I don’t know exactly what has the drama subgenre about television which is usually fascinating. Sneaking through the cracks in the middle to see what happens behind the cameras of a news program. To series like ‘The Newsroom’, ‘The Hour’ or the most recent ‘The Morning Show’, now comes the Australian ‘The Newsreader’, which Cosmo premieres tonight.
The ever exemplary Anna Torv stars in this series as Helen Norville, journalist presenter of the news at six in the afternoon. The woman seeks to assert herself in a very competitive world dominated by men and dinosaurs who are reluctant to retire.
She will find in Dale (Sam Reid), young reporter who wants to become a presenter. Between the two they will try to navigate a series of six episodes that will review several of the historical events of 1986, beginning with the explosion of the Challenger shuttle.
One of the things that stands out in the series is seeing the difference between person and character. Beyond her problems (which she has and the series does not hide), Helen Norville enjoys freedom outside of schedule, she has her own style and her own interests. In front of the cameras she gets corseted, she is dressed and transformed into a chivalrous lady who reads the news without much choice to do what she wants. But she’s magnetic and she knows it.
the news calmly
Michael Lucas, creator and screenwriter of fiction, focuses almost entirely on the story of Helen and Dale and their facet, both personal and as presenters/reporters, but without getting too far out of the headlines. The series, directed by Emma Freeman, is sophisticated, vibrant but somewhat lighter on period portraiture than we might think.
In fact, unlike other series —whether period or not— in which we delve into the world of news, hardly offer an overview or x-ray of society or the politics of the moment. Or, if they do, they do it generically. We go from event to event, from drama to drama.
neither is that you need to broaden the focus because it is clearly effective. Perhaps a more forceful tone is missing when describing the situations and executing the dialogues, but its inoffensive appearance does not take away an iota of interest from the drama. As a reminder that, despite the calamities and situations that have to be covered, the one who shouts the most is not the one who tells it the best.
In short, ‘The Newsreader’ is a a series as sophisticated and fascinating as it is restrained. It is embellished with an interesting plot and a fairly fine-tuned cast that leads us by the hand in this news story.