Olive Kitteridge - General Discussion

[Tara Ariano]

Four-part adaptation of Elizabeth Strout's Pulitzer Prize-winning novel spanning 25 years in a small Maine town.

[Rick Kitchen]

Entertainment Weekly is raving about this mini-series.

[Tara Ariano]

I finished watching my screeners last night and will have an advancer on it this afternoon. It's pretty great.

[Valny]

Just by looking at the trailer a while ago, I don't know what it's about but I am definitely watching for the cast! I'll catch it on Demand. (don't want to read too much about it though) Is it safe to say McDormand will be getting some award noms from this?

[ItsHelloPattiagain]

I watched every second of this with awe over Frances McDormand's performance - and the rest of the cast was pretty awesome too. However do we end up finding out why Olive is such a BITCH? She def has a shell up but all along I was wondering what brought her to that point?

[JudyObscure]

I adored the book this is based on. Can not wait to see it on my tv screen!

I read the book and loved it, too, 17Wheatthins. (One 160 calorie serving, that I ate while watching this, heh!)

I didn't see how the series could compare, but it was wonderful! I've always been a huge fan of McDormand's and this should be up there with "Fargo," for her. This may also prove that literary novels can make good film, they don't all have to be fantasy or murder mysteries.

[EdnasEdibles]

I watched every second of this with awe over Frances McDormand's performance - and the rest of the cast was pretty awesome too. However do we end up finding out why Olive is such a BITCH? She def has a shell up but all along I was wondering what brought her to that point?

 

It's been years since I read the book but I remember thinking that while I probably wouldn't like Olive in real life - I did understand her. I think her life had a number of disappointments - her father's depression and death and then I think she also suffered from mild depression. In the book she was described as being very tall and unattractive so I got the feeling that while Henry was a nice man, he wasn't really suited for her and didn't really make her happy (and she didn't make him happy). They just kind of ended up with each other.  

 

I think she didn't suffer fools and was gruff.  But she also was caring in her own way. She knew how much Denise meant to Henry so she let him have the girl over and teach her to drive.  She recognized that the boy in her class had a very sick mother.  She rescued him later on when he was in town. 

 

The scenes with the boy's mother were interesting to me.  You could see that Henry and Olive both interacted with her. Henry at the pharmacy and Olive at the woman's house. Henry was far more polite and gentle. He told her to get brighter bulbs and get moving. Olive later told her the same thing in a far more gruff manner but it was Olive that the woman responded to in a more positive way. She respected Olive more or she appreciated that Olive wasn't going to prance around her and avoid the topic. Olive gave her a kick in the ass and told her what to do. The woman even sneered at Henry a bit as he was trying to save the life of his own assistant.  "She's dead, Henry" - like Henry's ability to look at people and the world through rose-colored glasses was insane to her. She appreciated someone who told it like it was.  It seems that people outside of Olive's family appreciated her more than her own family did. 

Edited November 3, 2014 by EdnasEdibles

[LuciaMia]

It's odd. I just noticed parts 3&4 on HBO last night. Been looking forward it but thought, 'No problem, I'll just catch the first part on OnDemand.'  But there's only 3&4 on there as well.  HBO, what have you done with 1&2?

[ItsHelloPattiagain]

I think 1&2 were run Sunday night, if I remember correctly from my channel guide. It was a two hour show. So 1&2 the first night and 3&4 the second night (Monday). 

[junemeatcleaver]

I think parts 1 & 2 will be rerun sometime Thursday.

[EdnasEdibles]

Did anyone watch 3&4?  I finally did last. 

 

I swear, I know Olive is not terribly nice but I really hate her son.  I remember hating him in the book and I hated him in the movie.  So much whining about how she was a terrible mother when - OK, yes, she was cold and critical but at a certain point, get over it.  You'd think his therapist would tell him that you can't change someone so you either have to figure out how to deal with them in  healthy way or decide not to deal with them. He always seemed to want his mom to be there on his terms. And he was just as cruel as Olive.  When she came to visit and asked about the upstairs neighbor and he said "Yeah, his dad died when he plowed into a tree" and then laughed and said he was joking - he was just being cruel.  Olive is harsh but I don't think she sets out to hurt people for the most part - with the exception of her husband - but she's just harsh.  Chris wanted to hurt her. 

 

The whole ER scene was brutal to watch. Reminded me a bit of Who's Afraid of Virginia Wolf

[LuciaMia]

Finally caught 1&2, Yay!

When Olive basically says, after the ER hostage thing "Let's not talk about it; it never happened' (and getting rid of anything that would be a reminder, including the wet trousers') that's pretty much the emotional landscape for both of them. Strong feelings finally being expressed only under severe stress.

 

Olive seems harsh and judgemental. But I bet she sees herself as uncompromising; having high standards. Someone who speaks her mind and doesn't sugar-coat things.  And yet she has a way of zeroing in on people who need help, like the depressed valium-popping mom, and later her suicidal son.

 

Speaking of which, did they mention what happened to that mom?  I doubt it ended well.

 

I wonder if anybody in that town ever lives to a (somewhat) contented old age?

[EdnasEdibles]

Speaking of which, did they mention what happened to that mom?  I doubt it ended well.

 

 

Yes, she killed herself.  When the boy came back to town as an adult and Olive was talking to him, she asked if his mother had left a note.  He said she mailed him one because she was worried that the police would take it.  The note told him how to work the washer and dryer.  Brutal. 

[FoundTime]

Oh man, I loved this. I barely knew it was on until a couple of days before, and even reading a review or two, I was afraid it was going to be more like Something I Should Watch rather than something I'd enjoy. But all day Monday I couldn't get the characters out of my head and I just wanted to get back to them and their stories. (And now I want to read the book!)

 

The cast was stellar all 'round, and of course McDormand was extra special amazing. But I was kinda most impressed that for all the screentime Jesse Plemons got as neo-Nazi Todd in Breaking Bad, it was his character here (Jerry) that I really truly hated with the fire of a thousand nuns.

 

Kudos to all.

[Mindymoo]

I absolutely loved this miniseries. I never read the novel, but am definitely going to now. The characters were so rich and interesting. Olive was so fascinating. I understood why she was the way she was. She was cold, yes, but she really wasn't that awful. She did care about people. She cared about that student and his mother, and the well being of both of them. She appreciated smart people, like that boy and the teacher she was having the emotional affair with. She was a depressed person that was married to an eternal optimist, and I can see how that could really grate on someone after awhile.

 

I absolutely loathed her son, who was cruel, flaky, selfish and an asshole. Seriously- your father is in a nursing home with your mother being the only one who comes to see, comfort and do additional care for him daily, and you want her to come out to visit you to help with your new pregnant wife, and her two children from previous relationships, one of whom is an absolute terror? That is the height of selfishness right there. And I'm not one for corporal punishment, but I would have slapped that kid too. He was going to rip her dress, and he wasn't getting any kind of reprimand from his parents. Not only that, he was being rewarded for his poor behavior. And equating a slap on the hand to his wife's mom's alcoholism? Ugh. What a nightmare. And her being there meant that she wasn't there when her husband passed away. Another reason for me to dislike him.

 

As much as I loathed Bill Murray's character being a right wing homophobe, I did think it was kind of sweet at the end how they connected. They were both very broken, sad, lonely people who could bond over their failings and the loss of their spouses that they knew they weren't so kind to. They kind of left it up in the air, but I was left with the idea that Bill Murray's character would try to contact his estranged daughter, and that Olive would reach out to her douchebag son regarding the birth of her first grandchild.

Edited November 6, 2014 by Mindy McIndy

[ItsHelloPattiagain]

Wow, episodes 3&4 were intense, weren't they? IMHO Olive's son was overcompensating with the little boy - I would have made the little boy apologize for pulling on her clothing and annoying her. But I didn't hate the son as a lot of you did - childhood wounds cut deep and I imagine he wanted to hurt his mother as much as he felt his mother hurt him over the years. Interesting how stress made the previously unsaid truth pop out of everybody's mouth. 

 

But I was kinda most impressed that for all the screentime Jesse Plemons got as neo-Nazi Todd in Breaking Bad

I kept waiting for him to do something really awful with that reptilian look on his face. 

[EdnasEdibles]

What is interesting about the book - and to be honest it might be why I don't like the son - is that not every chapter is told from Olive's point of view.  Her husband has a story where he shares his thoughts, the boy with the depressed mother shares her thoughts, there is another story with a waitress I believe . . . anyway, everyone gets their say so you hear Olive from Olive's head but you also hear about Olive from other people's heads and they aren't nearly as harsh about her as she is about herself.  The only person you never hear from is their son. It might have made him more sympathetic if we could peer inside of his brain.  But he's one of the only major characters that we don't delve into so he's always a bit two-dimensional.

[Morbs]

I thought Olive had slapped the child's face.  If she did just slap his hand away, it was definitely an over reaction by the parents.  Living in that apartment with all those kids looked like pure hell to me.  I was actually grateful for my own boring life for once.

 

I didn't find the son that unlikable either, but he seemed to really be exaggerating Olive's behavior, but I think we could be lead to believe there was more abuse that we didn't get to see.

[scrb]

Olive said she appreciated Henry after he was gone, perhaps an indication that she'll do things differently with the Bill Murray character.

The hostage situation brought out some brutal truths that each had felt about the other for a long time. The bickering there seemed to be played for like a sitcom convo but maybe the idea is that certain revelations come to light under extreme circumstances.

[MyLisa]

Finally finished watching this yesterday. For the most part, I loved it and feel no compunction to read the book. I may even name my next pet Clancy! Henry reminded me so much of my Dad... The one thing that took me out of the story was the stupid piano player -- her presence felt so gimmicky. Is she significant to the book? Or perhaps a local celebrity where this was filmed? One other question -- the foot thing. All the closeups of the feet. What was that about? When I saw a 6th toe in one of her dream sequences I thought 'ah hah!" But then the next opportunity to see her feet came in and I realized no, her feet were normal.

[Turtle]

I loved this show.  It was riveting, even though I didn't find most of the characters to be all that likable.  My heart broke for Olive, because she really didn't seem to realize what she was doing that was so upsetting to people or made them not like her.  And the pattern with her son was just so unhealthy.  I thought it started in episode 1 when he was younger, and then it never changed, despite all his therapy!  He seemed to intentionally antagonize her, saying and doing things he knew she would respond badly too, and then get all indignant and self-righteous when she acted exactly how he was expecting her to.  And she kept playing right in to it, falling in to her own special brand of passive-aggressiveness and victimization, knowing it would make him back down.  It was awful to watch, but really well done, I thought.  

[editorgrrl]

The one thing that took me out of the story was the stupid piano player -- her presence felt so gimmicky. Is she significant to the book? Or perhaps a local celebrity where this was filmed?

 

Martha Wainwright is Canadian, and comes from a musical family—her older brother is Rufus Wainwright, their parents Loudon Wainwright III and Kate McGarrigle. Angela's songs mark the passing of time—from steakhouse to retirement home.

 

I loved her cover of Olivia Newton John's "Magic":

[Pine]

I feel like I missed something when Olive went to visit the wealthy mother of one of the student's that Olive had in detention.  Was there some back story I missed regarding the ladies son?

[Mindymoo]

I feel like I missed something when Olive went to visit the wealthy mother of one of the student's that Olive had in detention.  Was there some back story I missed regarding the ladies son?

While they were sitting in the car and catching up, Olive mentioned to the former student of hers that that woman's won had murdered a young woman.

[editorgrrl]

I feel like I missed something when Olive went to visit the wealthy mother of one of the student's that Olive had in detention. Was there some back story I missed regarding the ladies son?

Earlier, Olive told Kevin Coulson that Doyle Larkin is in prison for stabbing a woman. (Doyle's the boy Olive wouldn't let out of detention.) Louise Larkin sent Olive a card after Henry's stroke. Olive went to see Louise, who basically accused Olive of schadenfreude—going to see Louise to make herself feel better about her own crappy life.

Edited November 22, 2014 by editorgrrl

[TattleTeeny]

In the book, is there anything about Olive's acid refuel or bowel issues? I kept thinking she was gonna be diagnosed with something awful.

 

Oy, the vet scene. Too close to home for me, man.

Edited November 24, 2014 by TattleTeeny

[attica]

My mother used to use "Godfrey!" as a swear-replacement word. She's been dead awhile now, and I got The Feels each time Olive said it.

 

She was really only nice to the broken people, which I found ineffably moving. Even the lady that fell off the cliff, once she was okay (i.e. not broken anymore), Olive was over it.

[Milburn Stone]

Martha Wainwright is Canadian, and comes from a musical family—her older brother is Rufus Wainwright, their parents Loudon Wainwright III and Kate McGarrigle. Angela's songs mark the passing of time—from steakhouse to retirement home.

 

I wondered if she was related to the other Wainrights. Thanks for the info. I loved her character. And laughed out loud at the second glimpse of her. I didn't expect her to recur after her first scene. But when I saw from that second appearance how they were going to be using her--not just to show the passage of time, but to show how the passage of time was changing everyone but her--I had to love the comic brilliance in a story that needed all the leavening touches it could get.

Edited December 4, 2014 by Milburn Stone

[Inquisitionist]

Francis McDormand is nominated for a Golden Globe, as is the mini-series itself, but Richard Jenkins' fine performance couldn't elbow its way into the Lead Actor category.

[editorgrrl]

Nominees for the 21st annual Screen Actors Guild Awards

Outstanding performance by a male actor in a television movie or miniseries:

Adrien Brody, Houdini

Benedict Cumberbatch, Sherlock: His Last Vow

Richard Jenkins, Olive Kitteridge

Mark Ruffalo, The Normal Heart

Billy Bob Thornton, Fargo

 

Outstanding performance by a female actor in a television movie or miniseries:

Ellen Burstyn, Flowers in the Attic

Maggie Gyllenhaal, The Honorable Woman

Frances McDormand, Olive Kitteridge

Julia Roberts, The Normal Heart

Cicely Tyson, The Trip to Bountiful

 

2015 Golden Globe nominations

Best TV Movie or Mini-Series
Fargo (FX)
The Missing (Starz)
The Normal Heart (HBO)
Olive Kitteridge (HBO)
True Detective (HBO)

 

Best Actress in a Mini-Series or TV Movie
Maggie Gyllenhaal, The Honourable Woman (SundanceTV)
Jessica Lange, American Horror Story: Freak Show (FX)
Frances McDormand, Olive Kitteridge (HBO)
Frances O’Connor, The Missing (Starz)
Allison Tolman, Fargo (FX)

 

Best Supporting Actor in a Series, Mini-Series or TV Movie
Matt Bomer, The Normal Heart (HBO)
Alan Cumming, The Good Wife  (CBS)
Colin Hanks, Fargo (FX)
Bill Murray, Olive Kitteridge (HBO)
Jon Voight, Ray Donovan (Showtime)

 

[jjj]

How did I miss hearing about this back in Autumn?  I happened to catch it mid-series on HBO yesterday, and of course went back and watched from the beginning.  What an amazing set of performances.  The way Olive is tuned into pain (the young boy who returns to kill himself -- she understood him at both phases of his life), and the way she reaches out without anyone knowing makes her contributions to humanity below the radar -- while her kind and friendly husband is reaching out to the town in his own way, but recognized for it.  Most heartbreaking scenes?  Not even Denise/Jerry visiting, but Henry saying right afterward, "if her Henry were here, she would be a loved woman."  And the vet scene, yes, partly because we were told she was waiting for the dog to die, and we were waiting for that scene.  And the suicide note to Denise as well as Christopher before she went into the woods.  Remarkable that she would reach out to Denise after all her disparagement of her.  But she is right, Denise would want to know the end of that chapter of her life. 

 

Wow.  I'd say I hope this show wins all its awards, but it seems beyond awards; it is remarkable. 

[Inquisitionist]

I rewatched the 2nd episode on a long flight this past weekend.  It was the only episode available.  Wow, that was so well done, with the hallucinations (Olive's head turning into an elephant) and the flashbacks (always love Rosemarie DeWitt).  Cory Michael Smith was excellent as Kevin.  Olive's behavior at her son's wedding was cringe-worthy yet somehow admirable as well.  Seeing this made me want to rewatch the entire mini-series.  I hope it's still available On Demand.

Edited May 19, 2015 by Inquisitionist

[Ohwell]

I just finished watching this.  The only thing I can say about Olive is that I'm sorry those kids came across her before she had a chance to shoot herself.  I doubt she would have been missed by the people in that town.  What a soul-sucking bitch.

 

I  loved how the piano player kept showing up throughout the series. 

 

Also, I couldn't stand watching Frances McDormand in her eating scenes, the way she stuffs the food in her mouth and the way she chews.  She had an eating scene in Fargo but I liked her character so it didn't bother me as much.  I wonder if  she likes to do eating scenes to make fun of herself.   

Edited June 26, 2015 by Ohwell

[Inquisitionist]

So happy for everyone connected with Olive Kitteridge, but especially Richard Jenkins, who is a phenomenal actor and a swell human being.  (I happened to meet him last year at a fund-raising event.)

[AuntiePam]

Awards can't always be trusted as an indicator of quality, but the Emmy voters got this one right.  It's not that often that we get a character study-type of film that's also imaginative and entertaining. 

 

I like flinty women, and Olive gave off a lot of sparks. 

 

I liked the scene where Denise told Henry she wasn't a child, and how that kinda rocked him, woke him up a little bit about what he was doing.  I liked the flashback to Louise's murdering son, with his drawing of a decapitation.  I liked Henry and Chris quietly recognizing Olive's loss, after O'Casey's death.  I liked that Olive tried to be patient and accepting of Ann, Chris's wife, and tolerant of the spoiled little boy. 

 

Is this a thing now, to insist that adults apologize to toddlers and the toddler forgives them?  God, I hope not.  That wouldn't happen in my house.

 

That was the most satisfying four hours of TV since -- I don't know when. 

[Quickbeam]

I’m really embarrassed but I finally got around to watching this. It was excellent. It has been on my DVR for years and I was at the delete or watch point. Fantastic acting from all but Richard Jenkins was brilliant. 

[Inquisitionist]

Better late than never!!