Big Little Lies is available now on Digital Download!
Based on the novel of the same name by Liane Moriarty, the seven-part limited-series debuted on HBO earlier this year to ratings success, as well as receiving wide acclaim from television critics. Written by David E. Kelley and directed by Jean-Marc Vallée, the series featured the first-rate cast of Reese Witherspoon, Nicole Kidman, Shailene Woodley, Alexander Skarsgård, Adam Scott, Zoë Kravitz, James Tupper, Jeffrey Nordling, and Laura Dern.
The first episode begins at a crime scene were neither the victim or murderer are revealed, and then it quickly flips back to several weeks to where us viewers are introduced to three women who are all dropping off their kids for their first day of first-grade. Jane (played by Shailene Woodley) is a young single mother. Madeline (played by Reese Witherspoon) is a funny, sweet person, but she can also have a grudge against anyone who upsets her. Celeste (played by Nicole Kidman) is a beautiful ex-lawyer who is now a full-time mother to twin boys.
image courtesy of HBO |
These women's world's collide at the at the end of the first day of school when a little girl, Amabella, accuses Ziggy, Jane's son, of attempting to choke her. While Ziggy denies the accusation, Ambaella's mother, Renata (played by Laura Dern), goes on a warpath over the situation, and she's determined to make sure Jane's life is a living nightmare.
image courtesy of HBO |
Despite the awkward introduction to the other parents, Jane quickly befriends Madeline and Celeste, and opens up about her dark past involving Ziggy's father. While their lives look perfect to Jane, Madeline and Celeste's marriages each have their own set of problems. Celeste's husband has been abusing her behind closed doors for years. Madeline's past affair comes back to haunt her marriage.
Madeline, Celeste, and Jane's personal issues all collide at the school's trivia night, which leads to a murder.
Big Little Lies will be released to Blu-ray and DVD on August 1st.
image courtesy of HBO |
"Getting To Know Jane"
(clip courtesy of HBO)
Final Thoughts: I had missed out on watching the limited-series on HBO earlier this year, mostly due to the fact that it just didn't interests me. However, after hearing good things about the series and learning that it was based on a book, I became interested in watching the Digital HD version, which is now available on www.HBODigitalHD.com.
I thought the first episode, Somebody's Dead, started off a little slow; somewhat reminding of a bad episode of Desperate Housewives. The plot for the first episode involves a simple school yard incident that gets dragged out for the entire series. The introduction for all the main characters felt a bit rocky to me, and I became bored by the end of the episode.
Typically, I would stop watching a series if I'm not intrigued by the pilot, but nevertheless I watched the second episode, Serious Mothering. Luckily, the scripts get better with episode two as more of the characters' marital problems and personal demons are revealed. By the episode three, Living the Dream, I was hooked to this mystery-drama.
The limited-series has a star-studded cast, but my favorite performance was from Shailene Woodley. I've never cared much for acting in the Divergent films, but she does a wonderful job as Jane, the young traumatized mother.
The Digital HD features all seven episodes, the original "sneak preview" trailer, "About Big Little Lies" featurette, and seven "Inside Episode" featurettes.
Overall, I enjoyed watching Big Little Lies on Digital HD. The picture and sound quality were excellent on all the episodes. While it's not exactly a perfect series, it's better than many other dramas currently on television. I highly recommend the series to others.
*Disclaimer - I received a complimentary digital copy in exchange for my unbiased review. All opinions are my own.
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Madeline! She was just too much, and Reese played her so well.
ReplyDeleteI love Madeline. She really knows how to hold a grudge
ReplyDeleteJane is my favorite. I just like her. Holly Wright
ReplyDelete