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| Scene from High Fidelity (2020) |
Welcome to a new column called Channel Surfing, in which I sporadically look at current TV shows and talk about them. These are not ones that I care to write weekly recaps for and are instead reflections either on the episode, the series, or particular moments. This will hopefully help to share personal opinions as well as discover entertainment on the outer pantheon that I feel is well worth checking out, or in some cases, shows that are weird enough to talk about, but should never be seen.
In 2000, the John Cusack movie High Fidelity brought to life the story of a record store clerk who was a bit too obsessed with music for his own good. The Nick Hornby adaptation may have been one of the most entertaining exercises in music criticism, but it was also secretly a commentary on people who were a bit too obsessed with their media, reflecting a need to open up and tolerate those who disagree with you from time to time. In some ways, it was almost prophetic of archetypes that now run rampant on Twitter, who spend their waking hours making sure that the world knows their disdain for franchises. So, how do you make it relevant to a 2020 audience without simply resorting to another bloated story of men complaining that women don't like them? The answer is to add a little remix to the heart of the story.
At the center is Rob, now played by Zoe Kravitz as this biracial bisexual who spends the first episode playing a familiar tune. It's the story of her Top 5 break-ups, which happen to include the one that opens the story. At the start, it appears that he is in the wrong, incapable of understanding or taking her love. However, the four other people in her Top 5 are people who say a lot more about Rob's life. She goes through a lot of relationships, some ending because of her selfishness and others because of their cheating ways. She is desperate to find something more stable and recalling all of them only forces her to question what she did wrong. The only issue is that it's also forcing her to be locked in the past instead of moving forward.
Her family even calls early on to ask her why she isn't dating anymore. There is this intimidation to be a perfect person, and she can't get there. She works at a record store with two people, also totally redone for the show. Cherise (Da'Vine Joy Randolph) and Simon (David H. Holmes) have altered their interests but still, hold the same disdain for customers who have inferior tastes in music. There's plenty of comedy to be had from their enthusiastic personalities clashing with the more dour Rob, especially as she tries to cope with her misery of being single. With Hulu releasing the series on Valentine's Day, it creates the perfect irony for the show in that it reflects how much pressure society puts on being in love. For Cherise and Simon, it's more of self-love. For Rob, it's self-loathing behind the counter of Champion Vinyl, also now located in New York.
The one moment that shows how much promise High Fidelity has comes early when Rob is discussing the discography of Fleetwood Mac with her ex Mac (Kinglsey Ben-Adir). She prefers "Tusk" to "Rumors," though it is more fixated on the details in the music. She loves how she can hear the relationship drama that made those records, reflecting both her obsession with memorizing track listings as well as production histories. When Mac replies with his regret that he doesn't know more about Fleetwood Mac, it's this sense that Rob is talking to herself, caring more about finding someone with the same interests and knowledge as her. She refuses to listen, and it shows in her need to inform rather than engage. It's a moment of music theory that will hopefully be reflected throughout the show.
It helps that Kravitz is an engaging presence, even when draped under dreadlocks and this melancholic tone as she speaks directly to the camera. In some ways this is a radical update on High Fidelity that changes too much, removing certain points entirely. However, updating it for a new audience reveals how accessible this idea still is to the modern age. Even as records become more irrelevant, nicer, there are those who find more satisfaction in knowing everything about the media they consume instead of the people they meet. Rob is tryng to breakthrough but finding it completely difficult. There's plenty to love in the delivery and makes this more than a hacky update of a popular movie from 20 years ago. It's a story of love that is more universal than we'd give it credit for. The question is if Kravitz will remain sympathetic and organic enough to pull it off.
In terms of new series in 2020, High Fidelity already feels like one of the few adaptations that can have a lot more to promise. Maybe as the show moves away from the more familiar terrain of the Hornby source material, it can become something more valuable to the conversation. Right now it seems like the best idea that the franchise has had in quite some time, and already is leagues ahead of the misbegotten musical from over a decade ago. Right now it feels like the best time to explore why we're obsessed with things that maybe don't matter enough to shape our lives, but we go down those paths anyways. Whatever it is, it's sure to make for an entertaining Top 5 list on the next episode, when deeper catharsis finally emerges and life can move on for Rob and her friends.
At the center is Rob, now played by Zoe Kravitz as this biracial bisexual who spends the first episode playing a familiar tune. It's the story of her Top 5 break-ups, which happen to include the one that opens the story. At the start, it appears that he is in the wrong, incapable of understanding or taking her love. However, the four other people in her Top 5 are people who say a lot more about Rob's life. She goes through a lot of relationships, some ending because of her selfishness and others because of their cheating ways. She is desperate to find something more stable and recalling all of them only forces her to question what she did wrong. The only issue is that it's also forcing her to be locked in the past instead of moving forward.
Her family even calls early on to ask her why she isn't dating anymore. There is this intimidation to be a perfect person, and she can't get there. She works at a record store with two people, also totally redone for the show. Cherise (Da'Vine Joy Randolph) and Simon (David H. Holmes) have altered their interests but still, hold the same disdain for customers who have inferior tastes in music. There's plenty of comedy to be had from their enthusiastic personalities clashing with the more dour Rob, especially as she tries to cope with her misery of being single. With Hulu releasing the series on Valentine's Day, it creates the perfect irony for the show in that it reflects how much pressure society puts on being in love. For Cherise and Simon, it's more of self-love. For Rob, it's self-loathing behind the counter of Champion Vinyl, also now located in New York.
The one moment that shows how much promise High Fidelity has comes early when Rob is discussing the discography of Fleetwood Mac with her ex Mac (Kinglsey Ben-Adir). She prefers "Tusk" to "Rumors," though it is more fixated on the details in the music. She loves how she can hear the relationship drama that made those records, reflecting both her obsession with memorizing track listings as well as production histories. When Mac replies with his regret that he doesn't know more about Fleetwood Mac, it's this sense that Rob is talking to herself, caring more about finding someone with the same interests and knowledge as her. She refuses to listen, and it shows in her need to inform rather than engage. It's a moment of music theory that will hopefully be reflected throughout the show.
It helps that Kravitz is an engaging presence, even when draped under dreadlocks and this melancholic tone as she speaks directly to the camera. In some ways this is a radical update on High Fidelity that changes too much, removing certain points entirely. However, updating it for a new audience reveals how accessible this idea still is to the modern age. Even as records become more irrelevant, nicer, there are those who find more satisfaction in knowing everything about the media they consume instead of the people they meet. Rob is tryng to breakthrough but finding it completely difficult. There's plenty to love in the delivery and makes this more than a hacky update of a popular movie from 20 years ago. It's a story of love that is more universal than we'd give it credit for. The question is if Kravitz will remain sympathetic and organic enough to pull it off.
In terms of new series in 2020, High Fidelity already feels like one of the few adaptations that can have a lot more to promise. Maybe as the show moves away from the more familiar terrain of the Hornby source material, it can become something more valuable to the conversation. Right now it seems like the best idea that the franchise has had in quite some time, and already is leagues ahead of the misbegotten musical from over a decade ago. Right now it feels like the best time to explore why we're obsessed with things that maybe don't matter enough to shape our lives, but we go down those paths anyways. Whatever it is, it's sure to make for an entertaining Top 5 list on the next episode, when deeper catharsis finally emerges and life can move on for Rob and her friends.
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