungry for fame as she seems to be she also doesn't appear to want to do any work to get this fame. She wants it to be handed to her on a silver platter for just existing and being involved with Jamie romantically.

Someone with any sort of business savvy or knowledge in PR (as she claims to have) would know how to use this attention she was getting for being with Jamie to turn it into something much bigger. If she had any marketable skills, drive, or determination, she would be posting original content on her IG account. She could be posting fashion tips, makeup tutorials, vlogs, or even advice on how to get into her line of work. She could post behind-the-scenes photos at her alleged job or photoshoots she attends. Yet, she opts to do none of that and build her account around 90% stolen material that she vaguely tries to take credit for, posts of her with Jamie, and her poor promotion of Ice Studios that 90% of the time the people and companies tagged don't even seem to acknowledge that she exists.

It appears that Jess wants fame, believes she deserves fame, but also doesn't believe she should have to do any real hard work to get it. She also seems to think she's special as she is and doesn't need to hone any talent or skills or make herself anywhere near interesting. That because she's with Jamie and because she posts on Instagram people should just like her, give her money, make her famous, and offer her brand deals. Her utter incompetency in any field she claims to be in shows how self-entitled she is and the way she clings to Jamie to steal his portion of the spotlight makes it even more obvious what her intentions behind this relationship always have been.

#jess moloney #jamie campbell bower #jamie bower #fame game

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