MovieChat Forums > Olive Kitteridge (2014) Discussion > honest question: for those who liked it,...

honest question: for those who liked it, what did u like about it

posted 9 years ago by ArtAesthetics
25 replies | jump to latest

I know it was critically acclaimed and being an hbo production automatically raises it's artistic value in my mind. But even after 3 hours in I can't find anything enjoyable about this. The main character Olive is horrible. The story is mundane. It's just one scene after another watching Olive be an ass. It takes Henry's stroke to see her having a tender moment with him. There are plenty of such bitchy people who walk around with their head up their ass. They are abusive to family members and spread negativity wherever they go. Most of us would avoid them in real life, so why would anyone watch them on the tv?

The acting, the direction & the cinematography is amazing but what is the point?

Btw the husband Mr. Henry Kitteridge makes the show watchable. The actor should've been nominated for Emmy & golden globe. I'm on the last ep and trying to find the motivation to finish it.

Honest post. Not trying to troll.

[–] randy605 9 years ago

Its no surprise that movies about extremely happy people are not terribly successful as a rule. For whatever reason (perhaps we are all depressed to a degree, or identify with it) humans are drawn more to the sad and morose. We ache to figure those people out, what makes them tick, what makes them get up in the morning. Olive is a near perfect example. What is it that makes her get up? She is cold a cruel to an unrealistic degree. I believe most husbands would have left her. Henry doesn't because he's puppy, the way Denise is a "mouse". A puppy doesn't leave home. I think Olive feels sorry for him and tries to return his feelings but its just too much for her until he becomes helpless and cant communicate. For some reason this opens up the well of human sentiment that's been stuck inside her. Her son perhaps over-reacts to the harsh extreme mother he has and bears a strong grudge. He sees her as responsible for his depression and need for therapy. I don't know what makes it work but the performances seem so real like people we've met in real life. Like ourselves at times. I kept watching Olive because you could never tell what she was going to say or do next and I love people that have a bitter wit. But definitely I don't believe this is everyone's favorite thing to watch. That being said most people seem to appreciate its worth.

[–] stonerosedesign 9 years ago

"For whatever reason"...

... what is the purpose of entertainment?

... I think it creates the reality we want ... shoddenfreude or however it's spelled.

Kids want syrupy happy movies... adults usually want something that verifies their views and/or pains.

[–] randy605 9 years ago

I've never thought about it. I suppose its like sex or good food or drink - anything humans do in their free time on a regular basis. Why is one food or music more appealing? Its as individual as we all are - we each have our own purpose for them. Its great when we find people who share our feelings about movies in particular, and people who can help expand our knowledge.

[–] airfox77 8 years ago

Not really. Kids want interesting movies. Adults think they want syrupy happy ones.

[–] mlewis78 9 years ago

I am watching the 4th episode now. I can't say why, but I've found it very engaging. I read the book a long while back. Frances McDormand is wonderful, as is the actor who was her husband in this. It's the best thing I've watched all week.

[–] Stirchley 9 years ago

^The show is brilliant IMO. One of the best things I've seen all year.

[–] Stirchley 9 years ago

^The show is brilliant IMO. One of the best things I've seen all year.

[–] AZINDN 9 years ago

What I like about the series is the complexity of the relationships between Olive and her Henry, her son, and the community that they inhabit. I feel the story is about the middle-age state, the children who are grown and fledge the home, the miscommunication between married couples, the other people who make up the world of human interaction in a small town. In other words, this story treated me like a thinking, feeling, and aging adult. No bimbo with big breasts to distract, no whiter than white polished teethy grins, just complex interactions between adults who are facing old age. Frankly, the kids were as annoying on screen as I find them today, I loved Olive's dress for the wedding, and the entire setting felt real, authentic, and just a bit out of sync with the 21st. century, as was Olive.

All in all, this was an adult short story and I appreciated the quiet intelligence of each character.

-- What would Joan say? --

[–] ABBAcat 8 years ago

^ Exactly. I also found it very engaging to follow the lives of these offbeat people with their strong characters and deep rooted flaws. Olive was a fascinating character. She was not supposed to be likeable because the character did not make it a goal to be liked. I liked her anyway because she was hilarious with her blunt remarks and expressions. She seemed to have a good instinct about people despite being somewhat antisocial. I liked that she was out of sync with modern times too. I didn't love the material for her dress but the pattern/style was very nice. I hated that snotty daughter in law and her arrogant famly and friends. I felt bad when they dissed her dress but loved her spikey form of revenge. I also felt bad when she ruined her stockings in her son's disheveled NY brownstone. Such a clash of generations, and urban v rural cultures. That was one awkward visit. I want to read the book now and wished I had read it before seeing this. I think the casting was perfect.

🐾

[–] movie80 9 years ago

But even after 3 hours in I can't find anything enjoyable about this. The main character Olive is horrible

I am watching episode 1 and also find this show difficult to watch, In general I have never had luck with Francis M.D's movies, I find her unlikeable, she isn't nice to anyone, what she says usually just hurts.
Not that I always like happy couples or happy stories.
I know she has a lot of fans etc., but again I just don't have any luck with her movies. I wanted to return the DVD set to the library but came here to check first. Looks like it is a good series from some of the posts I read here, but I might just pass.

[–] nomen_meltdown 9 years ago

I found Olive very sympathetic. She was smart enough to know what people were really like and what they were about, even when she wanted them to be 'better.' She chafed at a lot of the rote and/or two-faced "small town 'nice' behaviour" of people around her because much of it was so dishonest and hypocritical. She was reluctant to compromise when she felt she was right. She was fiercely honest, and if you pay attention, pretty much any time she was dishonest, it was protect the feelings of others (even though she clearly has a strong preference for telling people the truth). And she had little patience for stupidity.

When she seemed outright mean it was because she was sad or afraid, and she was protecting a really vulnerable and sensitive side that she tried very hard to keep hidden because it made her so vulnerable. All of that made her very human and relatable to me. I was heartbroken at the thought that she was about to kill herself, and so grateful when those kids found her and it stopped her from going through with it.

I think you just didn't really understand what kind of person she was below the surface (which is why other characters in the story didn't 'get' her either). She was a good person, she was just desperate to shield her heart and it made her lash out sometimes. Her big problem was that she was socially 'clumsy.' (And I get the feeling-- maybe because I'm half-remembering and half-forgetting explicit dialogue-- that she had an abusive mother who didn't teach her to express affection well, which is hardly her fault.)

I'm an island- peopled by bards, scientists, judges, soldiers, artists, scholars & warrior-poets.

[–] mikeywilldunk 9 years ago

I have a simple theory: if you relate, you will like. If you don't relate (or deny), you will not like. I can definitely understand OP's reaction and I'm impressed OP was muddling through, despite the struggle. I've visited this forum a few times: several people coming here (myself included) are tied to some character flaw or tragedy from the movie (abused, mental instability, etc). It's a beautiful moment when film/literature takes a difficult, earnest, compassionate look into human pain, and a certain audience identifies with the pain. If you find this film boring, tedious, and irritating - consider yourself a lucky, stable person. There is nothing wrong with that. But I don't know - maybe you don't need to identify to appreciate. Maybe if you meet enough people, your embraceful knowledge of the human condition leads you to appreciate this stuff more.

[–] Waldimore 9 years ago

The production was seamless and stayed with its interpretation of simple New England folks. I liked that it was a character driven story and captured the essence of ordinary life about people who were not extraordinary.

That said, I really didn't like Olive. I thought she was a mean-spirited cuss, who abused and exploited her husband's good nature and his love, commitment and devotion to her. I think she also abused her son and exploited her maternal prerogative even as she cared for him. In the end, she felt that her mean-spiritedness should be forgiven since she believed she had given her son a fairly good life.

It was important to me that I could watch a series whose title character I despised. It was Henry Kitteridge's opposite caring, good-hearted, kind nature in contrast to his shrew of a wife, that kept me engaged. Even when Olive broke down, France M did a fantastic job, I did not feel sorry for her.

[–] mrkmac 9 years ago

Very well put. I think FM did a stellar job, and it reminded me of the feelings that came up when I watched Shirley MacLaine in Terms of Endearment.

[–] baronvonliebestraum 9 years ago

In a nutshell: Frances McDormand, and Richard Jenkins. And the cinematography. And the direction. You presented those as beside the point, but they kind of are the point (and the story as well). It's gorgeous and well written. I loved that I was expecting the usual (cinematic) analgesics and received none of them. Which made me (gasp) think. I'm not sure that makes a huge amount of sense but it sums it up for me.