Critic's view - Monday, February 15
The Age
Thursday February 11, 2010
Talking HeadsABC1, 6.30pmTHE engrossing account Janine Shepherd gives of her remarkable life thus far begins with the hope and promise of life's rich bounty and closes on precisely the same note. In between is a four-act tale of tragedy, triumph, more tragedy and a dogged, spiritually driven determination to embrace and celebrate those things that make life worthwhile rather than obsess about the depressing downside. Sitting in the interview chair before inquisitor Peter Thompson, Shepherd recites her well-versed narrative about how her burgeoning prospects as a competitor at the 1980 Calgary Winter Olympics were dashed when she was struck by a car. As a partial-paraplegic, this, she was told, meant she would never walk again or have children. Following a severe bout of depression, Shepherd found the inner strength to regain her ability to walk and defied all by starting a family. Having written inspirational books such as Never Tell Me Never and with her motivational speaking skills on show, Shepherd peppers her passionate recitation with bumper-sticker bon mots: "I'm not my body"; "If I can't walk I might as well fly"; "You don't realise how badly you want something until someone says you'll never have it". Still, her verbal polish doesn't distract too much from the emotional power of her journey. This includes an all-too-brief detailing of her visit to the "other side" when she first "died". Thompson rightly challenges her that this might have been the euphoric product of near-death delirium but she insists, "I know there's something there" €” and says it with such conviction you almost believe her.I'm from Rolling StoneABC2, 9.05pmSIX ambitious, over-confident, slovenly dressed twentysomethings land summer jobs with Rolling Stone magazine hoping they will be the one chosen for a full-time gig as a contributing editor. Unfortunately, way too much time is taken up in the first episode with the editor calling each of them to invite them to New York. The reactions range from the elation of poor hopefuls who see the job as a way out of their impoverished hoods, to the embarrassing insouciance of Australian slacker Peter Maiden, who is too busy drinking beer when the big call comes. It's only towards the end of the episode, when their debut articles are criticised, that things get interesting. But stick with it. The second instalment sees some of the newbies have the hard-grind realities of the job pressed into their thick skulls.The Revenge Files of Alistair FuryABC3, 8.05amIT'S tough to know whether children these days €” look around, they're everywhere €” have a heightened sense of television production values owing to their media-generation savvy or remain blissfully unaware of the importance of such crucial matters as lighting levels and colour balance until they buy their first plasma screen with the pocket money they've made by scamming people on the internet. The makers of The Revenge Files of Alistair Fury no doubt subscribe to the latter position given the flat video look they've gone for with their funny, oddball adaptation of the books by Jamie Rix, who also produced the show. Alistair (Jonathan Mason) is a Scottish brat who, like all brats, enjoys a good spot of revenge when things don't go his way. Here he gets back at his dumb brother, bitchy sister and her eco-warrior boyfriend by infecting them with germs. The crudely animated inserts do give the show some sense of style, while the gross-out nature of the visual comedy adds just enough irreverence to make up for the impression that the show was made for six quid.
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