I had heard some good buzz about this TV series that ran
for 3 seasons 2014-2016 and decided to give it a try.
Normally though i avoid TV series like the plague as they just go on and
on and on and ..... without any meaning or
a goal besides getting as much commercials sold as possible, and a fat
salary for the producers and sloppy script-
writers for as many years as possible. The TV series craze that has swept
the world is much overrated, and it would
be perfectly enough with the best stuff compressed into a long pilot episode
really, with a start and an end to it. Yes,
a regular movie and not a TV series at all that is and it would be just
fine. Penny Dreadful - The Movie.
The Fabulous Eva Green
So, i tried watching the first season of this lured in
by the talented and beautiful french (and a bit swedish) actress Eva
Green. I've seen her in only a couple of films and she made some impact
on me. 1. The Bond girl in Casino Royale,
and what a Bond girl she was .... possibly the best one ever regarding
the acting (and Ursula Andress in Dr. No in
the sexual power department) and 2. her acting in the criminally underrated
girlschool drama Cracks directed by
the daughter of Ridley, Jordan Scott, as the enigmatic teacher. Eva Green
is magical in that film, so talented.
And, YES, Eva Green has a huge part in this series and you can gape at
her almost all the time, what a fascinating
face. Well, not just Eva is great but also the other actors, as Timothy
Dalton (he stunk as Bond but is a fine actor
otherwise), Josh Hartnett is cool in a delightfully relaxed style and
Harry Treadaway, and that's the main quartet.
The supporting players are fine too, as Billie Piper's prostitute, Rory
Kinnear as a sensitive monster, Danny Sapani
as the enigmatic african, Reeve Carney as Dorian Gray and Alun Armstrong
as a Grand Guignol theatre manager.
Everything Gothic goes into the mix
Maybe this TV series is made mostly for a younger audience,
for young adults that haven't really read the gothic UK
classics as Mary Shelley's Frankenstein or Oscar Wilde's The Picture of
Dorian Gray?
The Producers John Logan and Sam Mendes throw just about everything in.
The series takes place in the 1890's
Victorian London and Sir Malcolm Murray (Timothy Dalton) is searching
for his daughter, lost in the netherworld
of London. Helping him on his quest are Vanessa Ives (Eva Green), american
sharpshooter Ethan Chandler (Josh
Hartnett), young Dr. Victor Frankenstein (Harry Treadaway) and MM's african
assistant Sembene (Danny Sapani).
There are albino egyptian Demons, white haired á
la chinese horror movies vampire demon women, monsters made
by Dr. Frankenstein, a Jack the Ripper type of prostitute killer, Dorian
Gray and his famous picture, egyptian mumbo
jumbo demon stuff, Satan himself, a werewolf, Professor Van Helsing, Exorcist
ripoff demon possession and yes,
naturally, there must be a Bride of Frankenstein's Monster too ... and
season 1 ends with her being made.
Also there are some gore and lots of sex, no TV series without copious
amounts of fucking and nudity. GOT has set
the formula, sex for the girls ? and gore for the boys ? to lure the audience
in. The story ? Not very important.
What is good then in Penny Dreadful?
1. The beautifully shot gothic atmosphere of 1890's London
2. Eva Green 3. The other main actors 4. the romance
between Josh Hartnett's Ethan and Billie Piper's Brona - yes, i'm a romantic
and their romance felt genuinely warm,
and finally the 2 last episodes of the season that was great and who maybe
make you want to watch another season
Disc 1 - Episode 101: Night Work - Episode 102: Seance
- Episode 103: Resurrection
Disc 2 - Episode 104: Demimonde - Episode 105: Closer than sisters - Episode
106: What Death can join together
Disc 3 - Episode 107: Possession - Episode 108: Grand Guignol
widescreen 1.78:1, english audio 5.1 true HD with english
subtitles. Extras: Costume design Penny Dreadful (4 min),
The animals of Penny Dreadful (3 min) and Production blogs Penny Dreadful
(22 minutes)
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