TV Series of the Month – State of Play

This month’s TV series is State of Play (2003).

The six-part crime drama is about a London newspaper that investigates the murder of a local politician’s research assistant, uncovering a mystery that they never could have expected. Airing on the BBC, the miniseries is by writer Paul Abbott (who also created the British Shameless) and director David Yates (who directed the last five Harry Potter films). It has a brilliant cast (featuring a few actors who have since become well known in the States) with John Simm, Kelly Macdonald, Bill Nighy (Macdonald and Nighy also starred in Yates’s TV movie The Girl in the Café and each had a small role in one of the Deathly Hallow films), Philip Glenister, David Morrissey, James McAvoy, Amelia Bullmore, Benedict Wong, Marc Warren, Rebekah Staton, and Polly Walker. In 2009, Kevin Macdonald adapted the series into a Hollywood film (also called State of Play with Russell Crowe and Ben Affleck) but it is nowhere near as good. The series really draws the viewer in as the mystery unravels, taking its time allowing for wonderful character development. The supporting players are great (lead by Nighy, Macdonald and McAvoy), but the leads (Simm and Morrissey) are phenomenal, driving the narrative forward (AMC’s The Killing reminds me a little of this series). State of Play is often considered the best British TV Drama of the last decade and is a must-see for fans of crime dramas. Check out the trailer.

Available on DVD

TV Series of the Month - Rome

This month’s series is Rome (2005-2007).

The show is about the last days of the Roman Republic, focusing both on historical figures like Gaius Julius Caesar, Marcus Tullius Cicero, Marcus Junius Brutus, and Mark Antony and fictional characters created to show the underworld and day-to-day life in Rome. The show came at the end of HBO’s first dramatic golden period (with shows like Deadwood, Six Feet Under, Band of Brothers, The Sopranos, and The Wire), ultimately being cancelled (like Deadwood) because it was too expensive to produce. However (unlike Deadwood), the writers and producers of the show were able to give it an ending. Rome’s creators are Bruno Heller (who now runs The Mentalist), William MacDonald (who is trying to get a The Saint TV series on the air) and John Milius (who has written many classic films like Red Dawn, Conan the Barbarian and Apocalypse Now). The show though somehow seems better than the sum of its creative contributors. That is probably due to the phenomenal cast: Kevin McKidd, Ray Stevenson (both of whom I will forever enjoy thanks to this show), Polly Walker, Kerry Condon, James Purefoy, Tobias Menzies, Indira Varma, Max Pirkis, Ciaran Hinds, Lyndsey Marshall, Camilla Rutherford, Simon Woods, David Bamber, Kenneth Cranham, and many more. The acting and technical aesthetics (some of the best sets in TV history) are what makes this show so special. It is a must see for fans of the more recent cable shows Game of Thrones and Spartacus: Blood and Sand and those who (like I) love the best that HBO has to offer. Check out the trailer.

Available on Blu-ray, DVD, Streaming, and to Rent