'Sharp Objects' A Rich and Satisfying, Southern Drama - Will's Review

Sharp Objects is Available Now for Digital Download and Arrives on Blu-ray™ and DVD November 27th, 2018.

Sharp Objects delivered one of the most stimulating and satisfying shows of the year. Billed as one of the summer’s must watch series, many tuned into HBO’s limited series adaptation of Gillian Flynn’s novel expecting a typical mystery/crime drama but was given something more subtle and nuanced. It is such a rich, haunting portrayal of trauma, pain, grief, and anger, and the ways women deal with that, both inwardly and outwardly, hurting themselves and/or each other.

Directed by Jean-Marc Vallée, Sharp Objects follows the story of Camille Preaker, played by Amy Adams, is a journalist located in St. Louis, who is told by her boss to return to her rural, southern hometown to report on a series of murders.

The first episode deftly sets its arcs into motion and guarantees the audience of a slow-burn revelation to come. Camille reluctantly arrives at Wind Gap as she tries to navigate through her old hometown. While Flynn’s novel heavily relied on Camille’s internal monologue to give us glances at her turbulent and dramatic past, Vallée chooses not to use a voice-over, but instead accomplishes the same storytelling with his signature visual style.

Over the course of its eight episode run, the show demonstrated a refreshing style for delivering a precisely plotted murder mystery. It makes the best use of the visual medium to convey Camille’s struggles with her family and her trauma by presenting the story in a non-linear fashion. The flashes of hazy dream-like sequences are neatly interwoven into the story.

Camille and her family’s history are unraveled in the course of events unfolding in Wind Gap. while the show could have easily been wrapped in six episodes it is the slow-moving but steady decline into these people’s lives that takes up time and only by the end one understands what has truly been discovered in the depth of these dark hearts. they’re all deeply flawed and some of them twisted beyond comprehension.

Amy Adams has a career defining performance and is one of the best actresses out there and Patricia Clarkson commands the screen. Newcomer Eliza Scanlen was able to hold her own in impressive fashion. Vallée is really showing how talented he his at making mini series’ and the editing is some of the best I’ve watched all year. It is a fairly slow show and that might turn some people off but for me it made the ending more impactful. I highly recommend this one.

Comment your thoughts below to win a Digital Download Code.

Rating: 4.5 out of 5

Will (Contributor) has called many places home but now resides in Michigan. An Air Force veteran and avid movie goer who enjoys indie movies just as much as major blockbusters. He is also a technology enthusiast.
Click Here to check out Will's Articles.