I watched Viva Laughlin last night. I watched because a) I am a sucker for any show in which characters randomly break into song & dance and b) because until Hugh Jackman decides to leave his wife and show up at my house with Gerard Butler and a large bowl of chocolate pudding, I must content myself with watching him on screen.
Despite receiving abysmal ratings, I didn’t find the show a complete waste of my time, even if it is on CBS. After all, it did deliver on its promise of a singing, dancing Hugh Jackman. It wasn’t awful. But, immediately after it finished, I took myself to YouTube to watch the first episode of Blackpool, the BBC series on which Viva Laughlin is based, and the American version suffers in comparison.
I am not one of those who believes that all British television is superior to American television. After all, let’s not forget which nation inspired Dancing With the Stars and Deal or No Deal. However, translating a very British show to an American audience requires a solid understanding of the subtle cultural differences between the two countries. The first season of The Office US faltered because it was a bit too painful, too awkward and mean for its American audience. Americans seem to need a bit more hope. It’s one of their greatest charms — that a shopkeeper can say “Have a nice day!” and actually mean it — as well as one of their worst faults (”So what if my Hummer only gets 4 MPG? Science will solve global warming!”). In general, American network audiences don’t want to spend an hour in a depressing, hopeless environment.
When I first arrived in the UK a few years ago, a friend pointed out the primary difference between British and American soap operas. American ones feature an aspirational lifestyle of wealth and privilege, whereas British soaps, such as EastEnders, focus on the working class. Both are a form of escapism for the viewers, but lead to very different paths.
To be fair, Viva Laughlin at least tries to fit the story into its own cultural context. It transplants the setting from rainy, gloomy seaside Britain to the terminally sunny desert of Nevada. The US version centers around a 1300-room, 5-star casino; the British one takes place in a pathetic “amusement arcade” near a depressing theme park. Both versions feature flawed leads, but while the British version of Ripley Holden is a drunken, lying, womanizing Neanderthal with an unexpected devotion to his community, the American Ripley is a physically fit, simplistic dreamer with an unrecognized selfish streak. He is even faithful to his wife (though, to be fair, turning down Melanie Griffith’s fish lips may be more a sign of good taste than loyalty). When the men seek to intimidate the daughter’s middle-aged boyfriend, the American does so through a decisive punch to the jaw. The UK’s Ripley intimidates through mysterious, sinister references to his own past. Unfortunately, Americanizing the story completely changes its tone. Blackpool is a grim, harsh story, with the karaoke interludes a jarring counterpoint. The American version is a shiny and colorful fantasy, one in which the brightness of Laughlin overpowers the murderous plot line. The show loses the depth that made the British version interesting.
And all this before we even get into the ways that David Tennant’s D.I. Carlisle outright humiliates Eric Winter and his pretty-faced version of the same role. Tennant is a master of irresistible charm as cover for deep sadness; Winters looks like he got lost on his way to the Days of Our Lives set. Although Hugh Jackman could get me to watch just about anything (I’ve seen Kate & Leopold, for god’s sake. I am not proud of this.), his movie star appeal can only sell so much, and the show ends up being all light charm — which would likely have more appeal if I hadn’t seen how a little darkness would have made it so much better. Simply put, the UK wins this round.
Watch the clips below and do your own comparison. What do you think?
A clip from the Viva Laughlin pilot:
And the intro to episode 1 of Blackpool:
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November 19th, 2007 at 12:52 pm
I am still making your way through your back entries, and that friend was ME! If you add in the fact that Australian soaps are about the minutae of the lives of middle class aspirational characters in the suburbs, you’ve got the basis for a PhD thesis that I would write if I weren’t busy doing a PhD on Saving The World, and stuff.
January 24th, 2008 at 1:14 pm
Just read your (I’m guessing old) review of Blackpool and the only reason you can call Blackpool Pleasure Beach “a depressing theme park” is because you either a) have never been and are going off your countrymen’s generalisations or b) are too into Six Flags or Disneyland to see what anywhere else in the world can do.
January 24th, 2008 at 4:42 pm
Luke, I certainly didn’t mean any offense to Blackpool itself. Me, I love theme parks of all kinds — and I’ve been to many that were neither Six Flags nor Disneyland. However, I was referring simply to the way it was represented in the television show Blackpool, which tended to show it in a bleak, seedy light in order to support the darker themes of the show. That choice is also one of the reasons the UK version was far superior to the American one.