We tell you five good reasons to see Penny Dreadful, recently in the Paramount+ catalogue, a series that in just three seasons has been able to do a lot for genre literature on TV, bringing to the “small” screen none other than Eva Green, Josh Hartnett and Timothy Dalton.
I adore all the honest creatures of this world. It’s humans I hate
The Paramount + catalog continues to flesh out after its debut in Italy, thus going to fish out more or less old titles in order to attract new subscribers. Especially since these titles are technically “coming home” to a catalog that can potentially house them forever, given Paramount production and distribution upstream. Among these here are landing on the platform Penny Dreadful, instant cult that in just three seasons (from 2014 to 2016, for 27 episodes) was able to gather a large number of viewers, especially fans of the fantasy-vampire genre on TV, but not only. Let’s find out together 5 reasons to see the series now on Paramount+.
1. Eva Green
Eva Green is truly the quintessential Penny Dreadful because her character, Vanessa Ives, who has become one with her over the years like Isabelle in The DreamersSibyl ne The crusades e Vesper Lynd in Casino Royale, fully represents the spirit of the show. Muse of many directors, including Tim Burton as well as the already mentioned Bertolucci and Ridley Scott, she literally pierces the screen with her European charm (she also has French origins), her “white as milk” skin and raven hair, but above all with the gaze, magnetic and that manages to get inside the spectators, and finally the charisma, with frequent interpretations of crazy and complex characters, in which she is able to really put all of herself, just like her “witch” Miss Ives.
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2. He cast
Penny Dreadful however, he does not live only by Eva Green (although he easily could have). Instead she decides to make matters worse with an excellent cast that comes from the most disparate corners of television and cinema, often at their first experience on the “small” screen. Like the wolf cub Josh Hartnettcharming and charismatic, the father full of guilt and remorse Timothy Dalton (before he took a liking to it on TV and returned as a problematic father in Doom Patrol). And again the British interpreters: the always too underestimated Rory Kinnear (you will all remember him as prime minister in the pilot episode of Black Mirror), the newfound Billie Piper (from Doctor Who e Diary of a respectable call girl and before I Hate Suziehere truly incredible) and the mourned Helen McCrory (between a movie of Harry Potter and a season of Peaky Blinders). The series had also made seriality rediscover Patti LuPone before Ryan Murphy.
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3. Rewrite history
The cue and title for the show came from creator John Logan (who came from the imagination of Hugo Cabret) from the 19th century publications of the same name, in a successful and fascinating mix with comics The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen by Alan Moore. In doing so, the serial had the ability to intertwine the origins of horror literature characters such as Victor Frankenstein, Dorian Gray, Dr. Jekyll, Count Dracula, the Wolf Man, but also witches and vampires, who are grappling with the their monstrous alienation in Victorian London. Just like the fairy tales in Once Upon a Time (or the Marvel and DC superhero origin stories), the great storytelling power of Penny Dreadful was to reshuffle the cards on the table with respect to the original paper counterpart. This is how the characters have been transformed in disguise in various ways, between twists and turns, surprising kinship ties and surprising connections and insights. Until the finale, which manages to perfectly close the circle and the mythology created by a mix of previous legends.
4. Diversity
The series could not fail to address the diversity theme. However, she did it with great tact and intelligence, and perfectly immersing the alienation and discrimination that the protagonists suffer every day in the London of the time, as intrigued by the charm of the exotic and the monstrous as at the same time horrified by it. A bit like contemporary society, of which Penny Dreadful – and the literary works from which it took inspiration before her – has clearly become a bulwark and mirror for reflection.
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5. Victorian Age
Speaking of historical period, nothing has that compelling appeal on screen, big or small, like the Victorian historical periodespecially a London. Smoky, disturbing, dirty, full of secrets in every alley, this is the city that is shown in Penny Dreadful in an absolutely engaging way with a literary flavor, as if we were reading a novel and the images appeared in our mind, with many reconstructions of sets that made the difference allowing the show to shine and capture the attention of the viewers. Not to mention the hair and makeup work, including props and prosthetics, is absolutely stunning.