Tanner '88 (1988)

I hadn't intended to blog about Tanner '88 here, but with my thoughts on Altman documented, I figured I should. Plus, I found a few things to grumble about offer constructive criticism on. I liked Tanner '88. I didn't love it, but I enjoyed it and was entertained. Heck, I learned a whole lot about politics, especially the campaign road to presidency. I really liked the first handful of episodes, namely the first disc of the set, but it started to wear thin by the other disc.

First of all, the show degenerates into something that resembles a sitcom most of the time. At first it was cute to watch, because these are people trying to get a man elected president (not to mention said man), but after a while, it really began to wear thin. Far too many gags used for comedic value, and too many contrived situations. Most of the show is intelligent, entertaining and really informative, so it really shouldn't have to fall back on such banalities.

There's an episode early on the second disc, I believe called "The Girlfriend Factor," where the tone of the whole series really does a 180 and doesn't quite recover. The series, despite being heavily steeped in something as serious as American politics (zing?), has a very jovial tone, due to the caricatured characters and zany situations. Therefore, halfway through the episode, when the brakes are firmly applied to Tanner '88 to allow for a discussion with those living in inner-city Detroit, who tell tales about having little children dying in the streets, it's extremely alienating to the viewer. While I agree that it's a problem that most politicians should be focusing on, it really has no place in Tanner '88, especially not where it occurs. It's like splicing a few minutes of a snuff film into an episode of Malcolm in the Middle. After this, the series never feels the same, and the gags all seem to fall flat and feel very immature after the viewer has had to deal with such a harrowing topic.

Still, I'm on the fence about Altman. I didn't think Tanner '88 would really sway me, though. It's hard to gauge a director's talent and style from an American-produced miniseries.