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[catsidhe]

Here is a review of Little Oberon in The Age by Kenneth Nguyen. Once again, my conviction that professional reviewers know precisely jack is upheld.

As it happens, the sense of hope only lasts about 30 minutes: that's the amount of time it takes scriptwriter Peter Gawler to introduce his cast of infeasibly eccentric characters, who play out a sadly trite, wrong-headed tale about the "beauty of mysticism" and the evils of conventional life.

We start badly. This was the second paragraph. Hmm. Where to start.
First, if Kenneth has never met people this eccentric, then he really should get out more. I've lived with people more eccentric, if the stories are told right. Hell, I am more eccentric.
Second "trite, wrong-headed". Translation: 'I didn't understand it, and thought it was soppy.' Which just goes to show that he should stop reviewing things he doesn't understand. OK, so maybe the script or director or whoever could have made Pan's appearances more overtly threatening, but I thought that they were pretty threatening as they were — just subtly so. (And the undercurrent of attraction makes it even more threatening for those who know what they're looking at.) Similarly, suffering a Grand Mal fit every time one sees a ghost strikes me as a fairly scary situation to be in, especially if the ghost won't leave you alone. As if the ghost wasn't enough. Or the epilepsy alone. Oh, he was complaining about depicitions of family love (Like Lola greeting her estranged daughter after 15 years by shutting the door in her face), or a happy ending (for some)? ...
Actually, I have no idea what he's talking about here. Really, I can't understand where he gets this idea. I really can't
The "'beauty of mysticism'", eh? Scare quotes? Mysticism is not beautiful, dammit, and stop trying to say so! Waah!
The "evils of conventional life." Uhuh. Like the chemotherapy which keeps Lola alive. Like the doctors who care for her after her heart attack. Right.

He is right when he praises Lola's lack of sentimentality as refreshing, but the others have their strengths as well. Georgie is someone who has obviously come to terms with her reputation, and has learnt to flaunt her differences, even if she is sensitive about her past. Natasha is a teenager who suddenly becomes epileptic. If anything, she deals with this too easily, but it's not as if she is magically cured at the end of the show. She is intensely curious as to who her father is, strangely enough. They are very different characters, with very different problems, and very different approaches to them.

But as the characters unfold, the story only gets more "fantastic" and, consequently, unengaging.

Lalala, there is no magic in the world lalala!

Georgie, it turns out, is not just the "estranged daughter to Lola", but also a high priestess of Wicca witchhood who, of course, inflames small-town tensions with her pagan ways.

And again, Kenneth should get out more. There are more than a couple of people reading this who know precisely what it is like to be treated badly for their beliefs. How many Wiccans are worried by the Religious Right winning seats in parliament, or on the local council (like in Casey, for example)? How many have had to, as Georgie does, defend themselves against the accusation of being Satanists? How many Atheists have had to defend themselves against people who can't understand that they really don't believe in a god? How many Christians who have to defend themselves against association with the aforementioned Loony Right?
These are not not not MacLeod's Daughters.

These allusions to mysticism are not mere sidebars: indeed, the relationship between Natasha's ghosts and Georgie's past serves, ultimately, as this telemovie's central storyline. It doesn't work. Or more precisely, it could have worked, but the eccentricity Geiger counter is far too noisy for the viewer to suspend disbelief.

Well, yeah, that's the Godsdamned point, you cretinous moron! When he says "the viewer", he means "this viewer". Ah, the joys of the Absolute Mindset.

The more evil characters, meanwhile, announce themselves by their adherence to convention: one of Georgie's old flames wears a tie, which is a dead giveaway as to the darkness in his heart, while another villain is - gasp - a Christian.

The old flame in question is self-evidently a git, tie or not. And it turns out that he isn't evil after all. He's a git, but that's as far as it goes. The – gasp – Christian villian is a villian despite her professed Christianity.

Look, let's get this out in the open. People who call themselves Christian are not necessarily more than superficially so. Indeed, it seems that the more people go to church and the more loudly they profess their 'Christianity', the less likely it is that they live up to basic Christian ideals. The Priest's wife's christianity was all surface. She was more concerned that a former church was used by pagans than that it was the home of people who loved it. She was prepared to burn a home to the ground and drive people away, or kill them (it's not like she raised the alarm, after all), because one of them professed to believe in different Gods than she did. She was very loudly Christian, and yet in her heart, she was not one at all. The Doctor's wife was even more loudly a Christian, with almost as little depth. Before one is tempted to say 'look, see, two villians and they're both Christians, it's a pattern,' remember that the Priest was the most sympathetic and helpful person after the Doctor. He was someone who actually was a Christian. He did the hard thing, and handed his wife in. He tried to do the best thing for his parish, and for the people in it, parishioners or not. He was prepared to talk to the Witch – even if he wasn't always well informed about what she would do. So, if the unsympathetic characters were identified as Christian, so was one of the most sympathetic.

It is, after all, the mystics who are the good guys in the overly schematic world of Little Oberon. Disappointing stuff.

How dare mystics be the good guys? What right has the numinous to intrude into our clockwork universe? Why do they taunt us with the message that Hypocrisy is the true evil?

Kenneth Nguyen should just shut the fuck up and enjoy Gil Grissom in another godsdamned CSI Marathon. No magick there. No Pan sightings. No ambiguity. No real doubt.

That is one of the best things about Little Oberon... the ambiguity. The doubt.
When Lola's cancer goes into remission, was it the Christian prayer? The Wiccan prayer? Optimism? The Chinese herbal treatments? Gods forbid, the chemo?
All of them?
Pan and the ghost – were they real? Were they artifacts of the epilepsy? Did one, the other, or both of them together cause the epilepsy?

If you can't deal with these questions, then go watch some more CSI, and burn every work of fiction you own. And you would then deserve to live in the tiny, limited and bleak world you have created.

Comments

[mikeybidness.livejournal.com]

Whoah, wait, hold up - dude, Pan is in this show? The Pan?

This better become a series.

[catsidhe.livejournal.com]

The Pan?

In one scene (dream sequence, admittedly), we see him in full hairy glory, clip-clopping along the bank of a creek. Surrounded by ferns and mountain ash. Even if the rest of the show was utter crap, it was worth it for just that scene.

[catsidhe.livejournal.com]

'good' and 'bad' lines pretty blatantly drawn in most cases.

And sometimes not. The Doctor was good right up to his (literal) fall. I think that it was because he was good that he couldn't live with being reminded what he had done. (He spent his life trying to redeem himself?) The git-in-a-tie seemed to be a bad guy, but he was, in the end, just a git. He even self-depricatingly admitted as much at one point. Most other people were ... people. Neither particularly good nor bad (except for the Priest and Ms Kafka, both of whom showed saintly qualities).

She did? Admittedly, I missed bits due to cooking pizza at the time, but I didn't see Natasha have tonic-clonic seizures every time she saw images of the past. The only time she came close that I saw was fainting after being blessed by the minister.

Well, I wouldn't know the technical details of what makes a seizure Grand Mal or not, but she 1) fell over twitching, 2) had no memory of the event (although I grant you that she did remember the time immediately before the seizure, which doesn't sound right to me), and (the trump) 3) the Doctor identified it as a Grand Mal, after she had one in his office.

It was certainly more serious than a Petit Mal blackout, though.

That is one of the things which did grate with me, that the epilepsy wasn't a bigger deal. If they had shown a Grand Mal in full force, even once, then the presence of epilepsy should have almost been another character, instead of just a quirk. Certainly, the general response to it was decidedly low-key. I would be pretty well freaked out if I had discovered that I was suddenly epileptic, especially at 15.

It's a confusing statement.

He gives a lot of them. I think it is mainly that he fundamentally doesn't get it.

The Priest's Wife was complex, but the context I was talking about was that Christian == Bad. That simply doesn't follow, unless you are really looking hard for it. She was obviously emotionally fragile, she was possessive and jealous, she was prepared to possibly kill people because they threatened her (emotional) comfort, she identified herself as Christian, she had red hair. Kenneth tried to put across that it was her Christianity that identified her as evil, but her husband put the lie to that. It was an attribute, like her red hair, that was more-or-less irrelevant to her motivations. But, given that she was prepared to burn down a house and potentially kill people, this doesn't jive well with her living any sort of Christian ideal, beyond the public face of one.


I think I've calmed down now, thanks.

[usuakari.livejournal.com]

The git-in-a-tie seemed to be a bad guy, but he was, in the end, just a git. He even self-depricatingly admitted as much at one point.

Nah. He was fairly obviously just a git. Possibly even a reformed one. It would take further plot and character development (over a series maybe) to say for sure though.

I take your point about the the doctor, but I didn't think he was anything more or less than your average human to begin with, so the events in his past didn't come as a big shock or sudden unveiling of his true nature.

...1) fell over twitching, 2) had no memory of the event (although I grant you that she did remember the time immediately before the seizure, which doesn't sound right to me), and (the trump) 3) the Doctor identified it as a Grand Mal, after she had one in his office.

Some epileptics do remember the circumstances leading up to their seizures. Some people who simply faint are observed to twitch mildly, and more things will cause seizures than epilepsy anyway. And doctors have been known to be wrong. Especially given that both epilepsy and other forms of seizures generally come in such an exciting range of shapes and sizes. To confirm epilepsy you'd want a period of monitoring with an EEG in place if possible, and things like CTs, MRIs, and blood work to rule out other possibilities.

I still must have missed all the vision-induced seizure moments though. Every time I saw Natasha experiencing visions/seeing ghosts she handled it fairly reasonably, physically and emotionally, given the circumstances.


Kenneth tried to put across that it was her Christianity that identified her as evil, but her husband put the lie to that.

Yeah. Well. Everyone except the Christian Right knows that overtly Christian characters in movies and on TV are highly likely to be evil. It's as big a cliche as dippy, fluffy but realy quiet saintly Pagans. Actually, I didn't see her overtly profess to be Christian, apart from being married to the too-good-to-true Minister.

But, given that she was prepared to burn down a house and potentially kill people, this doesn't jive well with her living any sort of Christian ideal, beyond the public face of one.

That thought did occur. It makes her more inconsistent and flawedly human than anything else, including Evil.

[catsidhe.livejournal.com]

Actually, I didn't see her overtly profess to be Christian,
There was the one scene where she went to their house and asked if Georgie thought it appropriate to hold Wicca lessons in a House of God, even if it wasn't one anymore. She then stated very carefully that there would be an ecumenical meeting (prayer meeting? I don't remember) at the church hall. I got the impression that she was looking for an opportunity to 1) stop the spread of Wicca, and 2) impress the pagan with Christian hospitality, ideally in a step to converting her. I could be wrong about the reasons, but that's the feeling I got.

The Doctor's wife was fairly clear after the fire (when she was thanked for taking them in) that "it's the Christian thing to do." (And, yes, she did say it with that emphasis.) She may have been doing it primarily because it was simply the right thing to do, but she couldn't resist getting that (dig) in.

[usuakari.livejournal.com]

I could be wrong about the reasons, but that's the feeling I got.


Fair enough.

It's an interesting question that was raised by the Reverend Wonderful's wife. Just how deconsecrated can deconsecrated churches actually be? And does that extend to the deconsecrated religious sites of other religions as well? I know I've never felt comfortable about seeing old churches turned into houses or restaurants or anything else. They're usually beautiful buildings, and I can see the appeal, but it still strikes me as wrong somehow. In an odd, inarticulate kind of way.

The Doctor's wife was fairly clear after the fire (when she was thanked for taking them in) that "it's the Christian thing to do." (And, yes, she did say it with that emphasis.) She may have been doing it primarily because it was simply the right thing to do, but she couldn't resist getting that (dig) in.

The doctors wife was a fluffy, social-climbing blonde from beginning to end and I was quite prepared to dislike her on site.

The dig was multi-layered, with both religious and social overtones, and yes it was definitely there. That's a separate issue from the minister's wife though.

Small-minded bigotry and/or paranoia is one of those character traits that Australian writers and actors seem to consistently do well. You'd think it was an issue for the national psyche or something...

[catsidhe.livejournal.com]

Chapel on Chapel must set your teeth on edge...

[usuakari.livejournal.com]

Yes. But all of Chapel Street sets my teeth on edge, so it blends in.

[usuakari.livejournal.com]

trite, wrong-headed tale about the "beauty of mysticism" and the evils of conventional life.

Hmmm. He may be onto something there. It was a little cliched in places, with 'good' and 'bad' lines pretty blatantly drawn in most cases. Actually, in some places the cliches were both well done and powerful enough that I wanted to reach in and slap various characters just out of general principle (Georgie being a shining example).

OK, so maybe the script or director or whoever could have made Pan's appearances more overtly threatening, but I thought that they were pretty threatening as they were — just subtly so.

Pan as the Jimmy Dean wannabe, or Pan with the furry haunches and cloven hooves? I found both unsettling because of the potential threats both represented (one to Natasha in consensus reality, especially romantically and sexually; and the other by his mere presence). It was those allusions that provided the sense of unease though, rather than the actual visual rendering or characterisation in the show specifically.

Similarly, suffering a Grand Mal fit every time one sees a ghost strikes me as a fairly scary situation to be in, especially if the ghost won't leave you alone.

She did? Admittedly, I missed bits due to cooking pizza at the time, but I didn't see Natasha have tonic-clonic seizures every time she saw images of the past. The only time she came close that I saw was fainting after being blessed by the minister.

Aside from witches and ghosts, we have new-age healers who insist - without any apparent irony on the part of the filmmakers - that Little Oberon is a strange town because "it's on a junction (of) energy lines which connect ancient, sacred places".

I wonder what sense of irony he was thinking of? The implicit 'look we know it's all crap but go with it for the sake of the show' type of irony, or 'Little Oberon is strange for more reasons than just ley-line conversions' or what? It's a confusing statement.

But as the characters unfold, the story only gets more "fantastic" and, consequently, unengaging.

It's something I think Australian TV culture has real issues with generally. As a culture we don't make shows with fanstastical elements very often, and certainly not for adults. Name one Australian-made show directed at adults that has either sci-fi or fantastic concepts in it (...okay, there was Chances but that was an aberration, and no-one watched it anyway). tooticky's right, we have scores of hospital and cop based dramas (some of which are actually very good), but nothing like The X files. Picnic at Hanging Rock is the closest we've come to Australian fantasy for adults, and the series of The Nargun and the Stars is about as good as it's gotten for kids.

I think Kenneth is just another example of the part of Australia that doesn't get, or can't cope, or just doesn't want the weird or unsettling on their TV thanks. Personally, despite any flaws it may have had, I think Little Oberon should be encouraged, just to get some of the more whimsical and fantastic ideas out there to challenge the supremacy and endless repetition of stories about doctors and nurses.

Moving on...

The Priest's wife's christianity was all surface.

Interesting. I didn't get that impression at all. I thought she was much more motivated by feeling threatened by the conversations between what's-his-name and Georgie than by any Christian ideology. It showed in the way she watched an intruded, and told Georigie just what her husband liked and wanted; staking ownership and legitimacy as The Wife.

The bit were the Reverend Wonderful announced to the fluffy-bunny-footed Pagan that God wanted to buy her a coffee and a Danish pastry was one of my favourite lines in the show though. :)

When Lola's cancer goes into remission, was it the Christian prayer? The Wiccan prayer? Optimism? The Chinese herbal treatments? Gods forbid, the chemo?
All of them?

Yeah I liked that too. Although in all cases, I'm left wondering what the price will be. Is the house enough? Especially given the offerings made by both Georgie and Natasha.

So. Finished frothing at the mouth yet? ;)

[catsidhe.livejournal.com]

Aside from witches and ghosts, we have new-age healers who insist - without any apparent irony on the part of the filmmakers - that Little Oberon is a strange town because "it's on a junction (of) energy lines which connect ancient, sacred places".

I wonder what sense of irony he was thinking of? The implicit 'look we know it's all crap but go with it for the sake of the show' type of irony, or 'Little Oberon is strange for more reasons than just ley-line conversions' or what? It's a confusing statement.

I think one thing that Kenneth has forgotten is that just because a character says so, that doesn't make it true – especially here. They could be mistaken. They could be lying. They could be full of shit. The character who mentioned Ley Lines I think believed what she was saying, but Natasha believed that she was her Aunt as well. It's an explanation proposed by someone to explain strange circumstances, which is consistant with their worldview.

[usuakari.livejournal.com]

Yep. I was thinking that what's-her-name (the healer) believed it to be true but that that didn't mean that I had to agree while I was watching it.

Little Oberon

[(Anonymous)]

I agree. Little Oberon even kept your poor old mother enthralled. I also hope it becomes a series. Your analogies to your childhood experiences are likewise felt, I remember those times as being happy ones. It was a time for embracing ones soul as well as nature. Make sure you give Abbi and Susannah the feel for the bush and the hills. It is a part of our heritage.