Mad Men: Season Three
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Movie Reviews of Mad Men: Season Three
Movie Review: The Future Will Be Better Than The Past
Summary: 5 Stars
Special Features and Specs For Season 3 Have Been Announced:
Mad Men is truly an excellently produced show on all levels, as should be evident from it's adament fans, critical praise and many awards. The first season established the world and introduced the characters, the second season expanded and elaborated on each and the third season finally presents a complete vision. The third season doesn't have quite the same punch of the first season, nor does it have the exploration of the second. What it does have is a nice combination of many elements. After all the anticipation and two seasons of building up this season things began to happen, it was also a season with more comedic elements tossed into the mix after the seriousness of season two. If you watch this show you'll want to buy this set to catch nuances you've missed in the first viewing and if you haven't seen this show catch it on AMC or buy the first season because now is the time to immerse yourself in the well crafted world of Mad Men.
This season contains the following 13 episodes:
Out of Town
Love Among the Ruins
My Old Kentucky Home
The Arrangements
The Fog
Guy Walks Into an Advertising Agency
Seven Twenty Three
Souvenir
Wee Small Hours
The Color Blue
The Gypsy and the Hobo
The Grown Ups
Shut the Door, Have a Seat
This four disc DVD set will be released on March 23rd, I'm glad they're not making us wait until July like last year when they wanted the second season DVD release to coincide with the third season television premiere. The episodes will be presented in Anamorphic Widescreen video. English 5.1 Dolby Digital and English 2.0 Dolby Digital Audio options as well as English and Spanish subtitles. Closed Captioning will also be included. The set will also include the following special features:
Mad Men Commmentaries: As with previous seasons cast and crew will provide audio commentaries on the episodes, in the past commentaries have been included on each season episode with some episodes having more than one commentary option.
Medgar Evers: The Patriarch. The Activist. The Hero - A documentary that explores the life of the Civil Rights Pioneer who believed in a better way of life for all through equality and the end of segregation.
Up In Smoke: A visual depiction of the juxtaposition between the world of advertising and big tabaco in the 40's, 50's, 60's and today.
We Shall Overcome: The March on Washington - Dr. Martin Luther King's speech accompanied by images detailing the historic moment when over 250 000 people who marched on Washington.
Mad Men Illustrated - Dyna Moe gives commentary leading you through the "animated" photo gallery of Mad Men illustrations.
Flashback 1963: An interactive look back at the events and themes that defined that year.
All in all you're getting a lot of special features by the time you add up all the, always in the past, insightful commentaries with the amount of featurettes on the sixties. These features are great for those interested in the era of Mad Men and I've always been one who enjoys a good commentary but I must say I'm still upset at the lack of behind the scenes special features. No actual interviews with the cast, crew or writer's of this fine series. No 'on set' or 'behind the scenes' looks, no journey into the writing room to see how they designed this crucial season. I'm not saying the special features they are providing aren't great though, just that personally I'd love to learn more about how the show itself is made and that hopefully they will announce more features before this season is released.
Five Stars for the quality of these episodes after having seen them on television and for the quality I'm sure we can expect the DVD episodes to be in based on how great past seasons have looked on DVD. Also five stars for the amount of bonus features they continue to include, which are always interesting despite not being as much about the show production as I'd personally like (I still hope that will change). Ultimately Mad Men is a great show that most people can find something to enjoy about and this season is crucial as it's the one where things have started falling apart. It's like the season three ending song Shadaroba says, "the future will be better than the past", and while things may get worse for the characters of Mad Men, certainly before they get any better, we can bet that the future of this show will only get better. Fans know this show is amazing and those who haven't tried it yet should before the fourth season really shakes things up. Thanks for your time.
Movie Review: The "Danse Macabre" of the American Dream
Summary: 5 Stars
Having stumbled upon this program in the first season, it made an instant impact on me, yet I find it hard to watch at times due to the dark nature of its underlying theme. I live in hope, but this is not reassuring. Only nostalgia makes it bearable viewing for me.
Scenario: the cusp of the 1960s: "Madmen" chronologically traces what many believe to be the greatest era of promise for the American way: the era of the Kennedy Camelot and the best of everything in one nation. America: the light on the hill; the envy of the world, boasting full employment, technical advancements destined to take us to the stars and the promise of genuine equality. It is within this environment that we are introduced to a successful advertising company, replete with poised, glamorous people who seem to encapsulate the essence of the great American idyll itself; faces from a Norman Rockwell painting... but something is wrong.
The principal is Don Draper (who bears a striking resemblence to '60s pop-crooner, Jack Jones), the all-American war hero: the archetypal good-looking, successful businessman; romeo by evening and family man extraordinaire as it suits; the ultimate renaissance man; cool and smooth; without a care in the world. Surely this is a facade, though? The real man is not that bright; almost certainly a coward in war and most probably an incompetent manager, both at work and at home; destructive to all those around him. Perhaps this is why Draper is invariably depicted in a black suit: the personification of death. His adopting the persona of a dead man re-inforces the intrigue.
Draper's beautiful wife, Betty, could have stepped out of a portrait of "Stepford Brides"...except that she is utterly flaky. The question is, did Don push her over the edge, or did she inherit her madness from her senile father?
Welcome to Sterling Cooper, where the men and women play loose and dirty for gain. Chief paramour, Joan Holloway, covers up for the infidelities of the men and does a very good job of it. Even the naive young office girl, Peggy Olsen, is a single-mindedly ambitious young woman, willing to sleep with whomever and do whatever it takes to climb the ladder out of the secretarial pool. She has some talent, yes, but eschews scruples when an opportunity for advancement presents itself. Don Draper doesn't care when Sterling Cooper sells out to the limeys; he gets his half million and gets to start his own company - and he gets to keep wunderkind, Peggy. Peggy's failing seems to be her inability to form meaningful relationships.
As within, so outside of the office we see depictions of dysfunctional families and relationships, or plans that go awry. The entire scenario is certainly negative, but is it accurate? Life can't be all bad. True, but one must see this in the context of the developing "Madmen" theme: I don't think the writers' intention was to balance the good with the bad. Rather, I believe the exaggerated negativity is deliberate; symbolic of something.
I won't go through every character one-by-one because it really would be redundant. Suffice to say, nearly all of them are flawed in some manner. At Sterling Cooper, almost everyone drinks, smokes and lusts without restraint. It's a cesspool of junk people with nothing more than well-dressed, fashionable front to disguise their corruption; shallow people motivated only by their carnal desires. It's no surprise they root for Nixon over JFK on election night in the hope of lower taxes.
At first glance, it may be that Pete Campbell's in-laws are the sole exemplar of the "good" people. They alone support him and his new bride with their fledgling (and straining) marriage and provide the cash Campbell's rich dad refuses to donate. ...and yet they spoil their nagging daughter and attempt to micro-manage her marriage. So, on second thoughts, they do seem to be as addled as most characters in the series.
One of the more complex characters is Anna Draper, the wife of the man whose identity Don stole. She is totally accepting of Don and his "deadly sinning" and even harbours an inexplicable confidence that he can change. Anna seems to represent the light that juxtaposes Don's darkness; a light that is destined to be extinguished, along with the American dream itself.
The assassination of JFK is the pivotal moment when the new dream is revealed as a nightmare in waiting - this killing, a deranged act of national suicide - or had the fatal shot already been fired five years earlier in Brooklyn?
"Madmen" is an epic of failure: its characters take their partners and step out as the symbolic "dancers of death".
Movie Review: The more things change
Summary: 5 Stars
The third season of MAD MEN, the extraordinarily well written and carefully researched historical AMC television drama, comes across much better on DVD than it did when it was originally airing episodically. The DVD set (again arranged in a different package format from previous seasons) allows us to get a stronger sense of the sweep of changes the show's creator, Matt Weiner, and his associates depict in the world of Sterling-Cooper, their fictional 1960s advertising agency.
The season begins with a joke on "the British invasion": Sterling-Cooper has been acquired by Powell, Putnam and Lowe, a giant London-based international agency, which has placed a major new character, the sardonic Lane Pryce (the marvelous Jared Harris) as the New York firm's new financial officer. Don and Betty Draper, the series' major characters, have reaffirmed their commitment to one another through Betty's pregnancy with a third child, and in the first episode Betty's gruff father Gene Hofstadt (Ryan Cutrona, equally excellent) has had a stroke and must come to live with his daughter's family in Ossining. The genius of the series is its richness of detail both in period flavor and in the depth of the characters: much is left unsaid that speaks volumes about the players and the times, and its great to have an American series that doesn't tell us everything outright that's going on. It also allows for lovely moments of great beauty: a children's maypole dance, a drug-induced dream about a caterpillar, a nighttime view of the Sterling-Cooper bullpen late at night empty and abandoned. The season documents tremendous changes in American society in the crucial year of 1963: the ongoing Civil Rights movement, the change in attitudes towards gender and sexuality, and inevitably the assassination of JFK (which is handled with originality).
The most difficult thing about the new season is that the characters of Don and Betty seem to be caught in a revolving door with their old problems and squabbles: Don is dishonest and cheats on Betty constantly, and Betty will not be happy with what her husband provides for her (which he thought was all that was expected of him). Yet the repetition of their tensions was almost inherent in the show's very structure, leading to this season finale's refreshing possibilities for new beginnings for both characters, which will be essential given that while they are both highly attractive and accomplished people neither of them are especially compelling now their depths (or rather their shallownesses) have been thoroughly plumbed. (Even so, Jon Hamm continues to give an especially intelligent performance as Don, showing us he's a much more complex person than the character himself is.) Much more intriguing are the series' other characters, including the Drapers' lisping daughter Sally (Kiernan Shipka), on whom nothing is lost; their tight-lipped housekeeper Carla (Deborah Lacy, in a remarkably subtle ongoing performance), who also sees everything the Drapers are up to; and Don's ambitious young associate Pete Campbell and his intelligent wife Trudy (respectively, Vincent Kartheiser and Allison Brie).
The production values, as usual, are astonishing, and the use of music by David Carbonara is one of the series's greatest strengths. The DVD set comes with features such as documentaries on the March on Washington and the murder of Medgar Evers (both of which are key events in the season's timeline), and multiple episode commentaries, including many by Weiner, who is more intelligent and articulate (though no less chronically self-congratulatory) than many other cable series creators.
Movie Review: Another Winning Season and Set
Summary: 5 Stars
Mad Men remains a show that rewards careful viewing. How much you'll like it depends on how important it is to you that there are explosions and car chases. Me, I zone out during action sequences in movies -- it's the weirdest thing. Sports too. What interests me and what Mad Men provides is good story-telling centered around characters. The more you pay attention, the more you'll be rewarded in a greater understanding that will make you confused when someone tells you that nothing happens. This is the type of show that rewards people who take a geeky pleasure in noticing themes and motifs. Matthew Weiner, the creator, allows some things to remain ambiguous as well.
There are so few shows that you can watch more than once and find something new and few shows you can analyze. It's just as fun to discuss it afterwards as it is to watch it. If this sounds too much like high school English -- and not in a good way -- then you'd be better off taking a pass. However, if this is the type of show you seek out, then enjoy. If you haven't seen the previous seasons, start there and enjoy it from the beginning. I'll envy you your opportunity to enjoy three seasons in a row!
In season three, we continue to deal with the Draper marriage -- a union strained to nearly the breaking point in season 2. There was some really beautiful writing and acting here. One of the beauties of this show is how in the course of a scene a viewer's sympathies can change or be torn between characters. The marriage between Pete and Trudy shows some terrific growth and depth that could not have been predicted in season 1. Don Draper also meets a mogul who is probably rolling in his grave over the second most famous thing the family name now evokes. Sal, played by Bryan Batt, has several wonderful scenes, starting with the first episode of the season. Kiernan Shipka, who plays Sally Draper, is turning out to be a talented young actress, as highlighted in an episode called The Arrangements, as well as in the season finale. Frankly, I could just continue mentioning members of this terrific cast, as they all are a pleasure.
The Kennedy assassination is featured and handled in a way never seen before, I think, and it's one character's reaction to it and events surrounding it that causes him/her/it to make a truly huge decision.
On to the Bluray: I had to return the first copy as defective -- no matter what I hit, it wanted to rewind. Fortunately, the next copy was perfect, and Amazon has always handled returns well. Because this is a show that caters to people who want to really enjoy the writing and acting and to even study it a little, this set carries on in the tradition of previous seasons in offering tons of commentary -- most episodes have two commentaries. As always, some people really do a better job that others. The creator, Matthew Weiner, always has good insights. Kiernan Shipka, I'm not kidding, seemed to really be in touch with her character in a way that many adults can only envy. Other extras are a mixed bag, although I enjoyed the 2 part doc on cigarette advertising.
Love this show!
Movie Review: Keeping up appearances during the collapse of everything around you
Summary: 5 Stars
AMC's breakout smash "Mad Men" continues its winning ways in Season 3, even as all of its characters seem to be teetering on the brink of losing everything. Never maudlin, always surprising, "Mad Men" keeps its cast on its toes as characters both major and minor come up against some of the harshest shocks any person should have to face.
Jon Hamm once again reincarnates Cary Grant in his portrayal of Madison Avenue's shining light, Don Draper. This guy is one maddening dude, puzzling both the other characters as well as the audience. Many would ask why he is so carefree with his marriage to the seemingly perfect Betsy (January Jones), although the show does a great job showing why Don finds the facade of domestic bliss to be so unsatisfying without making Betsy into a total harridan. But every time Draper leans too far to the side of the unsympathetic womanizer, he does something that is as true and honorable as anything that can be found on the show. Betsy, for all her faults, also comes across as human, if flawed, in Season 3.
The British Invasion of Sterling Cooper does not go swimmingly in Season 3, and the cultural clashes are almost as powerful as the blades of a John Deere tractor (which make an unfortunate appearance in the S-C headquarters - this is why my firm has banned riding lawnmowers in the office). Draper and the crew try to keep things going despite the Brits' penny-pinching, dictatorial ways, but you can tell that Sterling-Cooper's days are numbered, at least in its current incarnation. Even Roger, the walking bon mot, begins to show the signs of strain despite professing to have found happiness with his second marriage.
Everywhere you look, characters are confronting internal crises. These problems mirror the growing strains on the America of the early 1960s, as the writers powerfully use the assassinations of Medger Evers and JFK to add fuel to what is already a combustible mix.
All in all, if you have a favorite character on this show you are going to be pleased because virtually every character gets a chance to shine. True, some parts are smaller than others, and the Don-and-Betsy show looms large over everything else, but this is a well-balanced show with a bevy of well-rounded, entertaining characters. When the season finale rolls arounds, you will be at first upset that such a good season had to end, but you'll be thankful that there is a Season 4 to look forward to.