![]() (Her: “I’ll be gentle.” Him: “I’ve got a feeling you don’t know how to be.”) They’re assisted by a wise-cracking techie, who largely stays behind the scenes, as they face off against a posh, ice-cold Brit. Its top two agents, Mason ( Richard Madden) and Nadia ( Priyanka Chopra Jonas), share a sexual tension communicated with braindead banter in lieu of chemistry. While technically original, the story could be sourced from a word cloud of the Wikipedia page for “spy thriller.” The titular organization is an international syndicate concerned with Cold War-era threats like loose nuclear weapons. But a sprawling structure needs a rock-solid foundation, and the one “Citadel” provides is shaky at best. In theory, this English-language flagshipwill be the center of a whole interconnected universe. Not that quality really matters for Amazon, which has already greenlit a second season of “Citadel,” as well as satellite shows set in Italy and India. But even if you aren’t the type to close-read an IMDb page, the origins of “Citadel” are obvious enough in the execution: a choppy, generic blockbuster-by-numbers with a nine-figure budget you’d never detect from the chintzy CGI. There are traces of that turmoil in the credits the pilot’s teleplay is attributed to no fewer than five screenwriters. Also evident is a reportedly chaotic production that included extensive reshoots, a showrunner switch and a shortened episode order. The idea originated not with a writer, director or producer, but with Amazon Studios head Jennifer Salke, who approached AGBO, the production company of Anthony and Joe Russo, with a business plan in search of a creative concept.Īs with the underwhelming “Rings of Power,” that cart-before-the-horse approach can’t help showing in the final product. ![]() If “The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power” was Amazon’s attempt to supply its streaming service Prime Video with a homegrown version of “Game of Thrones,” the new spy series “Citadel” is its attempt at a “Squid Game,” “Money Heist” or “Love Is Blind”: a show with the global appeal to match the reach of its platform, and a potential franchise that could support international spinoffs. ![]()
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |