This is a really good series.
You know I usually go for the foreign stuff, because it tends to be more visceral, it's easier to lose yourself in the foreign shows, and we've been on a streak of international series that I don't think should be your first choice if you watch what the algorithm serves you, but still they were very good.
First is "Yosi, the Regretful Spy," on Amazon Prime. It's Argentinian and based on a real story. The government sends a spy into the Jewish community fearful it's going to build a colony in the hinterlands, and then the Israeli embassy is blown up. There are two seasons. You'll become invested in the characters.
Actually, before that we watched "The Interpreter of Silence" on Hulu. What we've got here is a trial bringing Nazis to justice for their crimes during the Holocaust and the interpreter learns the truth about what happened and more. "The Interpreter of Silence" is dark. And set in sixties Germany. It'll seem real. Whereas "Yosi" is more of a tale, a lot denser, dealing with many characters, their emotions, and there's plenty of action.
And after those two, we watched "Past Lies," a Spanish show also on Hulu, sans the gravitas and the ultimate quality of the preceding two, but I must mention it alongside "Under the Bridge" because in both series you think it's all about finding out whodunit, but then it's not. What you're waiting for is revealed earlier, and then there are other plot lines, other twists.
"Under the Bridge" is an American series on Hulu which got middling reviews when it was released a couple of months back. But word of mouth has been building. I did not know they dripped out episodes week by week, I cannot watch that way, I binged the whole thing, the continuity is crucial, there's a mood you get caught up in, and now you can watch it all too. Assuming you subscribe to Hulu.
The hook of the hype is Riley Keough, Elvis's granddaughter. And she is very good, but she is not the essence of the show, that is the teenagers, who are so believable it's astonishing. You rarely see such spot-on performances, even in movies. You believe the characters are real.
And "Under the Bridge" is based on real life, it hews pretty closely to what actually happened, but wait until you're finished with it to do some research, which you'll be dying to do.
So it's about whodunit, but once again you find out most of what happened early on. And then it becomes about the characters, their motivation, their choices.
Chloe Guidry as Josephine Bell is positively astounding. You know people like this, assuming you grew up in the melting pot of public school. Someone who not only thinks they're cool, but is. Who is the queen bee. But also you get the teenage outlook, Josephine believes she's one step away from the Mafia in New York, she's following in their footsteps, which is laughable, but tragedy ensues, and Josephine never breaks character.
And Javon "Wanna" Walton as Warren Glowatski... It's such a fine line to walk, a sensitive villain. But Javon never breaks character, he rides the razor's edge. It's pretty incredible.
And then there is Izzy G. as Kelly Ellard, who is just plain bad. A follower of Josephine yet much more messed up. Josephine might manipulate Kelly and everybody else, but Kelly is just a bad seed. Who can lie through her teeth. Who can appear the good girl. Who ultimately seems to have no moral compass.
So this all happens in Victoria, B.C. That's right, on an island off the coast of Canada, where everybody dreams of growing up and emigrating to Vancouver, the big city, real life, the mainstream. Victoria is beautiful, but psychologically inbred. I've lived in the hinterlands, in rural areas, and everybody's in everybody's business, you get caught up in the daily drama whether you want to or not.
Though the population of Victoria is not so sparse. It's suburban. And beautiful. This is not the bright lights of Hollywood, this is the rich greens of the forest, snow on the mountains, rain and the vast bodies of water surrounding the land. So the feel is anything but bogus. And when you think the show is going off the rails, which is very rare, you have to pinch yourself and remember that it's all real. Not all, but what isn't isn't really relevant.
And then you've got Reena's parents. A South Asian couple who've experienced racism, despite their best efforts to fit in. Canada looks cohesive and happy until you pull back the surface. And then you find all the problems with the First Nations people, which even plays here.
I hate to break it, but I don't think it will ruin the series whatsoever, Lily Gladstone's Cam is a fiction, that person doesn't really exist.
But the rest of them do. Josephine is really Nicole Cook. Everybody else is acting under the name of the real person.
Once again, this is real.
And it deals with teenage life. Not in an exploitative way, it's just that being a teenager is often hell. Are you cool? Are you bullied? It's a fragile ecosystem from which you cannot remove yourself. You're all together at school, and even if your plan is to keep your head down, that strategy oftentimes doesn't work.
So too many American shows are all about the look, with name actors who are beautiful but don't act that well. That is not "Under the Bridge," which may not be the best streaming series you've ever seen, but it's really damn good. It deserves attention, you will be wholly satisfied with the viewing experience, you will not be angry that you wasted your time.
Therefore, I wholeheartedly recommend it. You'll go down the rabbit hole, you'll binge it, and then you'll be eager to talk with others about it. We call that art. And on that level "Under the Bridge" works. This is a show that is not a heavy lift, that does not employ subtitles, it's something you can get into very easily. And then you get hooked, you can't wait to go back and finish it.
Start now.
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