WONDERSTONE ENTERTAINMENT

I already knew that David Oyelowo and Gugu Mbatha-Raw were scene-stealing actors, but it wasn't until after I saw this series that I realized Jessica Plummer is a force to be reckoned with. I'm sure this young woman can hold her own in any scene with any actor, continuing to display an assortment of what appears to be the most authentic of emotions at the snap of a finger. Besides the revelation surrounding Plummer, the only thing I really loved about this series was that the director gave a master course with each episode, and believe me I took notes.

I stopped the film several times to appreciate the writer/director. The way she told such an emotional and complex story with the simplest of shots mixed with silence or a dialogue that tangled around the skin is a gift from God.

If you're looking for an action-packed film with heart this is it!

This film is outstanding. The story, the performances, simply all of it felt as real as it gets. Also, that steadicam operator/director was incredible. The movement of the camera just made me feel as if I was locked in every space the action was taking place.

As I'm writing this review, I'm trying to justify why I didn't give it five stars, especially since the series started off pretty good and every episode felt better than the one that preceded it. I'm certain that the entangled and surprising storylines had plenty to do with it, along with the outstanding performances from the actors, and the crafty and sometimes intimate camera angles. Furthermore, my best guess is that my reasoning is based solely on the series ending too soon for me not to care.

I don't make this a habit to write a review before the film is over, but I'm just a little over an hour in and breaking. This film is so powerful, insightful, and has shaken me up in ways that very few films have. Nearly every scene of this film reflects how the smallest of gestures can make a world of difference to someone, whether it's for the good or bad, and it makes me rethink my every decision. My choices to be kind to others, whether I feel their situations are genuine or a calculated scam, no longer matter to me. This film, even more so than my faith, has disallowed me to ignore that a single choice in a moment can wreck or rebuild a life.

I'm halfway into season 2 and the superb writing, the flawless acting, the brilliant way each episode highlights the wrong in the world by shining a light from a Black American's perspective has made this show one of my favorites.

The unmeasurable level of sacrifice that many women go through in an effort to have a rewarding career, and loving family, was inconceivable to me before I watched a Private Life. The strain such an effort can likely have on a woman's husband, or life partner, proved even harder for my mind to conceptualize. Even being without kids, myself, and crossing an age when life tends to fold on a single decision, I found it nearly impossible to wrap my head around the reality of the process and accept that it often drains everything short of a soul out of those trying to create life. Then came this film. Perfectly scripted, brilliantly performed, and intimately directed, this 2-hour Indie caused me to feel as I was eavesdropping on the private moments of a middle-aged couple going through its greatest crisis. Now it's the thing I can't get out of my head.

What in the world did I just witness but awesomeness? I'm at the end of only Ep. 1, and I can't think of a time when I had such a blend of poetry and prose, dance, and the daily choreography of human life at my fingertips. Tack on passionate characters with thought-provoking dialogue that are built, in their own way, to reach various interpretations of success, along with an out of the box, knock your socks off director, and you have a network series that feels like theater has set up shop in my living room.

Beyond the flawless acting of every character, and the storyline that confused the hell out of me at times before rendering an interesting solution to put my mind at ease, I must say that the visual direction of this film was outstanding! Simply put, there wasn't a camera angle I didn't love, and some, like the piano water scene, were beyond awesome.