It seems impossible to think of a world without The Wire nowadays. It is likely to be creator David Simon's calling card for the rest of his life. This isn't a bad thing, even though it now means that everything will unfairly be compared to the series, which was lightning in a bottle for its five seasons. In fact, his many projects since have done admirable work to distance himself from The Wire. In the case of his latest miniseries, Show Me a Hero, he returns with something that may sound exactly like that HBO milestone, but it's only because of the politics. The rest is a fairly polished product that tells a compelling six hour story of the youngest mayor of Yonkers, New York, and his struggle to make a difference. In typical Simon fashion, you have to take the good with the bad. And that's good... for us.
The story focuses around the plight of Mayor Nick Wasicsko (Oscar Isaac), who seeks to make a difference in Yonkers. As he rises up the ranks, the audience is treated to various stories of families struggling with the housing conflicts that fuel the series. Many live in dangerous neighborhoods while others are too racist to want to integrate. Board meetings are met with constant despair from citizens accusing the staff of corruption. The quest to make a difference is slow, and never works out within an episode. By the progression of the story, it sometimes takes more than a few years to get somewhere worthwhile, even if it sabotages your reputation and fills your inbox with death threats.
Much like The Wire, this isn't a story about one man. Even if it is more centralized than the HBO series, the show's impact is made gradually with each reveal. We don't sympathize with Wasicsko until we see the actual cause in motion. We have to see the citizens living in those houses, experiencing a different, questionably better life. We have to see the struggle. For all of the conflict that starts the series, it is fascinating to note that it is a slow struggle that doesn't really come to fruition until the last 90 minutes. Everything before is bickering of people with their own bias. They can't work together because they refuse to.
So, how do things resolve themselves? Simon never was a fan of playing it easy. As a result, the best scenes of the series is in those conversations where politicians are forced to ventilate their frustrations. As an audience, we can see the good idea, but nobody can agree on how to get there. We are left trying to understand what makes Wasicsko a "hero." It doesn't even follow a conventional pattern. He falls and rises many times, even being somewhat despised by the community he inevitably helped. His hope for a better world is met with a tragic demise, and one that suggests that heroes aren't always the ones who end up the most gratified. Sometimes it leaves you in defeat, feeling as if you fought for nothing.
The man draw comes from the casting, which Simon once again knocks out of the park. Even the smallest performances add weight to the final product. The residing conflict between everyone is tense and while it takes time to get there, it ends up being worthwhile. At the center is the man who never cracks: Oscar Isaac. In the middle of his real life rise to fame, it is great to see him once again delivering a performance that reflects his charisma. He may never cry, but we can sense his anguish in his conversations. We can feel his urge to lash out at his enemies. We can feel his nervousness when failure looks imminent. A lot can be displayed on Isaac's face as he hides it behind confidence. He is the sympathetic politician in a field of corrupt faces, smiling for the sake of a vote.
While director Paul Haggis has received backlash for Crash, I think it's about time that we let that go. It has been 10 years now and the man has done some great work here. Between his contributions to Going Clear and Show Me a Hero, he has really rebounded and become a compelling voice. Here, he manages to keep things from feeling like a knock-off version of The Wire. While there's a sense of naturalism, the story is more stylized, with music cues being more ingrained into the ether instead of background. We hear Bruce Springsteen cry as montages of cities play. Even if the job isn't standout or exceptional, Haggis makes the whole thing work nicely - saving the best for last with a great wraparound segment regarding a car in a cemetery.
Together, this collaborative effort reflects why Simon is a unique and important voice to TV and the miniseries medium in general. He presents the picture not with a personal bias, but with a well rounded depiction of everyone's struggle. Where things could have gotten by showing Wasicsko struggle, it was more interesting to see the politicians, citizens, and close relatives react to the situation. It helped to make us understand the deeper problems at hand. Sure, there's racism, but the miniseries managed to show both sides of how people dealt with it. Even if this slow build makes it a little boring to begin with, it ends up wholly satisfying. It may not be The Wire great, but it comes pretty close to being in direct lineage.
Show Me a Hero may not be the greatest or most iconic miniseries that HBO will ever release. However, it does have a lot worth investing in. There's Isaac at the center, providing another brilliant performance. There's the cast, very diverse and well scripted. Even if the ending is a little bleak, leaving the promise of an optimistic future for Wasicsko and his project, it does tell the story of hope and how hard it is to have some. There's a scene in Part 6 where Wasicsko goes door to door, asking the new residents if they like the housing. He is largely a nobody to them. In a way, that is what Simon wants to counteract with this miniseries. He wants to prove that Wasicsko was so much more than a pariah who made a difference. He was a hero who did what was right, even if someone else got credit for it.
Rating: 3.5 out of 5
The man draw comes from the casting, which Simon once again knocks out of the park. Even the smallest performances add weight to the final product. The residing conflict between everyone is tense and while it takes time to get there, it ends up being worthwhile. At the center is the man who never cracks: Oscar Isaac. In the middle of his real life rise to fame, it is great to see him once again delivering a performance that reflects his charisma. He may never cry, but we can sense his anguish in his conversations. We can feel his urge to lash out at his enemies. We can feel his nervousness when failure looks imminent. A lot can be displayed on Isaac's face as he hides it behind confidence. He is the sympathetic politician in a field of corrupt faces, smiling for the sake of a vote.
While director Paul Haggis has received backlash for Crash, I think it's about time that we let that go. It has been 10 years now and the man has done some great work here. Between his contributions to Going Clear and Show Me a Hero, he has really rebounded and become a compelling voice. Here, he manages to keep things from feeling like a knock-off version of The Wire. While there's a sense of naturalism, the story is more stylized, with music cues being more ingrained into the ether instead of background. We hear Bruce Springsteen cry as montages of cities play. Even if the job isn't standout or exceptional, Haggis makes the whole thing work nicely - saving the best for last with a great wraparound segment regarding a car in a cemetery.
Together, this collaborative effort reflects why Simon is a unique and important voice to TV and the miniseries medium in general. He presents the picture not with a personal bias, but with a well rounded depiction of everyone's struggle. Where things could have gotten by showing Wasicsko struggle, it was more interesting to see the politicians, citizens, and close relatives react to the situation. It helped to make us understand the deeper problems at hand. Sure, there's racism, but the miniseries managed to show both sides of how people dealt with it. Even if this slow build makes it a little boring to begin with, it ends up wholly satisfying. It may not be The Wire great, but it comes pretty close to being in direct lineage.
Show Me a Hero may not be the greatest or most iconic miniseries that HBO will ever release. However, it does have a lot worth investing in. There's Isaac at the center, providing another brilliant performance. There's the cast, very diverse and well scripted. Even if the ending is a little bleak, leaving the promise of an optimistic future for Wasicsko and his project, it does tell the story of hope and how hard it is to have some. There's a scene in Part 6 where Wasicsko goes door to door, asking the new residents if they like the housing. He is largely a nobody to them. In a way, that is what Simon wants to counteract with this miniseries. He wants to prove that Wasicsko was so much more than a pariah who made a difference. He was a hero who did what was right, even if someone else got credit for it.
Rating: 3.5 out of 5
Comments
Post a Comment