|
|
|
an artful rule-breaker
Fox Family winner from veteran script writers
By Andrew Wallenstein
As seasoned scriptwriters for TV shows like "Xena: Warrior Princess" and "Picket Fences," Brenda Lilly and Hollis Rich know about writing for memorable female characters.
Now they're hoping they've crafted a few of their own with a touching new cable series they created and executive-produced together for the Fox Family Channel, "State of Grace" (Mondays, 9-9:30 p.m. ET, beginning with two episodes tonight.)
Lilly and Rich may be the heroines behind the camera, but the two females bound to attract attention are the 12-year-old stars of "Grace," Ali Shawkat and Mae Whitman.
They play a pair of friends growing up in North Carolina during the 1960s who couldn't be any more different. Hannah Rayburn (Shawkat) is a shy, Jewish girl with overprotective parents; Grace McKee (Whitman) is the rambunctious Catholic spoiled by a jet-setting mother who is never around.
What's good about "Grace" is that so many of the elements that make up the show are completely network-unfriendly.
From its dated setting to its religious themes to the casting of young female protagonists who aren't over-sexualized vampire killers, "Grace" gets points just for breaking all the rules.
Oscar-winning actress Frances McDormand delivers a voiceover as an adult version of Hannah, giving "Grace" the nostalgic poignancy of the similarly formatted ABC hit "Wonder Years."
The series is even more reminiscent of the tragically short-lived CBS drama "Brooklyn Bridge," which also took a wistful look at an extended family of Jewish immigrants.
Viewers first meet Mom, Dad, Grandma Ida and Uncle Heschie in a funny scene in which Hannah negotiates the terms of her first sleepover while bouncing on the cushions she tests for the family's furniture business.
After her parents finally cave in, Hannah compares them to the product they're testing: apply enough pressure and you can eventually break them in.
The sleepover starts with a scene that nicely captures the culture clash of their friendship. When Grace saunters up Hannah's walkway wearing a mink stole and dangling earrings, she stops to tug at a religious object known as a mezuzah, hanging on the doorpost.
When Mr. Rayburn explains that the mezuzah "protects our house from evil," Hannah is thoroughly embarrassed. "Grace had unknowingly disabled our Jewish security system," she comments.
While the series has a sweet, light tone, "Grace" doesn't gloss over its emotional core. Sweet and tender as the friendship is between Grace and Hannah, it is fueled by a mutual envy the series examines closely.
The family Hannah sees as suffocating is fully embraced by Grace, who desperately craves any parental attention. Young Hannah doesn't even notice, so enamored is she with Grace's glamorous mother and hunky older brother.
As one of several new series being introduced to juice Fox Family's primetime ratings, "Grace" isn't quite the bona fide hit the cable network needs. "Grace" is more a critics' darling than a ratings grabber, but the series does fit the network's mandate of attracting parents without leaving out their kids.
Still, don't be surprised if by the time "Grace" completes its initial 13-episode order, the network has transferred ownership. Rupert Murdoch is reportedly actively shopping Fox Family around to other media conglomerates.
Despite the acquisition-friendly market that comes as a byproduct of the soft American economy, Murdoch has had no takers yet. The probable cause: Potential buyers like AOL Time Warner and Viacom already have family-oriented properties like the Cartoon Network and Nickelodeon.
June 25, 2001 © 2001 Media Life
-Andrew Wallenstein is the television critic for Media Life.
Send to a
Friend| Printer-Friendly Version
Cover Page | Contact
Us
