In need of a new show to watch in the end-of-summer TV lull, my husband and I watched the first episode of Ozark,
a new Netflix show, last week and immediately watched the second
episode, too! That trend has continued this week - we are totally
addicted to this unique, suspenseful, poignant, funny show filled with
movie-star talent.
Jason Bateman plays Marty Byrde,
a seemingly mild-mannered (some might say dull) financial planner in
Chicago. Marty normally lives a quiet life, but in the first episode,
that gets blown away in a single day. First, he finds out his wife,
played by Laura Linney, has been cheating on him, and then he's called
out in the middle of the night to answer to Del, the scary head of a
Mexican drug cartel, about missing money. It turns out that Marty and
his partner, Bruce, have been laundering money for the cartel, and Bruce
has been skimming some off. Marty barely saves his own life and his
family's lives by convincing Del that he can continue to launder his
money from a new location, Lake of the Ozarks in Missouri (this involves
some fast-talking and total BS on Marty's part, after Bruce had given
him an Ozarks brochure earlier in the day). Del says that Marty and his
family must be out of Chicago and settled down there within 48 hours.
And
that's where this family's adventure - and nightmare - begins! Marty
rushes home and tells his (cheating) wife, Wendy, everything, the house
is on the market by morning, and their poor kids - 15-year old Charlotte
and younger brother Jonah - are suddenly ripped from their lives and
into a stuffed family van heading to Missouri. They arrive to find a
depressed region filled with rednecks that relies heavily on summer
tourist money. Marty immediately sets out to find cash-based businesses
to launder the drug money through, but no one wants anything to do with
this fast-talking stranger, until he finally stumbles onto a run-down
old summer resort that has seen better days and whose owner is just
desperate enough to buy Marty's story of being an "angel investor."
That's the basic set-up, but every episode of Ozark
is just chock-full of twists, turns, and surprises, as the Byrde family
begins to settle into their new home and Marty struggles to keep his
family not only financially afloat but alive. One of the best aspects of
the show is the local family of hicks known as the Langmores, who butt
up against the Byrdes right from day one. With her father in prison,
nineteen-year old Ruth Langmore, played by the brilliant Julia Garner,
heads up the ragtag family. She is far more intelligent than her uncles
and cousins and also hardened from growing up in the midst of a criminal
family. Before long, Ruth worms her way into Marty's business, though
her intentions are far from noble. Throw in a local drug business that
sees Marty as a threat, a preacher on the water, a dying man in the
Byrde's new basement, and an FBI agent hot on Marty's trail, and you
have a gloriously tangled and constantly changing plot!
We
have watched seven episodes so far of the 10-episode first season (oh,
no - only three more to go!), and we are completely hooked on this
original show. The actors are all first-rate and completely inhabit
their characters. The plot is constantly moving, with surprises in every
episode - sometimes the good guys become the bad guys in an instant or
the bad guys are suddenly allies! It's a unique and intriguing setting,
with the gorgeous backdrop of Lake of the Ozarks and its wealthy summer
tourists against the poverty of the locals. Despite its serious themes
and nonstop suspense, the show also has a good sense of humor (often
dark humor!) that we love and delves into the emotional lives of its
characters, too. We are loving every minute of it (as are many of my
friends) and hope there will be a season two! I can't wait for my
husband to get home tonight so we can watch another episode.
Ozark is a Netflix original program, so it is available exclusively on Netflix.
I'm definitely going to go have to check this one out. I'm currently watching GLOW and am doing a CALL THE MIDWIFE re-watch, so this will be a nice change.
ReplyDeleteYes, give it a try!
DeleteI've been meaning to try Glow since its release & have wanted to try Call the Midwife for ages.
Ozark is a good one to watch with your husband because it's got plenty of suspense & intrigue :)
This sounds good. My daughter and I just got hooked on Criminal Minds, which is really good and interesting if very disturbing.
ReplyDeleteMy older son watches Criminal Minds, so I've seen a few episodes - it's good...but yes, disturbing!
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