Fox's Gracepoint No Match for Broadchurch

By Jeralyn, Section Media
Posted on Thu Oct 02, 2014 at 09:58:34 PM EST
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Broadchurch is a really good English murder series that aired last year and will be back for Season 2. For some unfathomable reason, Fox has made a so-called "American" prime-time version of it called Gracepoint, which began airing tonight. Why bother? We didn't need translation, both were in English. It uses the screenshots from the English version and features the lead actor from Broadchurch(who now speaks with an American accent.) Even Ana Gunn can't save it. The actress playing her role in Broadchurch was much better. [More...]

Why would the Broachurch writer, director and lead cast member sully their version with this one? What does Fox say to defend it? It has a different ending.

If you haven't seen Broadchurch, watch Season 1 on Netflix, Hulu or Amazon, and then wait for season 2, rather than watching this pointless remake.

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Fox's Gracepoint No Match for Broadchurch | 15 comments (15 topical)

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From last year (5.00 / 1) (#7)
by CaptHowdy on Fri Oct 03, 2014 at 09:15:46 AM EST

11 Worst American Remakes of British TV

IMO the standouts are Absolutely Fabulous and Faulty Towers. Talk about why bother.

I certainly have to agree with you (5.00 / 1) (#13)
by Zorba on Fri Oct 03, 2014 at 01:11:46 PM EST

about Ab Fab and Fawlty Towers, Capt.
"Why bother?" is the correct question. Terrible remakes.
(I never did try to watch any of the others on the list, though.)


Thank the Gods.. (none / 0) (#14)
by desertswine on Fri Oct 03, 2014 at 08:14:57 PM EST

that they didn't attempt a remake of Blackadder...or did they?


: Anticipating the remake of Vicious (none / 0) (#15)
by CaptHowdy on Fri Oct 03, 2014 at 08:21:55 PM EST

with Kevin Sorbo and Tony Danza

ha! Good list (none / 0) (#9)
by ruffian on Fri Oct 03, 2014 at 10:30:39 AM EST

Luckily I never even tried watching any of those. The very thought of watching Absolutely Fabulous and Faulty Towers without the English cast is just wrong.

The American version of The Office should have just called itself a different show. I hear it is good in its own right, but what I saw bore only surface resemblance to the original.


I am surprized (none / 0) (#11)
by nyjets on Fri Oct 03, 2014 at 11:31:56 AM EST

I am surprised Prime Suspect did not make the list.
While I never saw the British version (a little too brutal for my taste) I did see the American version (and no, I am not sure why I saw the American version).
And from what I could gather, the American versions was not in the same ballpark as the British version.


: The American version of Prime Suspect was (5.00 / 1) (#12)
by caseyOR on Fri Oct 03, 2014 at 12:31:05 PM EST

different from the British one. Still. with the exception of the first episode, the American version was a pretty decent show.
It starred Maria Bello (I am a huge fan of hers) and Aidan Quinn and was set in present day New York, not 1980s London.
The first episode was a disaster, and it was deservedly panned by the critics. The producers took that to heart, and subsequent episodes were much better. Sadly, the show never recovered from the early bad reviews.

I wonder if "Gracepoint" will be ... (none / 0) (#1)
by Donald from Hawaii on Fri Oct 03, 2014 at 12:52:04 AM EST

... as big a bust as "The Bridge" turned out to be. I dutifully tuned into that program weekly, but last night's finale devolved into a mess.

I love detective / crime dramas, but of late some of them have gotten too convoluted and complicated for their own good, with too many different storylines going in too many directions. Then the season finale sneaks up, and the writers are faced with a choice of leaving a lot of loose ends untied, or resorting to plot contrivances with unbelievable and unsatisfactory conclusions.

Aloha.

I watched The Bridge last year and (none / 0) (#3)
by ruffian on Fri Oct 03, 2014 at 04:18:12 AM EST

decided not to come back for season 2. You're right about the convoluted story line, and I found I did not care enough about the characters to keep watching.


I liked The Bridge (none / 0) (#5)
by CaptHowdy on Fri Oct 03, 2014 at 08:30:09 AM EST

i did think there was some missed opportunities. Previously TV
has an interesting take. Some I agree with some not. In the end, after all the carping, the writer admits that if it comes back they will check it out. Ditto.

Wondering about The Affair. I hope it is more that a romance. It looks like it might be. All my good stuff is ending. The Strain this Sunday. But American Horror Story starts next Wednesday, every trailer looks better. They have been rerunning Coven. I had forgotten how much I loved it. I like Homeland but it's no substitute for Ray Donavon. There are some things I like a lot that won't be back till next year. Black Sails for one. And, while I won't say it's the best series ever, Banshee is my favorite and it won't be back till next year. If you are looking for something to binge try Banshee.


Looking forward to my hate-watching of Homeland (5.00 / 1) (#8)
by ruffian on Fri Oct 03, 2014 at 10:27:39 AM EST

Even more hate without Brody. But I can't turn away.

Ray Donovan is one of those shows I depart with you on...tried a couple of times and could not find even one character I could stand watching for 30 seconds.

I look forward to The Affair - but then I'd watch Jimmy McNulty read the phone book.

Newsroom's final season will be worth hate-watching too. Another high potential show that went horribly wrong.


: I can't either (none / 0) (#10)
by Militarytracy on Fri Oct 03, 2014 at 10:44:30 AM EST

I rewatched the episode last night in which Brody is killed. It was depressing, I hate this show now, how will they dig themselves out of this worthless storyline they created? We'll just see about this won't we?

Long and excellent (none / 0) (#6)
by CaptHowdy on Fri Oct 03, 2014 at 08:37:31 AM EST

How Banshee Became One Of Televisions best Series


I agree Jeralyn (none / 0) (#2)
by ruffian on Fri Oct 03, 2014 at 04:14:32 AM EST

The only thing I really liked was the California scenery, not a good sign for a detective show.

Anna Gunn and David Tennant are both good, but I did not like the rest of the casting at all.

I only liked, not loved, Broadchurch..... I kind of lose interest in child death shows. Not being a parent I don't have the immediate emotional connection to the grieving parents. So many of these shows rely on that to hook viewers. The real drama for me is in the mystery and how the townspeople react, and if a) it is predictable, and b) you don't like them , there is not much point. No one is ever going to react with "Well, I hated that kid, good riddance" .

I remember losing track of the mystery and not really caring that much by the end. Maybe the new ending will actually be an improvement?

Well, at least... (none / 0) (#4)
by unitron on Fri Oct 03, 2014 at 08:21:40 AM EST

...Tennant doesn't look much like I'm accustomed to him looking (as The Doctor) so maybe the accent, as long as it holds up, won't be too jarring, and it'll be like only seeing and hearing Benjamin Sisko and never any traces of Hawk.