The Sunday Times - UK (2021-11-28)

I do my role, and everyone’s happy.”

It was her sympathetic take on the

role that won over Susan’s solicitor, the

only person who could discuss the case

as prisoners are restricted in the inter-

views they can give. Sinclair says: “It was

fascinating, but if you’re leaning into

someone’s point of view and they’re a

fantasist it seemed obvious that this

couldn’t be a normal crime procedural.”

Landscapers picks up a new trend in

where millennial writers and directors

are experimenting with the limits of the

medium. Its executive producer Chris

Fry points to Channel 4’s We Are Lady

Parts, where an all-girl Muslim punk

band express their longings via scenes

from old movies, and Squid Game,

which uses the insane world of a lethal

game to highlight the dehumanising

effect of poverty on Korean society.

Even Netflix’s Sex Education takes

the format of an American high-school

movie and adapts it to allow an explo-

ration of the dilemmas of British kids

coming of age in gender-fluid times.

Subjects that might have been tackled

in the hyper-realist style of Ken Loach

are treated more metaphorically. Fry

explains: “This innovation started on

streamers like Netflix as they wanted

shows that stood out and offered crea-

tives freedom to experiment and it’s

moving into mainstream telly.”

Will Sharpe has worked with Col-

man on three projects, each of which

depicts mental health and intense emo-

tion through surreal techniques: the

dark sitcom Flowers, where one charac-

ter “does a dance about feeling the

mania, depression and frustration of

bipolar disorder”, and the heightened

visuals of The Electric Life of Louis Wain,

a biopic of the artist where paintings

and life merge. Despite her Hollywood

roles, Colman loves arthouse. “The

Favourite was an art film, I loved Flow-

ers, I love this — they’re all inventive

and arty,” she says, smiling. “But then

I’m a massive fan of Marvel.” The image

of Sharpe directing Colman in a Marvel

film flashes into the mind — that’s a fan-

tasy that should merge with reality. c

Landscapers is on Sky Atlantic and

Now on Dec 7

They wrapped the

bodies in a duvet cover

and buried them under

their own lawn

Blindspotting

This US drama about a jailed

thief’s girlfriend coping with his

incarceration is told with fourth-

wall breaks, spoken-word poetry,

modern dance sequences and

choreographed prison visits. Starz

Ramy

The New Jersey Muslim comic Ramy

Youssef’s quasi-autobiographical

dramedy covers 9/11 with a

12-year-old Ramy dreaming of

finding Osama bin Laden eating

strawberries from his fridge after

the attacks while discussing Islam

and the West. Channel 4

Giri/Haji

The eight-part yakuza drama

climaxes with an unexpected

rooftop dance sequence in which

the cast tie up the complex plot

through an elaborate balletic

routine to Olafur Arnalds and

Alice Sara Ott’s Chopin-sampling

track Verses. Netflix

FANTASTICAL TV SHOWS

MUM... AND DANCE

EDDY CHEN/STARZ

CRAIG BLANKENHORN/HULU

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