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WINTER 2016
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As TV viewing continues to evolve, it seems to be one of the few
ways in which our freedom is expanding. For now, at least, the
internet has changed the ways in which we avail ourselves of this
medium.
It’s one of those unusual scenarios in which everyone involved
comes out a winner. We watch the shows that we choose, and
at a time of our own choosing. This allows us greater flexibility,
and truly makes TV user-friendly. No matter where or when we
watch, we are still subject to commercial announcements, so the
purveyors of programming get a win as well. On a night when
we might otherwise switch off the set because there is nothing on
that interests us, we can simply choose to watch whatever we like.
One recent benefit to this for me is that I have discovered
Australian TV. I’m sure that I still know precious little about it,
or about Australia in general, but it has been very interesting for
me. I began by watching “Wentworth”, a show about a fictional
women’s prison in South Australia. It seems to have quite a cult
following in this country, including on Facebook. I was drawn to it
at my daughter’s suggestion, when I was looking for a new series
to “binge watch”, eager to flex my newly found “view on demand”
muscles.
Ordinarily, I would never have found an interest in a program
about a women’s prison, but so far, Colleen had not steered me
wrong. This case was no exception, and I became an instant fan.
Apart from the intriguing cultural differences, and people driving
on the other side of their cars, the show’s ‘realism’ appealed to
me. I don’t necessarily mean that it depicted life as it is (or was) in
Australia, because I have no frame of reference.What appealed to
me was the general willingness to create characters that are real
people, warts and all.
Moreover, the scriptwriters do not tie things up neatly at the end
of every episode, nor can we be assured that the characters will
escape all manner of dangers and tribulations. Sometimes, things
turn out well for them, and sometimes, they don’t.
I soon exhausted the supply of available episodes, and while reading
background information on the show, I learned that this program
was based on an older Aussie offering whose name I recognized:
“Prisoner of Cell Block H”. I had seen this title in the TV listings
countless times since the late 70s, and had rejected it out of hand,
based solely on the name of the show.
Now, things were different. I was curious to see how the two
compared. I soon learned one stark difference: the original ran
for several seasons, and compiled an astonishing total of 692
episodes. Many of the characters from “Wentworth” were either
lifted straight out of “Prisoner”, or were composites of the latter’s
various characters. Others merely had names that were the same
or similar.
“Prisoner of Cell Block H” captured my attention immediately.
It was different from “Wentworth” in a lot of good ways. The
“realism” of Wentworth was eclipsed in “Prisoner”. For one
thing, the actors all look a great deal more like average people.
My earlier allusion to warts had been figurative; in this case, it’s
literal. This show is thousands of miles away from Hollywood,
both figuratively and literally.
Another contrast involves the story lines. “Prisoner” was not
only more prolific, it was more graphic as well. If your favorite
character is abducted, threatened, or endangered, there is genuine
concern about the outcome.They really pulled no punches. From
wrongful convictions to horrific murder, nothing is left off the
table. While the show has dealt with amnesia on a couple of
occasions, it wasn’t used as a mechanism to conveniently write a
supposedly dead character back into the script.
Doubtless, there is artistic license employed in this show, but
enough evil characters get off scot free, and enough innocents are
made to suffer, that the viewer can take nothing for granted. I
was completely hooked before I heard the show described as a
‘soap opera’, and I suppose it is, of sorts. However, it eschews the
strategically timed organ chords and other melodramatic effects
in favor of the strength of the script and the acting, which is quite
good.
One benefit for me of watching “Prisoner” is that I’m learning
the nuances of speech and culture of 1980s Australia, and I find it
fascinating. I was somewhat surprised at the number of American
cultural references that are sprinkled throughout the script,
including several references to Ronald Reagan. I also enjoyed
picking up their slang, and fine tuning my Aussie accent in the
process.
One of the great differences between our prisons and theirs seems
to be that the prison officers are routinely unarmed (most would
prefer not to carry knight sticks, much less firearms), and there is
a bit of preaching about guns. Not surprisingly, the guards are usually
powerless to control unruly and dangerous prisoners, and ironically,
few of them are able to connect the dots. As a result, escapes are
fairly common, and prison riots are routine. Defenseless guards are
occasionally brutalized, and even murdered.
The biggest surprise of all to me was the rather lax sentencing of
convicted criminals. In spite of the perceived public attitude regarding
them, convicts were often given probation, or perhaps 6 months
or a year behind bars. Often, if an inmate were to commit a crime
while incarcerated, she would be tried in an informal hearing inside
the prison, and in some cases get off with as little as a concurrent
sentence. Although there is much discussion of life imprisonment, it
is rare indeed for a murderer to face more than a 10 year stretch. Even
after all of that, parole seems to be rather easy to achieve. Again, this
may or may not be an accurate depiction of real life in Australia, but
I found it interesting.
Overall, the show has me in its grip. The characters are strong, and
cause you to develop very strong feelings about them, one way or
another. Some of the characters endear themselves to you, others
engender hatred… and some will have you flipping back and forth. I
will admit that some of the plot lines are a bit predictable, but they are
also not without surprises.
I haven’t lost my taste for “Wentworth”, but “Prisoner” has an appeal
for me that I never could have imagined. My hat is off to those who
could produce such an engaging program, while being so prolific in
the process. A season of “Wentworth” might offer 7 or 10 episodes,
perhaps even a dozen, but a season of “Prisoner” might deliver 10
times as many.
Perhaps I’m just longing for the “good old days”, when some shows
were produced in such quantity, but at the same time, I’m loving the
fact that I can consume an entire evening binge watching a show that’s
so “fair dinkum”.
No worries.
