Lifetime Isn't Lucky With THE LOTTERY

Article originally published as THE LOTTERY Review on Seat42F.

Lifetime ventures into the science fiction realm with their new drama THE LOTTERY, which premiered last night. Set roughly ten years in the future, mankind has inexplicably stopped having children. Scientists are clueless about both the cause and the solution of the problem. Then, Dr. Alison Lennon (Marley Shelton, Eleventh Hour) somehow fertilizes one hundred eggs which seem viable. Will she be able to save mankind, or will the intrusive government ruin her project?

THE LOTTERY boasts a really cool concept I’d expect to see on SyFy or FOX, rather than on Lifetime. I do wish the premise had gone further with the science part of the genre and given us some kind of excuse for the big event, but at least the ramifications for the human race and its struggle to overcome such a huge obstacle can be chronicled. This really would spell our end, and there is plenty to examine in this set up.

Unfortunately, right from the start, THE LOTTERY feels like typical Lifetime fare. It isn’t as over-the-top female-centric as some of the network’s other shows, such as The Ex List and Devious Maids, but it is very heavily headlined by women, and said gals are not nearly as likeable as those in, say, Witches of East End. Alison obviously is female, and while the President remains a white man, the series favors his chief of staff, Vanessa Keller (Athena Karkanis, Low Winter Sun) in assigning focus. And when it comes time to discuss parents’ rights over the ingredients in the fertilized product Alison creates, only the mother is considered.

There’s also very much a woman-as-a-victim viewpoint. Alison is singled out for firing because she’s a strong, brilliant person who would get in the way of the military guys that wants to control things, but because she’s whiny and demanding, she is hard to root for. Vanessa does bend the President’s (Yul Vazquez, Magic City) ear and actually seems heroic, but again, the military men have run roughshod over her already and she has to fight her way back into influence. She’s playing from the underdog position, even when she’s in a role that should allow her to call some of the shots.

Furthermore, the only man of any substance in the pilot, Kyle (Michael Graziadel, The Young and the Restless), is much more sensitive than the average joe. A single parent to one of the last kids born, he resists temptation and shows how caring he can be, giving the female viewers the idolized hero they’d like to see represented more than a layered, flawed individual. Given his token spot, I’d like to see more from him.

Now, I enjoy strong female characters, and most of my favorite shows are at least gender-balanced, so I’m not ripping on THE LOTTERY just because of the women who are at the center of it. But other networks, if they resisted the urge to make the show testosterone-heavy, would nurture other aspects of the tale. Instead, it’s these handful of hallmark Lifetime characteristics that override everything else, making the show feel anything but balanced. It may hit the station’s target audience, but it lacks broad appeal and ignores many fans of the genre it resides in. That’s a mistake.

The acting is also a bit hokey, playing up overly dramatic scenes, and with the type of moments when you want to yell at the screen because the protagonists make dumb, easily avoidable mistakes. The weak writing and character development waste the cred that could have been bought with a smart premise and makes THE LOTTERY less than the sum of its parts. I worry it will not go far enough in exploring the effects on the world, instead concerned with two-dimensional players in their flimsy environments.

Of course, this is just a pilot. THE LOTTERY could redeem itself by doubling down on the conspiracy and dangers, as well as social issues, and backing off on Alison’s self-righteousness. I just don’t have confidence that it will.

THE LOTTERY airs Sundays at 10 p.m. ET on Lifetime.

PETALS ON THE WIND Review

Article first published as PETALS ON THE WIND Review on Seat42F.

This weekend, Lifetime presents PETALS ON THE WIND, a television movie that serves as a sequel to last year’s Flowers in the Attic. It’s been ten years and the Dollanganger children are still trying to escape the secrets of their past. Their family is full of horrors that they haven’t shaken themselves of yet, and as the tale unfolds, they are drawn deeper into the web of incest and betrayal.

Each of the three surviving siblings have a large role to play in PETALS ON THE WIND, weaving three separate stories, even though they remain close, having been taken in by a kindly old man who has passed away as the film begins. Their current stories are built off of what came before, personalities shaped by neglect, abuse, and imprisonment, damaged people who will probably never be whole again.

All three kids have been recast, which makes sense, given their age differences in the two productions, while the adult actors reprise their roles. It’s a little weird at first to adjust, as there are very few through lines between the two, making the characters seem like completely different people. Then again, kids change a lot from teenagers into their twenties or childhood to teens, so I guess it makes sense that the newbies only bear a passing resemblance to the old.

The story this time around doesn’t feel as intense or moving as the first movie. I think a lot of this is because of the sprawling setting. In Flowers in the Attic, the children are confined to one place, with tension building over time. This is effective storytelling, and that element is now removed, the Dollangangers going out into the world. As such, I don’t feel that PETALS ON THE WIND is as effective as its predecessor.

That being said, there is a continued theme of being trapped. While no longer physically imprisoned, none of the three has been able to find their freedom. They are hemmed in, emotionally, sexually, and morally, by their mother, Corrine (Heather Graham), and grandmother, Olivia (Ellen Burstyn), even if they don’t see them. In this, there is a continuation of arrested development that is intriguing, even if the overall presentation is more melodramatic and less compelling.

Near the start, Cathy (Rose McIver, Once Upon a Time, Masters of Sex) moves to New York with new beau Julian Marquet (Will Kemp) to become a professional ballerina, only to find a life much departed from young girls’ fantasies of such. Of course, she keeps being drawn back to her siblings and her home. Cathy is the one most like Corrine and Olivia, I believe, which will be seen as the story plays out. It is up to the individual viewer to judge whether she is applying the harsh life lessons she learned justly or continuing a cycle of cruelty. I believe there is a case to be made for both.

Meanwhile, Christopher (Wyatt Nash, Hollywood Heights) is finishing medical school. His boss, Dr. Reeves (Nick Searcy, Justified), has a daughter, Sarah (Whitney Hoy, The Final), who is quite taken with Christopher, a good looking, intelligent young man. In the Reeves family, Christopher has the chance to leave his past behind and build a normal existence, with a respectable wife and kids. Can he get over his illicit feelings for Cathy and do it?

Then there’s Carrie (Bailey Buntain, a veteran of Bunheads, though she doesn’t play the dancer in this one), who was too young for personality in Flowers in the Attic, but is now being tormented at high school and feeling left out of her older siblings’ bond. She is desperate for attention from just about anyone, including her mother, and yet, her thread is the least developed of the three, sadly, as there is something interesting going on here.

I do feel like PETALS ON THE WIND needs more time to really get its message across. The pacing zooms through two years and it bounces between the three characters, never serving any of them enough to make it seem like there’s much depth. We see their actions, but missing are the scenes of self-doubt and struggling with damaged minds. This story has great potential, and perhaps should have been a two-night miniseries, rather than a quick TV movie.

It’s also regrettable that we get so much less of Graham and Burstyn this time. Burstyn, in particular, is a great actress, and while she does a lot with the little she’s given, she doesn’t really have her own plot in the sequel. With limited time, it makes sense to focus on the next generation, but I’d really like to see more of Corrine’s continued struggle against Olivia, as well as the chasm between the two women because of their shared misdeeds.

Overall, PETALS ON THE WIND is enjoyable, a bit better than most of what I’ve seen from Lifetime, but several steps below its potential. I don’t know if the network plans to continue making the other three books in the series, but I kind of hope so, provided they take steps to better care for the material the next time around.

PETALS ON THE WIND airs Monday at 9 p. m. ET on Lifetime.

On the Road With Austin and Santino

     When Lifetime brought back Project Runway last week, so soon, considering it's the third season we're seeing in less than a calendar year, I was surprised by a few things.  One is the new, hour and a half format.  The second was the ditching of the less-than-good Models of the Runway after only two cycles.  The third was what is now following the long running contest.  Namely, a little show called On the Road With Austin and Santino.

     Austin Scarlett delighted fans during the first season, and Santino Rice annoyed audiences in season two.  It seemed a strange pairing, but then again, not really.  The draw of Project Runway for me has always been the drama, and these two clash.  Plus, they both were pretty high profile; each among the best known, if not the best, to come out of their season.  If anyone would get to headline this show, these two were the ones to pick.  And they both have oodles of talent, despite any personality flaws.

      In the first episode, Austin and Santino met a girl that loves to ride horses, and clashed over what her style should be.  Santino favored a gingham theme, while Austin went for lace.  Quite honestly, I though Austin's idea was loads better.  Santino's gingham fabric looked like a table cloth, and it just seemed too predictable for the situation they were in.  But Santino's very strong personality won out, and he did make a fairly decent dress with the material.  Better than expected, anyway.

     I don't know that this series really has the staying power.  I doubt it will be different enough every week to hold my interest for more than a few episodes.  However, as an occasional spot, it might be worth checking out.  That's why I find myself wishing they had produced a limited run of 3 or 4 episodes, or just an hour or two special instead of a series.  Or give the show to different designers every week or few weeks to keep it fresh.  But feel free to prove me wrong, Lifetime.

     On the Road With Austin and Santino airs Thursday nights at 10:30, including tonight.

Project Run to L.A.

     Project Runway concluded its sixth season this past Thursday.  This was the first season on Lifetime, after a five year run on Bravo.  It was also the first season set in Los Angeles, the previous five having taken place in New York.  Little about the show changed in its new setting.  Though the contestants were no longer at the Parsons School of Design, the fabulous Tim Gunn was still there to guide them along, offering them his advice and wisdom.  There were perhaps a few more celebrities stopping by, and the two popular judges Nina Garcia and Michael  Kors were unfortunately there a little less, though of course they were present at the finale.  Other than that, it seemed to be business as usual on the actual show.  There was a spinoff series as well this year, Models of the Runway, that showed what happened to the models between runway shows.  It was uninteresting and certainly unneeded, especially the final episode, which featured flashbacks from the season.  This replaced a better idea, which was a reunion show that brought back the designers.

     The talent this season was fierce.  While inventiveness had been prevalent in the past, it was frequently overshadowed by the drama, in fighting in the work room.  There was still a bit of drama this year, but not as much.  Irina, the winner, was a bit harsh at times, and there were a couple of tear eruptions during the runway shows, but for the most part, the talent shined.  As a fan since the beginning, the drama has always been my favorite part, but the show still managed to reel me in without as much of it.  What was truly inexplicable, though, was that Christopher Straub made it to the Top Five.  He placed at the bottom week after week, and yet he kept hanging on.  Thankfully, he did not get to show at Fashion Week in Bryant Park.

     The top three were Irina Shabayeva, Carol Hannah Whitfield, and Althea Harper.  Though each presented a fantastic collection, the judges were a bit harder on them in the final show than they usually are, perhaps because expectations of these three were so high.  Unfortunately, Irina won the day.  Supporters of Irina will note that she frequently placed in the top, and had consistently good designs week after week.  And I don't put any stock in the rumors of Althea copying off of Irina, especially in the finale.  They were states apart working on those collections.  The real shame is Carol Hannah, though.  She was the sweetest of the contestants, and battling her illness in the final days leading up to the runway show, she definitely had viewers rooting for her.  Many of us are terribly disappointed at her third place finish.  True, her collection did not tie together as well as the others, but for goodness sakes, she actually used color!  Irina's was predominantly black!

     This past year and a half, Project Runway has been mired in legal battles, as networks fought over who would air it.  Because of that, fans of the show had to wait over a year between the completion of season five and the start of this most recent one.  The good news to come out of all of that fighting, and the fact that Runway filmed this season quite awhile ago, is that TV's best reality show will be returning in two short months!  Season seven premieres in January on Lifetime.