Hacker News Board Hacker News, browsed like a classic message board
Live data from Hacker News

Magical Realism: “Northern Exposure” 25 Years Later (2015)

rogerebert.com

Post reply on HN
Print view View original

71–80 of 93 posts

Re: Magical Realism: “Northern Exposure” 25 Years Later (2015)

#71

Post by JamesSwift »

regularfry wrote: post #63
jfengel wrote: post #31

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I got the impression at the time that Lynch was figuring it out as he went along. Some days that worked; some days it really didn't but mostly carried through on the strength of its performances. I admit I haven't seen it since the original airing. I would likely evaluate it differently now.

He absolutely was, quite famously. He'd be writing the episodes in the diner week-to-week. For me it's the pattern for a lot of shows that went off the rails: starts with a strong premise and setting, but gets an indefinite run so the writer(s) can't actually terminate any story arcs and end up floundering badly. It got dramatically better again when he had to wrap it up. Some shows start off in that state (like Lost…

Uhh The Walking Dead anyone?

Re: Magical Realism: “Northern Exposure” 25 Years Later (2015)

#72

Post by Schlagbohrer »

srum wrote: post #68
revicon wrote: post #42

This show's use of music really made it magical One of my favorite scenes: https://vimeo.com/151017533

This one always stood out to me on Marilyn's trip to Seattle: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ylkbjjykgG4&list=RDylkbjjykg...

Seeing Seattle from the 90s reminds me of how much the city I knew growing up had already disappeared by the time I left as an adult

Re: Magical Realism: “Northern Exposure” 25 Years Later (2015)

#73

Post by Schlagbohrer »

regularfry wrote: post #63
jfengel wrote: post #31

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I got the impression at the time that Lynch was figuring it out as he went along. Some days that worked; some days it really didn't but mostly carried through on the strength of its performances. I admit I haven't seen it since the original airing. I would likely evaluate it differently now.

He absolutely was, quite famously. He'd be writing the episodes in the diner week-to-week. For me it's the pattern for a lot of shows that went off the rails: starts with a strong premise and setting, but gets an indefinite run so the writer(s) can't actually terminate any story arcs and end up floundering badly. It got dramatically better again when he had to wrap it up. Some shows start off in that state (like Lost…

It is a condemnation of americas modern media culture that Netflix kept turning down David Lynch's ideas in the years before he died. Who knows what weird interesting art we could have had if they (or anyone else) had simply given Lynch (and countless young new artists too) a bag of money and a deadline.

Re: Magical Realism: “Northern Exposure” 25 Years Later (2015)

#75

Post by Schlagbohrer »

Sharlin wrote: post #49
pndy wrote: post #48

As many shows or films from that period the title was "customized" in Poland and "Northern Exposure" was known as " Przystanek Alaska " - "Station Alaska". My dad enjoy it especially credits with moose.

In Finland it was Villi pohjola - "The Wild North"

Hmmm, did that hit a bit different in Finland? A country which is actually just as north / further north than Alaska?

Re: Magical Realism: “Northern Exposure” 25 Years Later (2015)

#76

Post by martijn_himself »

3RTB297 wrote: post #66
martijn_himself wrote: post #58

I had the privilege to watch this show last year for the first time and I was completely blown away by it. I still think about it from time to time and it is easily my favourite show ever. Every actor is great and every single character in it is likeable (despite their flaws) and the show is proof that not everything has to be edgy, dark, gritty and have a murder in it to be good. The writing is phenomenal. Sure, som…

For a while CBS refused to put Northern Exposure on streaming platforms due to the rights needed for all the songs that appeared both in the soundtrack and just in the background on KBHR. I ordered the DVD box set during COVID, later sent it to my parents, who also enjoyed the re-watch. Great show that mostly still held up over the years.

I read about this. I watched it on Amazon UK where it was included with a Prime subscription until recently. I never found out it if it had the original score for all episodes, if it didn't I thought it wasn't too obvious.

Coincidentally after I watched the show I found that the original leading actors (Rob Marrow and Janine Turner) had started a podcast called 'Northern Disclosure' right at that moment (https://www.youtube.com/@NorthernDisclosurePodcast/featured).

Re: Magical Realism: “Northern Exposure” 25 Years Later (2015)

#77

Post by technothrasher »

martijn_himself wrote: post #58

I had the privilege to watch this show last year for the first time and I was completely blown away by it. I still think about it from time to time and it is easily my favourite show ever. Every actor is great and every single character in it is likeable (despite their flaws) and the show is proof that not everything has to be edgy, dark, gritty and have a murder in it to be good. The writing is phenomenal. Sure, som…

Have you watched the movie, "Local Hero" that the show was inspired by? And Doc Martin is another more recent show in the same genre, and also fantastic.

Re: Magical Realism: “Northern Exposure” 25 Years Later (2015)

#78

Post by martijn_himself »

technothrasher wrote: post #77
martijn_himself wrote: post #58

I had the privilege to watch this show last year for the first time and I was completely blown away by it. I still think about it from time to time and it is easily my favourite show ever. Every actor is great and every single character in it is likeable (despite their flaws) and the show is proof that not everything has to be edgy, dark, gritty and have a murder in it to be good. The writing is phenomenal. Sure, som…

Have you watched the movie, "Local Hero" that the show was inspired by? And Doc Martin is another more recent show in the same genre, and also fantastic.

Thanks for the recommendation, I'll definitely add "Local Hero" to my list. I like Doc Martin.

If I had to think of anything recent that would perhaps have a similar feel it would be "The Detectorists" and (very recent) "Small Prophets" (by the same writer).

Re: Magical Realism: “Northern Exposure” 25 Years Later (2015)

#79

Post by NoSalt »

alexyoung wrote: post #52

There's a conversation Chris has in an episode called Heal Thyself, I think, where Maggie buys a washer dryer and won't need to go to the laundromat anymore. Chris reflects that in the future we won't need a lot of things that are part of society, due to technology like fibre optics. We'll watch cinema at home, and he wonders what will happen to these accidental social moments we have in places like cinemas and laund…

> "the viewer is expected to sit through Chris's other conversations on the radio about Whitman, Jung, mythology, the nature of death, and other philosophical and artistic references"

These scenes were some of my favorite; which makes Chris [probably] my favorite character of the series. Probably, more than likely, it is due Chris's ability to describe "life, the universe, and everything" more eloquently than I ever could.

Re: Magical Realism: “Northern Exposure” 25 Years Later (2015)

#80

Post by NetMageSCW »

martijn_himself wrote: post #78
technothrasher wrote: post #77

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Have you watched the movie, "Local Hero" that the show was inspired by? And Doc Martin is another more recent show in the same genre, and also fantastic.

Thanks for the recommendation, I'll definitely add "Local Hero" to my list. I like Doc Martin. If I had to think of anything recent that would perhaps have a similar feel it would be "The Detectorists" and (very recent) "Small Prophets" (by the same writer).

Best Medicine is a transplant of Doc Martin into the US (and Clunes played his father in an episode). It was a bit slow to get going but it starts to click a few episodes in.
Post reply on HN