True Detective - Season 2 - Fresh Impressions

Oh boy, its been more than a year of waiting for the season 2 of True Detective. The much awaited anthology series is finally back. Gentlemen, presenting my first introductory post for the fresh new season. Well to start with, I must honestly admit, the season one left quite indelible marks on our brains... the storyline, the script, the colorful characters were one of the finest. Comparison of the 2nd season with its predecessor is absolutely inevitable. I'll try to pen down the first honest impressions. Alright lets start with the assessment. Un dos tres ...

The very title song brings back the memories, with its colorful juxtaposed imagery. The choice of the title song 'Nevermind' by Leonard Cohen is debatable I guess. The song tries hard to differentiate itself from the previous one. Cohen's low and mildly raspy voice could be a hit or a miss. The texture of his voice is something that gets conditioned after years of countless singing sessions and regular intake of scotch whiskey :) The song however doesn't quite stand out and is not quite as catchy as the first season's "Far from any Road". I mean I was able to randomly hum the 1st season's tune maybe while taking a piss at a public toilet or standing in a queue. There was a recall value to it, but I can't quite do that with this season's song. Maybe because it just sounds a like a simple plaintext password. You know what I mean? Also,the first season's tune was just such a perfect choice to match with the contemplative philosophical mood of the script. Let's see how the season two story unfolds...

By the end of the first episode, you are pretty much introduced to the main star cast of the show, giving you a feel of its characters. Lets take a quick brief look at them.

Character 1 : There's Colin Farrell as the supposedly compromised detective Ray, who has gone through a divorce, is protective about his child and has an alcohol problem. He portrays a typical guy next door who's going through a mid-life crisis and resorts to alcoholism to escape the mess. Quite similar to Rust Cohle. Though I must say Connaughey pulled off the character with much ease, it seemed like effortless. Somehow, I feel people usually tend to empathize with and relate to the messed up protagonist. Farrell does try to play it natural with a good blink rate of eyes, pauses within the dialogues and a decent body language for the character. Yet it could have been better.

Character 2 : Then there's Rachel McAdams as detective Ani, who's kind of a mixed bag. I feel that as the series progresses, you might either love her or hate her. Her character reminds us that detectives are human as well after all. She gambles at night, has a one night stand with some policer officer and gets back to work the next day. Her character adds some femininity to the series unlike the masculine feel of season 1.

Character 3 : The next character is the patrolling officer Paul played by Taylor Kitsch. He is the guy who just loves biking on the highway, no mater what. On the personal front, he sees a girl, who has no idea what he does for a living, yet gives him a blowjob. So it seems like a relationship with no-strings-attached. Atleast for now. He too seems to be in some kind of a mess. I mean something seems to be eating him from within. Maybe thats why biking is such an emotional anchor for him to remain sane. Something seems to be bothering him, so much so that it leads to a self destructive moment like speeding up with headlights off on a dark highway at night. A perfect example of why you should never ride under stress. The speeding wind tricks our brain when stressed out.

Character 4 : The final important character is that of the 'supposedly' antagonist-with-a-heart Frank played by Vince Vaughn. His objectives are clear and every step that he takes seems to be be a step ahead in that direction. However his life also gets messed up when things don't quite work out for him. It seems someone is after Frank, someone who wants to fuck him up. The death of city manager Ben Casper sets the tone of it. Let's see how the story unfolds. But in general the choice of Vince for this character seems debatable. I remember the whole of internet was divided when it was officially announced that he'd be a part of the new season. I mean even now after 3 episodes, he comes across as an average criminal with basic intelligence. He seems to lack the cool-headed shrewdness to make it work, or maybe the script demands the character be like this. Anyways, fingers crossed. But one thing I believe is that this character could have been better performed by someone else more matured and seasoned. As far as Frank goes, one thing you can instantly notice about him is his fluctuating eyebrows.

Overall, by the end of episode 3, here's the flavor of my assessment : 
1. The lead characters seem to be messed up and withdrawn... maybe something on the lines of Ryan Gosling's in Drive.
2. The script seems to be weak and the plot seems to be thin, I mean it doesn't quite seem to be intricate like the previous one. The subtle clues seem be to missing. It seems a bit predictable at the moment. Though I may be wrong. Let's wait and watch :) I'll soon post an observation sheet of the small details, either relevant or irrelevant to the plot.
3. Lots of aerial shots of the LA freeways can be an eyesore at times. Ymmv. The season 1 showed shots of the Louisiana factories, remember?
4. There's a nice unique style to the overall look and feel of the new season though. The colors, the tones, the shades seem to be fitting the LA scenario.
5. Screw the point 5! Let's just enjoy the show :)

Guys, do let me know your thoughts, views, suggestions and opinions about the show. Ciao.

Under the Dome - Season 1 Special FX

Well frankly speaking, after Breaking Bad got over I was looking for a new television series to get hooked to. That's when I came across this show "Under the Dome" showed on CBS. In fact, in about 7 days from today, the season 2 is slated to begin i.e. from June 30.

The show appealed to me, the moment I found that Dean Norris was a part of the star cast. Although apart from Dean Norris, the rest of the cast comprised of fresh faces with naive acting skills. The show's central premise is about a small town which is surrounded & covered by an invisible dome shield. The town is totally cut-off from the outside world. The story then revolves around the town's interesting adventures regarding the conservation of limited resources, brinkmanship, one-upmanship. It also covers earthly human themes like teamwork, pride, greed, cunningness, hidden agendas, internal politics etc.

This blog post today will only focus on the special FX elements of the show. I must admit the show's pilot episode did manage to catch my attention whereby I decided to follow-up all the remaining episodes. The pilot episode had some good eyeball-catching special FX, which piques one's interest. If you notice, all the next episodes feature a few seconds of the Episode 1 FX scenes before starting.

Here's a short list of some decent special effect scenes as follows :

Scene 1 : Episode 1 : A small private airplane like Cessna crashes on the dome. Good work here in showing the plane's parts being blown away while the debris falling on the ground.

Scene 2 : Episode 1 : The buffalo being cut into 2 pieces right in the middle. This one is a nice bloody scene where you actually see the the buffalo's spinal cord. Vegans might find this shot a bit offensive... probably :)

Scene 3 : Episode 1 : Sheriff Linda trying to communicate with her husband who's outside the dome. They try feel each other by touching the dome inside-out.

Scene 4 : Episode 8 : The scene where the egg turns pink. The scene about "The monarch will be crowned". Won't go much into the details here. Regular viewers might agree with me if they found this scene quite dumb and stupid, logic wise. If you're new to the series, these pics should arouse some curiosity I guess.

Lastly, I invite and encourage readers to post other FX scenes that I might have missed. Do post in your comments about what you feel about the show in general. Also drop in your expectations about the upcoming Season 2 & suggest plot ideas, twists etc. Happy viewing :)

True Detective - Season 2 Casting

True Detective Season 1 was over too fast too soon. The suspense build-up was great with clues pointing to multiple people. The finale however seemed too rushed up. The last episode where all the action took place seemed like a hush-hush attempt to end the first season. Anyways, with the season 1 ending, there's a lot of speculation on who will star in the series' season 2. The cast pairings is all about chemistry.

Here's an IronCladZone exclusive dream wish-list :

1. John Travolta & Denzel Washington - This duo starred in the 2009 train hijack thriller - The Taking of Pelham 1 2 3. These two guys seem to have a silver tongue. They are too good in silvery conversations. Good qualities for detectives, who want to elicit a certain desired response for the questions they ask. They manage to capture the flow of your thoughts and compel you to think in their directions.

2. Leonardo Di'Caprio & Mark Ruffalo - The duo was quite charming in Shutter Island. Though the story was quite a mindf**k, the pair perform the investigations with good amount of rationality, logic and reasoning. The edginess of Di'Caprio and supportive calmness of Ruffalo seemed contrasting.

3. Jamie Foxx & Colin Farrell - This duo was cool enough as undercover cops in Miami Vice. The chemistry between them seemed quite good i.e they seemed to get along well. Farrell adds a coolness quotient to the whole scene and has a good screen presence.

4. Al Pacino & Robert De Niro - This pair rocked in the crime thriller Heat. Their restaurant scene is like the handprints on Hollywood's Walk of Fame. It will never be washed away. They came back again as buddies in Righteous Kill. Carla Gugino added a dash of glamor to the plot. I'd love to see them just to watch their friendly chemistry.

TD Fans, do not forget to comment or suggest which other pairs you want to see in Season 2. Any female leads in mind? Any other actor who can essay the role of a detective convincingly? Ping in your thoughts and suggestions. Ciao.

True Detective - Finale Clue Sheet - Part 4

Wow. The Part 1, Part 2 & the Part 3 clue sheets got so wildly popular. Thank you folks for the profound interest and tremendous response to the theories mentioned in these sheets. This whole exercise of observing and deducing clues is more like a PhD thesis :) Presenting one last final clue sheet for the Season 1 Finale. Ok, so here we go.

Clue 1 : Episode 7 : When Marty visits his ex-wife Maggie, the scene starts with focus on some photos on the desk. One notable photo is of Marty & her new husband. His face looks quite similar to the guy whom Lisa takes home from the bar in Episode 3. Remember? I've also mentioned about him in the Part 2 clue sheet. Was he someone with a hidden agenda? Or is this photo a mere distraction?

Clue 2 : Episode 4 : When Marty & Rust visit Sheriff Tate's office, you see some antlers on the wall. Also there is a fat cop who enters the cabin to hand over case files. Though the character seems like just another insignificant filler, question arises as to why he stayed in the cabin to listen to the whole conversation. I mean he could have just left after handing over the files. Is he involved as well? Well, this clue might be a by-product of a little bit of over-thinking. But nonetheless, am still including it in the list.

Clue 3 : Episode 7 : While Marty watches the snuff videotape, what we see is that there are 2 men who hold the hands of the girl and other 5 men are standing. So now we know for sure that it'a a gang of 5.

Clue 4 : Episode 7 : By now it must be crystal clear that the lawnmower man is the spaghetti monster. {98% probability} Chances are he could be merely scaring the girls so that they get lost in the thick woods. Since he knows the coastal geography pretty good. Maybe he's not a murderer. But an accomplice for sure. Question is who is he really? What's his identity? Is he the illegitimate child born out of Tuttle's extra-marital affairs? Is he actually Tuttle's son who's been perhaps disowned? Does he say "My family's been around here for a long time" because of this reason? Did he kill Tuttle in 2010? Many questions here. Let's wait for the episode 8. It's just a few more hours to go guys. Fingers crossed.

Clue 5 : Episode 7 : We saw that Marty played golf with his ex-colleague who's also now the sheriff. Remember he was also slapped by Rust in Episode 1? This is more of an observation.

Clue 6 : Lastly, the grandpa seems to be the head chief of the cruel cult as was indicated in my previous clue sheet. High likelihood - 70-80 % probability.

Well, finally whatever the outcome is, I really hope that some twist blows your mind out. High expectations here. Let it not turn out to be a damp squib. The motive, the rationale behind the gruesome pagan killings is perhaps what no one has anticipated yet.

Overall the series has been extremely satisfying, providing ample food for the brain. The story pacing, the background score, the colorful characters, the sound works, the editing was really top notch HBO stuff. I also believe this series will help boost Louisiana's tourism industry and also put it on the world's map. Just like what Breaking Bad did to New Mexico or Sopranos did to New Jersey.

The countdown has begin guys. Stock on some Act-II, Doritos, Cokes, Papa John's pizzas or buffalo wings. It's gonna be an entertaining night. Have fun folks. Ciao.

True Detective - Climax Clue Sheet - Part 3

The story so far seems to have garnered a lot of interest among the viewers. We covered some crucial clues in the Clue Sheet Part 1 & Part 2. This new part is not exactly a clue sheet, but more of an observation sheet. Let's look at some environmental clues from a different vantage point.

Clue 1 : Episode 1 : The African-American parish guy. He acts very normal and doesn't raise suspicion. But Rust notes the cross on the wall. The wood is tied together with ropes at the intersection. It is tied in a similar fashion like the devil's nest. Could he be one of the 5?

Clue 2 : Episode 5 : The two interrogating detectives played by Potts & Kittles inform Marty that Billy Tuttle died in 2010 due to mixed medications, right after Cohle reappears in the state. This possibly rules out Tuttle from the gang of 5. Maybe he was just corrupt but not culprit.

Clue 3 : Episode 5 : In the very next scene, Cohle sees the billboard "Do You Know Who Killed Me" about Stacy Gerhart. This billboard seems to be of some significance since it was also shown in Episode 1. Who is Stacy Gerhart? Is she Rust's dead daughter? Why does the camera focus on this specific billboard in both episodes 1 & 5. Does it have a significance to the storyline. The story so far has not discussed anything concrete about Rust's past life.

Or is this girl, Rust's dead / missing daughter - whom he sees during hallucinating in Episode 1.

Clue 3 : Episode 5 : Rust checks the database - presumably of the missing persons or the victims. Perhaps he was searching for someone.  What was he searching for? His daughter? The years on the computer screen range from 78-80-82-83.

Clue 5 : Episode 5 : Right after checking the database, Rust looks into an Incident Report sheet about a girl named Stephanie Kordish. The girl was found dead at Lake Charles and her employer is Mira Lane. Perhaps Lake Charles seems to be the area of action. Is Rust's storage unit located at Lake Charles? That's unlikely, but cannot be ruled out. Episode 7 might be a key.

Clue 4 : Episode 4 : Does the year 1982 have any special significance connecting Marty & Rust? Marty watches a special seal or coin of honor named as "All Around Cowboy 1982" in his locker. U.S.L may also refer to University of Southwestern Lousisiana.

Observations & Trivia : Well I guess we have discussed a lot of clues so far. Let's look into some less-important, trivial observations.

The full name of Rust is : Cohle, Rustin Spencer. He was interviewed on April 26th, 2012

The full name or Marty is : Hart, Martin Eric. He was interviewed on May 1st, 2012 a week after Rust's interview. Note that Rust follows Marty's car towards the end of Episode 6.

When Marty visits Rust's home, he sees a couple of books around. The two most visible book covers are "Sex Crimes" & "Serial Killers"

In Episode 6, Rust talks about the Manchusen by Proxy syndrome while attempting to get confession from the child-killing lady.

In Episode 1, Rust mentions he does not sleep. He also asks Marty if he believes in ghosts.

HBO True Detective : Clue Sheet - Part 2

The new penultimate episode 7 is just around the cornor.  In the True Detective Clue Sheet - Part 1 we saw a list of 7 clues. Those clues were seemingly too obvious. In this second part we focus on the least obvious clues. Hints that we might have totally missed. People whom we might have totally ignored. Let's talk of some alternate theories, which might totally surprise us.

Clue 1 : Episode 3 : The guy whom Lisa (Alexandra Daddario) takes home. The guy who is beaten and thrashed by Marty. Could this be our guy? It's a shot in the dark but hey you never know. Perhaps he's the guy who lures young girls and drives them towards the Yellow King for ritualistic killings. Well if he's the transport guy it would come as a big surprise. What say?

Clue 2 : Episode 3 : The gardener / mower at the old dilapidated "The Light of the Way" school which shut down in 1992 . He bears a striking resemblance to the Reggie Ledoux. I mean he too has some facial hair. Perhaps he's the real Tall Man (we can't figure out his height since he's sitting). Is he the real Reggie Ledoux? When Rust chats with him, he said that he worked for the parish and started just a few months ago. Suddenly Marty calls Rust back to the car and tells him that Ledoux skipped parole 8 months ago. I strongly feel that he is the real Reggie Ledoux. Bam ! This would be an in-your-face surprise.

The man who was shot by Marty in Episode 5 was perhaps a similar looking decoy planted by the real Reggie Ledoux.

Folks, I bet you must have watched the episode 7 preview a multiple times. Rust shows Marty the sketch of a guy with moustache and beard, saying he doesnt know where he is, but it ends with him. It perfectly matches the above gardener's looks. I feel like we might have hit the jackpot. He is the guy. 

Comments? Views? Thoughts? Theories? 

True Detective - Climax Clue Sheet - Part 1

True Detective - HBO's awesome mystery thriller whodunnit is almost reaching its climax. But hey, with each episode the plot thickens and each episode drops some significant clues. Let me put down some clues which seem to hold a key to the plot.

Clue 1 : The title "True Detective" with word Detective in singular is the first big clue. Also, in latest episode 6, Rust says to Marty "Without me, there is no you". Could this mean the plot resembles "The Fight Club"'s alter ego scenario ? Strange and supernatural ? Is Rust a figment of Marty's imagination?

Clue 2 : Episode 2 : Marty & Hart chat with deceased Dora Lange's mother. At one moment the camera zooms to a picture frame on the wall. This shows 5 men wearing conical masks surrounding a little girl. A hint to the esoteric pagan rituals perhaps.

Clue 3 : Episode 2 : The black star tattoos on the neck of victim's friend - Miss Carla. The Black Star significance is intermittently visible through the storyline. 

Clue 4 : Episode 2 : Marty tells Rust that the Sheriff Tate too has a stake in the whorehouse run in the woods. So assuming if there are 5 people involved in the ritualistic cult killings, the Sheriff also could be one of them or atleast knows who the killers are.

Clue 5 : Episode 2 & 5 : The Carcosa, the black stars & the Yellow King references in Dora's diary and their recurring references by the prisoner in Episode 5 who tries to cut a deal with Rust in return for tips and information.

Clue 6 : Episode 3 : Also, Maggie's grandfather is seen drinking a Lone Star beer while chatting with Marty. This seems to be a subtle hint that he might be involved as well, since Rust drinks Lone Star beer all along the interrogation. Also, note the fact that Marty's daughter created the setup of miniature dolls on floor ( girls surrounded by men ). Perhaps she saw the gangbang like orgy act with her own eyes.

Clue 7 :  Episode 5 : If you pay attention, Rust carves out exactly 5 men from the empty beer cans from the available 6-pack. He smashes one can into a flat circle. This definitely seems to have significance to the plot - highly indicative of involvement of 5 men in the gruesome killings.

Folks, if you have any theories, any clues, any hints, do comment in your suggestions, which can be included in the Climax Clue Sheet - Part 2

HBO's True Detective - First Impressions

A few months ago, somewhere during the Breaking Bad's finale, I was checking the series' IMDB page to view the whole list of casts and characters. It was then, when I figured the poster of True Detective in the recommendations list. I quickly checked the True Detective's page only to find out that it was an upcoming crime thriller series starring superstars Woody Harrelson & Matthew McConaughey. I was instantly hooked up and added it to my Watchlist.

Now that the show has started running, with 3 episodes already on air, I'd like make some crisp notes about it's first impressions. The show is about 2 detectives investigating the gruesome ritualistic murder of a young girl in the Louisiana countryside. And when Hollywood biggies Woody Harrelson & Matthew McConaughey come together, it definitely ups the curiosity and expectation levels.

The opening title song Far From Any Road by The Handsome Family is a soothing soulful song with relaxing TexMex texture. The song has the sounds you'd normally listen in a small town Mexican bar. Also the opening credits are accompanied by beautiful abstract art imagery, which really goes well with the mystery-themed drama. It's like the classic delicious steak-smooth wine pairing :)

Apparently, the story doesn't quite seem to be groundbreaking fresh. I mean, so far, you must have seen a dozen films centered around a serial killer. This also is a serial killer hunt drama. At first glance, it might feel like "PPffh, I've seen it all". So what exactly makes this series different ? Let's try to analyse.

Right from the first episode, Harrelson and McConaughey make their presence felt. They add tremendous weight to their characters. Both of them pair up as detectives Hart & Cohle, together trying to crack the case of a serial killer. But both of them portray contrasting personalities, quite evidently. The resultant blend gives a unique taste to the juice.

Harrelson stars as a father of two little girls, having Michelle Monaghan as his wife. The trouble with him is that he is adulterous and cheats on his wife. He sees another girl Lisa (played by Alexandra Daddario). She's like the forbidden fruit, which Woody is tempted to eat. Infact, the episode 2 has both of them in a steamy nude scene. This causes visible friction between Woody and Michelle. Michelle plays a loyal home-loving devoted wife.

McConaughey on the other hand, is a detective who currently lives alone. He portrays quite a serious edgy personality who doesn't believe in Christianity (a total contrast to his Tropic Thunder character). He's shown to have lost his kid and his marriage didn't last after that. Perhaps the forthcoming episodes might shed a light on his past personal life. He occasionally goes high on substance, whereby he hallucinates. At office, he rubs shoulders roughly with other Louisiana authorities. Harrelson tries to play a balancing mediator here. McConaughey is also shown to be an astute observant, which gets them crucial leads in the case. On certain occasions, the intensity that he glows is comparable to his character in The Lincoln Lawyer.

These rich contrasting colorful characters add to the depth of the script and storyline. The narration goes back and forth to 2012 and various times in past during their investigation. Perhaps indicating that the case is not solved yet. The slow steady one-clue to next-clue progress reminds you of the exciting cat-n-mouse thrill of No Country for Old Men. The episode 3 even shows a 2-second glimpse of the monster at the end. This has me keep my fingers crossed as both the detectives slowly follow each clue to the next one. I'd expect the episode 4 to garner much higher viewership due to increased awareness.

Season 1 will be having only 8 episodes. Wish there were more :) Oh boy, am really excited to see all the next new episodes.

Rating : 4.95 / 5.00