I hesitate to review something which is not accessible to everyone - but I did want to comment on "The First Lady". This is a 10 part series, currently available on Amazon Paramount. Steph and Gary have AP, and she watched it recently and thought I'd enjoy it. I binge-watched it in 2 days [whilst cuddling a sleeping Jacob] The series tells the story of three women in the White House, at three very different times in American history. Eleanor Roosevelt [FLOTUS 1933—45] wife of Franklin, who served through the Great Depression and WW2, and died in office. Then Betty Ford [74-77] Her husband Gerald was Vice President, but was catapulted into the Oval Office when Richard Nixon resigned. Betty battled cancer and addiction, and sought to restore truth and integrity to the Presidency. Michelle Obama was wife of the first black president - like her husband Barack, she is a very intelligent lawyer, and they were in the White House 2009-2017. Each episode shows a different aspect of 'being FLOTUS' [support through elections, health issues, the 'power behind the throne' etc] for each of the three women.
Like "The Crown" there's a lot of imagined fictional dialogue as well as factual events. There is a stellar cast - Gillian Anderson is brilliant as Mrs R, with Kiefer Sutherland a believable FDR. And Michelle Pfeiffer is a convincing Betty. I remember the Ford era, and the Obamas are still around - but it struck me as a good portrayal of all 3 couples [from my limited knowledge of USA history] You can see from these pictures of actor alongside POTUS/FLOTUS how hard they have worked at accuracy. If you have the opportunity, do check it out!
An intriguing series. I don't do Amazon so I won't get to see this but it's good to know it's a well-made series.
ReplyDeleteIt may get to ITV eventually!
DeleteI loved the new FLOTUS' outfits while she was in the UK - very elegant and classy. I cancelled Amazon and am thinking of cancelling Netflix for the time being since I very rarely watch it and the subscription's just gone up. The mini-series looks awfully good though.
ReplyDeleteYes, I thought Jill B looked elegant too. These subscriptions keep going up. I hope First Lady does make it to ITV
DeleteThat sounds fascinating, I'm glad they stopped at Michelle Obama, the next first lady would have made it a totally different series.
ReplyDeleteThe three women chosen were an excellent set - very different characters, approaching the themes in different ways.Each had their own strengths - and struggles
DeleteI must look out for this, I think I would enjoy it.
ReplyDeleteJean, I think it is just your "cup of tea" - altho I found some of the episodes with family illness were a little hard to watch.
DeleteIt sounds like an interesting series to watch. Glad you enjoyed it.
ReplyDeleteIt was very interesting - both entertaining and informative
DeleteGillian Anderson is an incredible actress and I'm glad that Michelle Obama is being remembered. I have so much respect for her.
ReplyDeleteMe too
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