1923 - drama, western
1923 Ranchers Jacob and Kara struggle to survive in the United States during the Great Depression, Prohibition, and increased cattle theft.
The Great Depression in the United States as a whole began in 1929, but in the state of Montana it made itself felt even earlier than this date. In Montana, it began in 1918; more than a decade earlier. While the rest of the country lived happily ever after, the people of Montana were in serious trouble. Many farmers were affected by the drought and the decline in demand for agricultural products caused by the end of World War I (1914-1918). As a result, Montana farmers were unable to pay their mortgages, which had a negative impact on banks located in the state. Half of Montana's farmers lost their land between 1921 and 1925. By 1925, 70,000 farmers out of 82,000 had left the state. 200 banks located in the state declared bankruptcy. A period of drought was followed by an invasion of locusts, as well as a massive loss of livestock.
On December 18, the premiere of the first episode of the series "1923" took place. It will appeal to those who love stories about old America.
1923 is the second spin-off to the Yellowstone series (the first was called 1883). Yellowstone was about the Dutton family, who own a ranch in Montana. Their outwardly calm life was constantly complicated by enemies who wanted to take over the territory of the farmers. Spin-offs tell the story of the family and show that the Duttons have always been difficult. "1923" sends the viewer back to the days of Prohibition.
The showrunner of the project was Taylor Sheridan, the author of Yellowstone, 1883, and The Mayor of Kingstown. Starring Helen Mirren (Caligula), Harrison Ford (Indiana Jones), Jerome Flynn (Game of Thrones).
In 1923, the men suffer under Prohibition as they try to get whiskey through doctors. In this nervous and restless atmosphere, Jacob Dutton, the head of the farming family, enters into a skirmish with the leader of the local cattle breeders - there is not enough own land to feed the animals, so they drive them to graze on foreign lands, breaking the law. The standoff leads to an attack on one of Dutton's family members. From that moment on, open hostilities begin.
At the same time, one of the nephews of the head of the family is hunting wild animals in Africa, struggling with post-traumatic stress disorder.
1923 is a spin-off that you can watch even if you are not familiar with the universe of the series. The writers didn't bombard viewers with complex references, so it's enough to know that the Duttons have always had a hard time - this is the general idea of \u200b\u200bYellowstone.
But if you watched the previous series and didn't like it, then 1923 should be ignored: it is fully consistent with its predecessors.
"1923" is not going to flirt with the audience. Halftones, neat hints, ambiguous characters - the very first episode shows that this should not be expected. If a man went through a war and was a hero in it, then in a flashback he will deal with a dozen enemies, avoiding death in every difficult situation. A negative character from the first appearance on the screen will be evil and untidy.
Perhaps this is the most old-school characteristic of the series - it is straightforward. Like the era he talks about.
Violence and machismo flourish. The series also tells about the old violence that no one is going to cover up. The nuns hit the students on the hands for wrong answers in the classroom, the men carry weapons with them and are ready to use them at any moment. It is even surprising that in the first episode they did not show the slaughter or skinning of cattle - perhaps the scriptwriters decided to limit themselves to killing a lion.
extraviolence is accompanied by machismo. It can be traced not only in scenes reminiscent of the war. So, a member of the Dutton family kills lions and leopards in Africa, and does it superbly - the British colonizers (pathetic and infirm) ask him for help. He feels superior not only because of his skill with weapons, but also because of his bestial self-confidence.
In principle, such episodes can be entered into the dictionary on the page with the word "machism" - and there are many such scenes. If you like to say “yes, these were men, these were real men”, then this series is for you.
The spirit of the era is conveyed too lazily. An attempt to recreate the spirit of old America obliges the series to abandon the modern agenda. Girls are stupid, old women are wise, guys are impulsive, old people are brilliant - the whole set of characters is built according to this formula. However, there is an important point - "Yellowstone" was the same, but its actions took place in our time (for this it is often called "red" and "republican").
But attempts to recreate the spirit of the 1920s in the first series do not look very successful. In fact, this is one scene in which women demand to close the bars - some for religious reasons, and some because of the alcoholism of the spouses. But the notorious "dry law" forbade the sale of alcohol, and not to drink - sometimes drinking establishments served alcoholic beverages under the guise of tea.
The flashback, referring to the First World War, nevertheless speaks of a different period of time, so the story about the era is very superficial.
Despite the fact that the writers throw everything out in the forehead, the series turns out to be slow.
"Yellowstone" also did not have a high pace of storytelling. The authors love long scenes, dialogues about nothing with serious faces and shots with animals - "1923" does not abandon its heritage.
Some of the dialogue looks like this:
“You know, something happened, Jack.
- What happened, John?
“George twisted his leg, Jack.
“Yeah, that George is always twisting his legs, John.
“Yes, Jack, legs are not the same these days, Jack. Yes Jack?
“You’re damn right, John, these times will break our legs…
The camera then pans to sheep picking in the grass.
Several storylines presented in the debut series do not intersect immediately. This decision allows you to increase the timing - the characters receive only a couple of dialogues per episode. At the same time, the first series shows that intersections can begin in the middle of the season, and in this case, the story will develop very slowly. But fans of meditative series should like it.
The main star of the project is Harrison Ford. There is too little of him in the first episode, and it is difficult to predict how often he will appear in future episodes. Perhaps 8-10 minutes per episode is the norm that the viewer will be fed. If you choose a series based on your favorite actor, then Ford fans will have a hard time - this is his first and, it seems, not the most generous filming experience on television.
"1923" is a direct successor to "Yellowstone", which completely adopted all the characteristic features of the original. Admiration for a simple man with a gun, a simple plot, a slow pace of narration - the series does not try to surprise. If you've been missing masculine westerns, 1923 is worth checking out, but it doesn't show anything new. But that's why so many people love him.
