Apple TV+ every now and then: A TV review

Apple TV+ Sometimes It opens on a memorable night, though not for happy reasons. Shortly after graduating from college at night, six friends head to the beach to play beer and build a fire. Only five return after a serious accident. The incident aggravates the survivors over the years, turning their lives upside down and leaving them in nightmares, which is perhaps why they aren’t entirely surprised when they receive a blackmail threat from someone claiming them the day before the incident. meet in a class. 20 years. . To find out what happened that night.

This is essentially a succulent series for the building, although it’s not surprisingly original. And for the spell, curiosity is enough to keep it going. Sometimes It’s been floating around, especially after the show brings together two police officers, Flora (Rosie Perez) and Sullivan (Zheliko Ivanek), who have been persecuted for personal reasons. But the eight-hour episodes, well-drawn characters, and sleepy pacing keep the series from reaching its full potential, and unlike this horrible night, Sometimes It shows that forgetting is very easy.

Both the series and its characters begin with a sense of solid promise. Directed by Gideon Raffi, the first episode is based on a stark contrast between the fates of the characters they dreamed of in the 1920s – the dizzying screams announced on the beach, video camera in hand – and those who will actually live to be. 40

Some have been more successful than others: Although Sophia (Maribel Verdu) and Danny (Soledad Vilamili) barely make ends meet, Marcos (Manolo Cardona), a descendant of an already extremely wealthy family, has become one of Miami Plastic’s most sought after surgeons and Pedro (José María Yazpic) are running for mayor along with his wife Anna (Marina de Tavira), who has university studies.

However, no one has the life they really wanted, and Alejandro’s (Jorge López) death hangs over his shattered hopes as a final ra-if. If Alexander had survived, who knows what might have been different?

SometimesThe casting of two completely different actors past and present highlights the painful gap between who they were in 2000 and who they became in 2020. With strong artistic talent, the series occasionally replaces young actors. Some dream scenes in the present. For example, when exes Marcos and Sophia get into the car after a date, for example, the brief presence of younger colleagues, played by Jack Duarte and Alicia Suns, reveals that they not only love each other, but also their memories. From the people who were half a life ago.

But the emotional weight of the premise somewhat detracts from the show’s lack of personality. While primarily set among Hispanic immigrants in Miami (and while the series itself is primarily presented in Spanish), the show doesn’t reflect a particularly distinctive community. The characters also seem to be constructed as general types, even some performances, including De Tavira’s icy turn and solid Perez, manage to scale above the script. In the absence of details, Sometimes It can feel overwhelming to capture established tropes – many were seen in the past year on shows like yellow jackets, I know what you did last summer, one of us lies s more party.

As much as the series has something to say, its mind is on the class divide. Sometimes Its aim is to divide its role between ownership and non-ownership and shows us how money shapes the dynamic between them. We see Marcos simultaneously isolated and incarcerated with his father’s money as Logan Roy’s son, and yet, from Flora’s point of view, he’s just another impetuous informant avoiding a possible verbal assassination. But those ideas are lacking when the series is so interested in, say, the innate inequality of friendship between young Alejandro and young Pedro (Dario Yazbek Bernal), whom he met when Pedro’s mother started working as a maid. Family.

In this regard, Sometimes He really doesn’t seem to have stopped arguing who None These people may be beyond the archetypes they represent or the biographical details relevant to the central story. The lack of shading makes the characters feel strangely static, despite the dramatic transformations they’ve undergone over the last 20 years and despite the constant plot and story twists, some thrilling, some heartbreaking understated, some just confusing.

In the final hour of the season, one of the voice characters thinks the idea that human destiny can be shaped by bad timing is a lie. “The truth is, every small step you take, every path you choose, every word, every person you meet, even for a second, changes everything,” he said. This is wise advice and a SometimesEmphasizing deadly surprises, depth of character or richness of detail would be well considered.