Did some light research The Power of Nightmares sounds positively brilliant The Trap sounds like it might run contrary to my own personal philosophy which is basically Rutger Bregman’s Humankind, which is to say people are usually good (there’s more to it of course but that’s the gist)
The Trap has a title card and description on Wikipedia that appear to be far more cynical?
Yeeees
I’m a Curtis believer after seeing “only” HyperNormalisation and Century of the Self”
Haven’t even heard of most these but have bookmarked your message so i can find the next best to watch, if not attend a view-a-thon
Are the views you have yet to do in order of recommendation/preference??
You’ve got me so looking forward to watching more
100%
HyperNormalisation also deserves a mention and almost a must-watch, too, really (also by Adam Curtis)!
Twin Peaks The Return (aka season 3, which came back with most of the original cast after 25 years) is a masterpiece.
There is nothing else like it, not even the original 2 seasons. Often considered a “film” and truly is “absolute cinema”. From the wikipedia article on it:
The series garnered critical acclaim, with praise for its unconventional narrative structure, visual invention, and performances.[2] Critics have hailed the show as the best television program of 2017[3] and the 2010s,[4] as well as one of the best series of the 21st century.[5][6][7][8] Some critics also consider The Return a film, with film journal Cahiers du Cinéma naming it the best film of the decade[9] and the 2022 Sight & Sound critics’ poll voting it the 152nd-greatest film in history.[10]
Downton Abbey: most shows shuffle away any notion of class struggle and class conflict, which is a shame as it is the defining story of our era, but Downton showcases it. A show that restores your faith in humanity, making nearly every character’s humanity shine through in a beautiful, Dickensian way. I try to watch it at least once a year, ideally around winter holidays. Ironically created by a British conservative.
Century of the Self: although perhaps less a series and more a miniseries, seems to me it’s required viewing for understanding so much of what our lives are now
Eastbound & Down (and The Righteous Gemstones): as long as you like Danny McBride’s sense of humor, these will kill you. Very on the nose in their parodies of sports culture and the evangelical “Christian” movement in the US
Anything with Philomena Cunk
Generation Kill is a show you almost never hear about for how poignant a portrayal it is of American imperialism in the Middle East as experienced by the ‘grunts’ questioning all of it
The Rehearsal (especially season 2): what’s wrong with aviation, and what it’s like (again esp. season 2) to wonder if you are on the spectrum
Rita: a Danish show about a badass cigarette smoking, ‘slutty’ teacher who stops at nothing to take care of her students, sticking up to parents, whatever. The kind of teacher you wish you had to stick up for you, whether against your parents at times, or anyone else who was getting you down
Silicon Valley: in case you didn’t already suspect that all things VC and tech are actually often dumb as hell
Watchmen (HBO series): hardly need to say more than that this show predicted cops (think ICE in the US in the last 2 years) wearing face masks to conceal the identities carrying out increasingly fascistic acts
The White Lotus: possibly controversial here, but that’s really just me speculating. I thought the production value was like almost nothing else, through the roof, the actors were fantastic, the scenes and imagery gorgeous, and the portrayal of wealthy vacationers as just extremely flawed people endlessly chasing real happiness. Super fucked up at times, but arguably worth it.
I also reiterate some of the other mentions in this thread:
Better Call Saul: Bob Odenkirk is the bastard you cannot help but be drawn to. His counterpart Rhea Seehorn also is great, grows and grows on you, even if you’re someone who doesn’t like her at first
Severance: one scene where a dear character ’dies’ in a way no other media has ‘created’ before is unforgettable and will live rent-free frame by frame in your mind for years
Succession, so captivating. Brian Cox, Jeremy Strong, Kieran Culkin, Sarah Snook are all absolute masters
Arrested Development: seems to me the sharpest, wittiest writing of anything I’ve seen. First 3 seasons only, new netflix reboot was a big dud for so many
Louie: often just perfect TV, stunningly human yet weird and sometimes surreal, like real life. Not sure how to feel about the actor though as a person. Heard on a podcast recently that he’s doing his scandalous thing again, after going on an apology tour for years and admittedly doing far more to own up and atone for far less than his sins back then of basically exposing himself to women and using his power to get them to have sexual activities with him, apparently often “just” watching him whack it… But seriously episodes like The Duckling are just peak TV.
Mad Men: pretty darn good, and I hate the subject of Madison Avenue ad men /advertising industry
Haven’t ever finished Dark years after starting it, but I do feel drawn back to the ‘vibe’ of it, super unique and idk slow burning and like if rainy gloomy weather was a tv show, in the best way
Band of Brothers: enough said by others in this thread and everywhere else
The Pacific: also enough said by others.
The Leftovers: I’ve only seen 4 episodes and I’m dying to see more. I read again and again it’s “one of the best shows of all time” and that became clear how likely that is by about episode 3. Can’t wait to see what comes next. A philosophical what-if that isn’t about something maybe 100-1000 years in the future like interstellar spaceflight, instead, it’s about what are humans like (with things like cults, family drama, agnosticism, nihilism, and so much more just showing how weird it is to be human).
Patrick Melrose: what it’s like to feel like you can never satisfy your parents who btw abused you, to the point you become a drugs (very plural) addict and almost die like 100 times. Absolute nail biter trip of a show
It’s super effective! Against emotional support vehicles (ESVs)