PICK OF THE MONTH:
Jamestown
SVT1, June 17, 21:00
For most, a visit to America makes for a fine holiday. But if the year is 1619 and you’re headed to colonial Virginia for an arranged marriage, such a tour loses a considerable amount of sparkle.
Therein lies the premise of Sky TV’s Jamestown, the story of three English women recently disembarked in the titular settlement as prototypical mail-order brides.
The men of this starved outpost are lacking in their positions on gender equality and feminist theory, and so arises much of the show’s central drama.
Described by the Telegraph as “silly but gripping” and singed by the Guardian for anachronistic shoehorning of modern social perspectives into an archaic setting, Jamestown makes up for historical deviance with an engaging, personal period drama.
Premiered just this past May, Jamestown explores a relatively uncharted perspective on an early chapter in US history.
ALSO NEW:
Why do they always insist on making films about the aftermath of Mossad’s finest hour? The Eichmann Show (DRK, June 9, 22:30) starring Martin Freeman and Anthony LaPaglia feels like it’s left out all the exciting bits. Now give us the prequel in Buenos Aires.
The Passing Bells (SVT1, June 13, 21:50), the tale of a British and German soldier fighting WWI and occasionally meeting, also feels like a missed opportunity of sorts, even if it is a valiant effort by screenwriter Tony Jordan.
Sandwiching the two is Wheelchair President (DRK, June 19, 01:50), a conspiracy theory in its time – after all, who knew FDR secretly fancied Churchill.
Fast-forward to modern times and the best they can do is Ivanka Trump – America’s Real First Lady (DR2, June 22, 23:00).
Elsewhere, we’ve got S2 of Fortitude (TV2, June 16, 00:45) – Sofie Grabøl’s still there but we guess the other big names have all been bumped off – S4 of the relentlessly dull Friday Night Dinner (SVT1, June 27, 22:30) and S3 of Please Like Me (SVT2, June 13, 22:15); Katy Perry: The Prismatic World Tour (SVT2, June 19, 22:45) continues with the enthusiasm of an asthmatic lemming; and Agatha Raisin (DR1, June 18, 00:50) is a police procedural starring the charming Ashley Jensen from Extras.
COMING SOON:
For every Netflix success, like Aziz Ansari’s Master of None, there’s a Sense8 or Marco Polo – clearly it has growing pains.
Nevertheless, GLOW, a new series from the creative team behind Orange is the New Black debuting on June 23, looks promising. It explores the development of a women’s pro wrestling league in LA during the 1980s, with a cleverly-edited trailer promising no shortage of ‘80s rock anthems, soft neon and pastel-tone outfits.
Not to be outdone, HBO Nordic is releasing S7 of heavy hitter Game of Thrones on July 17 and new series Room 104 on July 28.
Created by actor/director duo Jay and Mark Duplass, this intriguing blend of dark comedy and drama explores 12 different stories taking place in the same stale motel room – teasing forays into supernatural and conspiratorial avenues along the way.
Elsewhere, Stephen King’s novella The Mist is premiering on June 22; the BBC’s beloved Great British Baking Show returns for a fourth season premier on June 16; and Niell Blomkamp (District 9) has recently released cryptic trailers for an upcoming project, which suggest the project will continue his themes of extraterrestrial insectoids and soft-apocalpyse aesthetics. Blomkamp hasn’t set a definite release date, only teasing that the project is “streaming soon”. (AH)
TOP SPORT:
Australia’s representing Asia in the Confederations Cup (DR3, June 17-July 2), while NZ’s flying the flag for Australasia. Confused? Yes! Unenthused? Already! With Kazakhstan in Euro 2016 and Jamaica in the Copa America, it could have been worse. Elsewhere, Scotland host England (K6, June 10, 18:00) in the 2018 World Cup qualifiers, the French Open (Eurosport, June 10 & 11, 15:00) climaxes and F1 continues at the Canadian GP (3+, June 11, 18:30).
TOP FILM:
It’s a gamble scheduling mediocrity when the summer weather is so unpredictable. The Hammer (SVT1, June 22, 23:15), a tale of a deaf wrestling champ, has its moments, as does Edge of Tomorrow (TV3, June 18, 21:00) starring Emily Blunt and … I forget. The Vow (DR1, June 23, 21:55) steals the old fogie storyline from The Notebook in a bid to be Dear John, and Selfless (TV3, June 11, 21:00) just wants to be good. It fails.
