Reactionary Reviews | The Polygamist | Netflix
Sometimes trash is necessary, as a distraction. The most distracting thing about The Polygamist is the one persistent question: Where the fuck do they get these shades of lipstick from?
I'm going to be direct here. I did not manage to watch all of Episode 1 of The Polygamist, that is, I skipped through it, it was too painfully trying to be trash visually, and failing everywhere else.
There is though a remarkable amount of drama in the reading of a letter, or the slamming of a door that one must give Omotoso credit for. The style acknowledges what it is, and makes a meal out of it. Where it fails is that it takes itself too seriously.
I don't know who does more work here, the drone shots, the cakes or the fucking hats.
The funeral sequence upfront, the “shocking” reveal of a major character death, the fucking hats. This is a show about an influencer, presumably for makeup or maybe hats. And as such the makeup and hats are major characters. I guess.
Also, the fucking plot.
Director Akin Omotoso, who – a lifetime ago – made the culturally groundbreaking film God Is African, now finds himself, along with some of South Africa's brightest talent, having to eat.
And do they eat.
There is a fruitcake that is mentioned at one point. “Your husband will enjoy the fruitcake, he is very traditional.” Anything I say about this line will be misconstrued.
Besides the cakes, the cast chew through the scenery.
The worst kind of trash gives the cast an opportunity to be serious about their craft. The cast act the fuck out of the terrible expository dialogue.
A woman is trying to force her estranged husband to renew their vows on their twentieth wedding anniversary. She invites his lover. He files for divorce. We know from the funeral that he dies. And then we are meant to spend 13 episodes reveling in the whodunnit of it all. And the cast seem to think this needs gravitas. The lipstick exudes gravitas. The lipstick is Alex Carrington level, the performances are early Barker Heyns – before the camp set in, oh god please let the camp set in.
When the wife pitches up unannounced at the husband's love shack (and please, have some fucking class) the new lover comes out and they have a little bitch fest. It's mild, but the new lover's dress is saucy – she looks like an artisan sausage – and the cars are nice. Then the husband comes out, and asks the new lover to go inside so they can, I guess, talk like adults. As she goes inside he slaps her ass and smacks his lips and says something like, “I wish I could get some of that”.
I THOUGHT HE WAS?
WHAT THE FUCK IS GOING ON HERE?
Maybe by episode 13 the cast will have realised what kind of show they are in. Until then, we have 1.5 speed, and the hats.