Saturday, September 22, 2012

Saturday TV Special: Six Feet Under

By s. Saturday, September 22, 2012 ,
"All that lives, lives forever. Only the shell, the perishable passes away. The spirit is without end… Eternal… Deathless…"
Plot: The series follows Fisher family who is running a funeral home. In the first episode the father of the family dies in an car accident, leaving his two sons, one daughter and wife Ruth to deal with his death and the business. When older son Nate returns home for Christmas he finds out the news about his father's passing, but that comes after he has sex with mysterious Brenda, the woman he met on the plane who will continue to be a prominent part of his life. Nate decides to stay home to bring some consolation to Ruth and his brother David, who now has to run the business on his own. There is also Claire - Nate and David's teenage sister who has terrible taste in men and who experiments with drugs, which leads her to many troubles. As the series progresses we see those people trying to cope with their loneliness, trying to find happiness in their love lives, handling the family business and finding their own way and purpose in life.
Structure: Each episode begins with a death of a person the Fishers will be burying in that episode. The deaths are sometimes ordinary but more often than not they are absolutely crazy. Auto erotic asphyxiation? Running over your own head with a car? Falling on the poker - eye first? Check, check and check!
Verdict: If I were to chose the most profound, thought provoking and exhilarating series that I've ever seen I'd chose Six Feet Under. Though the show sometimes loses its way, the amount of flawless episodes is impressive and the stories in episodes and deaths of the people we see on screen always lead to beautiful and affecting moments - and as characters wonder about things that those deaths made them think of, we wonder along with them. The series gets real surreal at times, as the ghosts/visions of people who died appear to the members of the family and we often see the dreams, fantasies and hallucinations the Fishers experience. Six Feet Under has top notch acting, especially from Rachel Griffiths as damaged and disturbed brilliant Brenda and lonely and misunderstood Ruth played with so much heart by Frances Conroy. I also adored Kathy Bates's amusing Belinda and absolute tour-de-force - Patricia Clarkson as Ruth's bohemian sister Sarah.
Everybody's waiting - series finale, possibly the best TV series finale ever made.
What's so great about it? The show presents the most unsetteling subject out there - death. It does so with a lot of grace, understanding and surprisingly - humour. Six Feet Under is not a pitch black drama, though certain aspects of the show are truly heartbreaking and I have never cried more in my entire life as I cried during last 10 minutes of season finale. The show is a perfect mix of dramedy and dark comedy - you will laugh, cry and most importantly - I know people who after seeing this show stopped being afraid of dying.
Whom you may recognize: Frances Conroy who currently stars in American Horror Story, Michael C. Hall from Dexter, Peter Crause from Parenthood, Lauren Ambrose from Wanderlust, Rachel Griffiths from Brothers and Sisters, Freddy Rodriguez from Planet Terror and many supporting and guest appearances from excellent and well known actors such as Richard Jenkins, James Cromwell, Kathy Bates, Patricia Clarkson (who won 2 Emmys for her work here), Mena Suvari, Ben Foster and Joanna Cassidy - unforgettable Zhora from Blade Runner.
Who will like it? Fans of great writing, wonderful performances, quirky and complex characters.
When and where? 5 seasons are available on DVD.

16 comments:

  1. Hi!
    I've watched all 5 seasons (in a row, may I add; it was a slow summer) and I can say it's one of the most interesting shows I've ever seen. The final ten minutes were so amazing that when I watch the video on YouTube, it still has the same effect on me!

    Love your collages and your review is absolutely accurate.

    Enjoy your weekend!

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    1. Oh, me too - I sometimes watch the end on youtube and I'm in tears all over again. I saw all 5 seasons in the row twice actually, the show really got me hooked.

      Thank you so much for stopping by and commenting!

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  2. Great review! I've been very curious about this show for years. I don't watch T.V. (no cable access). Instead I tackle one series at a time, gorging myself on it until I run through all the seasons available on Netflix. *LOL* Right now I'm stuck on Luther and The Big Bang Theory.

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    1. Thank you! Luther and The Big Bang Theory is a great combination - especially given how heavy Luther can be good hilarious comedy series like TBBT is a perfect way to relax, I tihnk I know every single episode of this one by heart :) You should definetly see Six Feet but it's good to have some comedy series to watch with this too, the show can get very grim.

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  3. I had issues with some of the repetitive drama throughout, but I can easily say that this show has THE BEST series finale ever made, and that song by Sia is perfect.

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    1. Oh absolutely, that finale and the 2 episodes leading up to it were perfection. Breathe Me by Sia is such a gorgeous song and it was a perfect fit for that sequence.

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  4. This is on my unofficial TV watchlist. It does look excellent, and I've heard nothing but great things about it. One day, perhaps, I'll finally get around to it.

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    1. You should definetly see it! I think it's one of the greatest TV series out there.

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  5. I am taking credit for your inspiration for this post as my little discussion of Jenkins in Cabin in the Woods review.

    Haha, just kidding.

    But yes, this show is incredible. One of my favorite of all time and it never jumped the shark. And yes, that finale featuring Sia's "Breathe Me" is the most powerful 10 minutes of TV I have ever watched. Greatest series finale of all time.

    Also, that song is now almost instant water works whenever I hear it (I can admit it) and the brief use of it in Season 1 of Luther made my heart stop.

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    1. Haha, sure go ahead! :) Though, I worked on that post for a while now ^^

      Glad you like the show too! That finale always gets me, especially the ending it was so sad, yet optimistic and beautiful at the same time.

      Oh I know, it went so well with the scene in Luther too, I adore the song though it always makes me think of Six Feet Under ending and I'm running a risk of crying whenever I listen to it :)

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  6. That is a striking poster of this show! And that tagline is sooo spot on, ahah. Great post as always Sati.

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    1. Thank you! The show has fantastic posters, it was tough to chose just one.

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  7. This is one criminally underrated show. Everything about it is brilliant -- the cast, the writing, the dark humor... And that finale is still the best I have ever seen. Awesome writeup, Sati!

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  8. Great review, you really took me back. I had some issues with the middle seasons, but this show has so many brilliant and amazing things going for it. The writing, the cast, the humor. Man, what a cast! I loved these people. So many actors here are working in other shows/movies, and I always think of their SFU characters (i.e. Krause on Parenthood, Hall in Dexter, Jenkins in...everywhere!). They will always be the Fisher clan to me!

    And yes... the best series finale EVER. And I've seen a lot of series finales. This one takes top prize.

    Thanks for the SFU love!

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    1. Thank you! Oh me too, whenever I see Dexter I'm always reminded of Six Feet Under, same for Conroy in American Horror Story.

      Absolutely, it was just mindblowing, such a perfect ending to the amazing series.

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