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 True Detective is a brand new prestige drama from HBO, long-reigning king of the genre, airing on Sundays at 9pm/8 central. The series will use an anthology format, inspired by FX's American Horror Story, with the first season telling the self-contained tale of two detectives' hunt for a serial killer in South Louisiana in 1995, with a present-day framing device. The whole thing was shot on location, and was written by Nic Pizzolatto, a novelist previously known for his award-winning 2010 work Galveston (another crime story with a Louisiana setting). He's also written a couple of episodes of The Killing, including the much-loathed season 1 finale, so try and forget about that. The director for all eight episodes is Cary Fukunaga, known for acclaimed 2009 Mexican drama Sin Nombre and that weird Jane Eyre adaptation with Michael Fassbender that came out a couple years back.  The show stars known actoring people Woody Harrelson and Matthew McConaughey as detectives Martin Hart and Rust Cohle (yes, Rust Cohle) respectively, called in in 2012 to discuss a bizarre ritualistic murder they supposedly solved in 1995. Michelle Monaghan plays Hart's wife (in what will probably be a pretty thankless role because this is meant to be a very Manly Manly Men series), while Veep's Kevin Dunn plays the supervising officer for the two in 1995, and Tory Kittles ('Sons of Anarchy') and Michael Potts ('The Wire') (copy/pasted directly from the HBO website there) play the investigators questioning the two in the present. It appears to deal with themes such as darkness and violence and the darkness inside of people and darkness in general. Broody. McConaughey is also meant to be particularly excellent, continuing his string of actually taking non-stupid roles and being good in them. Here's what some people have to say about it so far: Todd VanDerWerff, AV Club posted:The world didn’t really need another series about desperate men in desperate times turning to desperate measures, but the format of "True Detective" creates anticipation for everything to come. The series can be ponderous and ever so slightly banal, but it’s also sure-footed and thoughtful when it counts. And in its top-notch talent, it creates a great template HBO and Pizzolatto can build on, not only in the back half of this season but also in the years to come. True Detective might be finding itself in the first half of its first season, but few processes of discovery are so enthralling to watch. Maureen Ryan, Huffington Post posted:I'm very tired of stories about Broken Men who come off as a composite of anti-hero tropes, but Cohle, in particular, is extremely specific in both timelines. He looks different and carries himself differently in the present and the past, but one of McConaughey's accomplishments is to make Cohle recognizably the same man, just more damaged and isolated in his later years. As is the case with Will Graham on "Hannibal," Cohle's problem is that he thinks too much and can't turn off his brain. When he spins a story or embroiders his fatalistic philosophy, you can't help but listen -- and you can't help but wonder if he's trying to convince himself more than anyone else. Alan Sepinwall, Hitfix posted:Pizzolatto says that if the show is a success, future seasons wouldn’t automatically involve cops and/or killers, but simply a mystery that a new set of characters has to solve. Based on the plaudits and awards I expect the show to receive, he shouldn’t have a problem enticing an equally-talented cast for the second round. And based on these first four episodes, I can’t wait for “True Detective” to become HBO’s next great dramatic institution, and perhaps encourage more creators and networks to embrace the value of shorter stories. So the general consensus is that it's another male antihero-ish drama but still good enough to stand out. Only a few hours away. Prepare yourselves. A trailer Another trailer Making of and there's a billion other videos on HBO's YouTube channel too if you like that sort of thing.
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Jan 12, 2014 19:30
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| # ? Apr 29, 2024 01:59 |
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Cool-been looking forward to this. It seems interesting, but time will tell. I haven't done any research on this show, but from the quotes you posted-it seems like each season will feature different actors and a different story?
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Jan 12, 2014 20:17
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It seems interesting to me, and I'm definitely going to watch at least the first episode, but two of those three reviews say that the best thing about the show is that it has future potential, so...
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Jan 12, 2014 21:06
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I've been looking forward to this for a long time. McConaughey and Harrelson more or less can do no wrong at this point so it will be interesting to see how the whole package comes together. It's situation on HBO is promising in that regard, it seems impossible to imagine an HBO show that doesn't have at least decent cinematography and directing. We'll see tonight with the first episode.
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Jan 13, 2014 00:15
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On the one hand, the jaded, grunting detective chasing a serial killer is a well-tapped vein of narrative, but on the other I'm a sucker for southern gothic story telling and McConaughey's surprisingly good recent roles. I'm hoping that it lives up a little bit to Twin Peaks, which takes a similar premise and really twists it around to make it interesting. Although hoping for something to match up to Twin Peaks is probably setting myself up for disappointment.
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Jan 13, 2014 01:10
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It's about time. Every time I login to HBO Go this thing is on the front page so I think it's started.
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Jan 13, 2014 01:54
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OK, I really like this show.
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Jan 13, 2014 04:01
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I don't know how to feel about the fact that Rust's dialogue is so ridiculous that Martin calls him out for it.
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Jan 13, 2014 04:02
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Well that was something. Ill keep watching, it grabbed my attention enough for that.
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Jan 13, 2014 04:05
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Henchman of Santa posted:I don't know how to feel about the fact that Rust's dialogue is so ridiculous that Martin calls him out for it. I don't think we're supposed to be taking Rust at face value, or necessarily treating his philosophical musings as more than a reflection of his pained state of mind.
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Jan 13, 2014 04:28
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Those were some excellent shots. HBO HD shat the bed for me about halfway through so I had to change back to standard definition and actually noticed a difference.
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Jan 13, 2014 04:33
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Is it Russ or Rust? I thought he was cool as gently caress, even with the cliched jaded detective philosophical musings. But I would probably watch McConaughey take a poo poo for an hour each week. I liked this episode a lot, I'll watch next week.
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Jan 13, 2014 04:35
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Between the directing, and McConaughey's acting, I thought it was mesmerizing. Dude looked like the living dead in that bar. I don't know if it's post-Dallas Buyer's Club weightloss or whatever, but the thin look gives him a pretty amazing look, particularly next to all the doughy detectives.
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Jan 13, 2014 04:43
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That may have been HBO's best pilot episode yet. Even Deadwood didn't really hook me until the second one.
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Jan 13, 2014 04:46
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Drewsky posted:Is it Russ or Rust? I thought he was cool as gently caress, even with the cliched jaded detective philosophical musings. But I would probably watch McConaughey take a poo poo for an hour each week. It's Rust. Short for Rustin.
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Jan 13, 2014 04:57
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Canned narrative aside, that was a pretty drat interesting pilot and I'm interested to see how this pans out.
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Jan 13, 2014 06:07
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I'd like to see a murder scene with giant bird wings instead of deer antlers. Or butterfly wings. Giant ones.
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Jan 13, 2014 06:17
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Drifter posted:I'd like to see a murder scene with giant bird wings instead of deer antlers. Or butterfly wings. Giant ones. Watch Red Riding.
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Jan 13, 2014 06:36
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I'm in. I figure I'm paying a billion bucks a month for HBO, I'd better make some use out of it. Also McConaughey has been on a pretty amazing streak these last few years and I'm completely enamored with him as an actor now.
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Jan 13, 2014 06:39
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Clarke Peters (Lester Freamon/Big Chief Lambreaux) already means I'm watching the rest of this series.
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Jan 13, 2014 06:43
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There were a few Wire/Treme connections. Really hope we get The Bunk on an episode.
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Jan 13, 2014 07:03
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LmaoTheKid posted:There were a few Wire/Treme connections. Really hope we get The Bunk on an episode. That's HBO's third Louisiana-centric series. What gives?
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Jan 13, 2014 07:14
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Madurai posted:That's HBO's third Louisiana-centric series. What gives? Tax credits/filming incentives. Same reason why Breaking Bad was shot and set in New Mexico.
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Jan 13, 2014 07:34
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I love this show so far. Nothing more to add as of now, but I'm definitely hooked and wish this was a netflix original so that I could watch it all in one sitting
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Jan 13, 2014 07:44
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Duro posted:I love this show so far. Nothing more to add as of now, but I'm definitely hooked and wish this was a netflix original so that I could watch it all in one sitting If you want to do that, just wait until the eight episodes have aired.
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Jan 13, 2014 08:07
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This show had me hooked in minutes. They've got something amazing going in here with the writing, the cast, and the setting.
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Jan 13, 2014 08:38
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It was ok. I wish it was anything other than a serial killer show.
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Jan 13, 2014 08:57
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MetalFace posted:If you want to do that, just wait until the eight episodes have aired. Oh, I can't wait now that I've had a taste......
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Jan 13, 2014 09:22
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It was really good, definitely felt like the first 1/8th of a mystery novel, which seems like kind of what they were going for. Of course McCounaughey killed it, he's become one of the best and most reliable actors in the past few years. I love his little quirks(see:Wolf of Wall Street), like blowing the money closer to the detectives. Woody Harrelson was good, but obviously didn't get as much to do besides call Rust on his crazy poo poo. It was a good idea to cast two people with some pretty easy chemistry. The supporting cast is great so I hope we get to see more from Michelle Monaghan, Kevin Dunn and Michael Potts. Clarke Peters was a nice surprise. Also, this casting bit was spoiled for me by Wikipedia, but I'm psyched to see Shea Whigham in this show because he automatically elevates everything.
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Jan 13, 2014 09:30
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drat that was enthralling. My eyes were glued to McConaughey every time he was on scene. Woody's character was good, as a walking avatar of detective tropes, but the last McConaughey flick I saw was Killer Joe and it was exciting to see this actor in a role like this.
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Jan 13, 2014 11:48
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I'll keep watching, but this really felt like a 2 hour episode, and I was genuinely surprised when the timestamp came up at 58 minutes at the end. It's super long-winded and has no attention span. As much as I don't want it be a handholding character-drama-of-the-week like Castle I really hope it doesn't end up as boring as this episode was. McConaughey was good but it didn't seem like he had much to work with, and was just repeating TRAGIC COP cliches, and Harrelson's drawl is super weak and forced. You guys all seem to be very positive about it, and I hope it gets better! I'd agree with the reviewers in the OP and just say that it has a lot of potential.
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Jan 13, 2014 12:55
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Uh, I'm pretty sure that was Harrelson's actual accent. He's Texan and sounds that way in everything. Maybe he was trying to add a bit of Louisiana but I didn't really notice.
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Jan 13, 2014 14:05
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Henchman of Santa posted:Uh, I'm pretty sure that was Harrelson's actual accent. He's Texan and sounds that way in everything. Maybe he was trying to add a bit of Louisiana but I didn't really notice. No, he definitely was trying to sound more Southern. He has a natural tinge to his voice but for the first five minutes it was absurdly distracting for me how limp his voice was and it didn't really get better.
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Jan 13, 2014 14:07
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Cool show. I'm betting the detective's later falling out is over Rust banging Martin's wife, after she finds out about Martin banging that lawyer woman depositing papers.
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Jan 13, 2014 20:21
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Kaizer88 posted:Cool show. I'm betting the detective's later falling out is over Rust banging Martin's wife, after she finds out about Martin banging that lawyer woman depositing papers. Or whatever it was that got them both fired.
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Jan 13, 2014 20:38
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Was Martin fired? Seemed more like he retired out seeing as he was doing pretty standard post-cop work.
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Jan 13, 2014 20:53
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This show is going to be loving awesome. Loved the pilot.
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Jan 13, 2014 23:36
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VarrosAnon posted:I'll keep watching, but this really felt like a 2 hour episode, and I was genuinely surprised when the timestamp came up at 58 minutes at the end. It's super long-winded and has no attention span. As much as I don't want it be a handholding character-drama-of-the-week like Castle I really hope it doesn't end up as boring as this episode was. McConaughey was good but it didn't seem like he had much to work with, and was just repeating TRAGIC COP cliches, and Harrelson's drawl is super weak and forced. Do agree that the pacing was a bit slow, but with shows like this I try not to let that bother me until episode two or even three. McConaughey's scenes were great enough to keep it from feeling like it was dragging and the whole setting was so eerie.
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Jan 14, 2014 00:32
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Kaizer88 posted:Cool show. I'm betting the detective's later falling out is over Rust banging Martin's wife, after she finds out about Martin banging that lawyer woman depositing papers. Seems likely. His wedding ring is very absent during his interview in the present. This show is fantastic. I was actually surprised and upset when the episode came to an end, it doesn't have a tv show feel for me, feels like a movie. Similar feel and tone to the movie "prisoners" for me.
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Jan 14, 2014 01:16
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I liked it a lot. Felt like Mcconaughey had an uncanny David Byrne thing going in a few shots, but that could just be me
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Jan 14, 2014 03:35
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