Visitors Review

dryan-14 (2012-05-24 14:59)

Accept what you cannot change and change what you can

Enlightened is about a woman who was unable to cope with a series ofaccumulated stresses in her life and decided to seek treatment. Shereturns to her life with a new awareness and feels compelled to shareand engage people in that awareness to effect positive change aroundher, but she finds herself running up against resistance due to fear ofchange. The people around her are all coping with stress in their livesin various other ways. It's about confronting the loneliness andisolation that you can feel when your perspective differs from thosearound you, and how that loneliness is at odds with your desire toconnect, help, and heal those around you. At the end of the day it'sabout the serenity prayer, about Amy learning the wisdom to know thedifference between what she can change, and what she can't. A lot ofmistakes are made in the process, but her heart is in the right place,and any introspective viewer will be able to relate to the struggle. Ihighly recommend it.

Murli (2012-05-24 05:54)

A frustrating experience that does have its rewards...somewhere

I wanted to see this series solely for Laura Dern. The first episodeseemed okay. A woman has a meltdown at work after finding out that theboss she was having an affair with was transferring her out of herdepartment. So she goes away to a retreat, fixes herself, and comesback to find that her old job has been filled, and she's got a newjob...in the basement of the company working with computers.I thought that the story would develop as I got deeper into the seriesbut that's where I was wrong. The series deals with Amy and her issuesand we're left wondering if her Hawaiian retreat actually helped her ornot. Each episode, with the exception of the second last one, deal'swith one of Amy's hangups and I was starting to get frustrated with it.Laura Dern does a good job as a wacky person who just can't see pastherself. She's her own worst enemy, choosing to ignore what's right infront of her face, deal with her predicament and move on and dosomething about it. I was getting fed up of seeing her continually goback to her old floor and try to confide in Krista, one of twocharacters (besides Janice) whom I found two faced and really despised.Thankfully, the last episode sort of made up for most of the series andI'm interested in seeing where Amy goes with her new found power. Aslong as the series gets another shot. Aside from Laura Dern, the wholecast that makes up the Cogentiva floor is well cast and funny, witheach person contributing to the weirdness that makes up the DNA of abasement floor worker. Timm Sharp as the politically incorrect,nerdish, loutish, priggish head is very funny. Mike White also deservesa mention because he says a lot more with his quiet demeanour and smilethan with any dialogue (but I had to laugh at his hack in password!).All in all, I'd recommend it but bear in mind that Amy is highlyannoying and frustrating most of the times but there are lucid momentswhen she gets the picture and you think there is hope for her afterall.

red_identity (2012-05-22 11:34)

Fantastic... the perfect mix of satire, drama, and dark comedy.

I started Enlightened around a week ago, mostly because the GoldenGlobes put it on the spot. As far as first seasons go, this was anexcellent one. It balances comedy and drama extremely well. Someepisodes are more dramatic, some more comedic, but it always remainstop notch. Laura Dern in the character of Amy is completely fantastic. She ownsthis character, which is perhaps one of TV's most fascinating andconfusing. Amy has our sympathy, we still want her to succeed, and shealways pretty much wants to look at things in a positive way. Theproblem is though, she isn't the person she wishes. She makes you feelher problems, yet also cringe and shake your head at the way sheapproaches aspects in her life. She's a good person who wants to dogood things, but she can also be extremely selfish and lacks any sortof self-awareness. Even in her most sticky situations, you want to rootfor her but you see her like many of her co-workers do... in a negativelight. Dern sells it all. Diane Ladd is also pretty fantastic as herdistant, yet also sympathetic and sometimes infuriating mother. Buteven she gets her own episode, which is perhaps the show's mosttouching and dramatic episode.Overall, this is an excellent mix of drama with both dark and lightcomedy. I feel it's sort of underrated and has gotten lost among otherbig-name shows.

georgomen (2012-05-22 01:32)

Amazing Show

This is one of the best shows I have ever seen on Television. MikeWhite's writing is hilarious, heartfelt, depressing and the most trulyenlightening pieces of art ever shown on television. This show is amasterpiece. Laura Derns "Amy" is a truly multifaceted creation. It'seasy to to slap the term "crazy" on her and I don't believe she iscrazy at all. She is a manifestation of the way many people feel intoday's world. Helpless, confused, yearning for love and the meaning ofit all. Amy especially wants to be good and do good in the world. Tocontribute in a positive way to give her own life meaning. It is veryhard to engage real change in the world today especially when moneyrules all even at a time where climate change and economic breakdownshows that change is badly needed most companies will continue to chasethe almighty dollar while facing certain doom in not too many years tocome. I also think many people will think of Amy as crazy because shedares to yearn for change and is not above it to actually attempt to dosomething about it (whether its wrong headed or not is not the questionhere) One of the most amazing things about the show is that we hearAmys thoughts which many times may seem delusional but at the same timemake total sense. She truly wants good things for everybody and theworld. She single-mindedly wants to achieve change in herself andeverything and everyone around her. Its a heartbreaking show that isoften very funny and very dark. We should all be like Amy but we don'thave the guts so we laugh at her and call her crazy. But who is thetruly crazy one?

smirish (2012-05-19 14:47)

Watch it!

The show is about one very flawed woman's struggle to become a betterand healthier person. She's clearly lost, but dedicated and passionatein a way which makes you admire her and be annoyed by her at the sametime. The show does a neat trick of manipulating the viewer intoalternatively mocking her because of her naivete and flakiness, andcheering for her out of empathy, both back and forth within singleepisodes. You come to expect her to crash and burn in a tragic andcomedic fashion. Yet in the end, she claims small victories ofenlightenment that put all of us in touch with our humanity and teachus a little bit about growth. The show is not preachy, yet makes itspoints poignantly and powerfully. I'm excited with anticipation as to where the show may go and hope itis renewed despite the poor ratings so far. Definitely my favorite newshow of the season.

Dimegirl (2012-05-19 09:02)

Will get on your last nerve

This woman is just like a person i use to know.She will get under yourskin and make you instantly annoyed.She always talks about herself andher issues- never listening to the person she is talking to.She talksabout helping others not realizing that she needs help herself.You know the acting is good in this show by how irritate you get whenyou watch her on TV.The funny thing is that there are clueless people just like that in thereal world.It is defiantly an original show i will give it that. Youreally can't predict it. I think Laura Dern has done it all after thispart.

politically_incorrect204 (2012-05-17 19:43)

A Bit Off

Obviously the title has multiple meanings considering the show and itscharacter. Some of the other reviewers make the easy point that sheisn't very likable. The first two or three episodes kind of set theground work for the show. I don't necessarily have an issue with howmanic and bi polar she can be. I guess my issue was more so her lack ofgrowth through the show. I'm at episode 8 and I thought the show wouldbe more about her figuring out her zen approach to the world isn'trealistic and would find a balance between her hardcore corporateapproach and her hippie approach. But she seems to not learn from hermistakes and keep trying the same ignorant and zany things. As such Idon't feel very fulfilled yet or feel like she had made progress. I dolike her reflective narrations at times when she really realizessomething profound. Those moments are a nice counter balance to theother crazy and awkward moments (which there are many of). I'm curiousto see how the show develops and where it goes. I like the supportingcast almost more than the main character. They generally add some nicemoments and comedic points. All and all worth watching at some pointbut prepare yourself since it is not for everyone.

Smhasnb (2012-05-17 05:08)

The Greenest Show on Tele

Imagine, you're in the cleanest and the bluest water in the world,seeing the most vibrant colored fishes in the process. Imagine, you'resitting at the shore on a sunny and pleasant day, in Maldives. You canhear the waves of the ocean giving you the sense of calm. Well, that'show you'll feel when you watch this show. Wow. That sounds like textbook Dalai Lama, doesn't it? In all honesty, the show will make youfeel that way.Plot: Fittingly, titled 'Enlightened', this show is about a woman's(supposed/attempted) transformation to a better life. And it's not justlimited to her, but in a way, a message to every viewer, to beenlightened. It is a show bubble wrapped in green, environmentalfriendly feeling. It urges us to look beyond the materialistic world wespend most of our lives chasing after and embrace nature more. As thelead talks about nature, in a scene and says "It was saying, this isall for you and everything is a gift. Even the horrible stuff". Afterhaving a nervous breakdown, at a blood sucking corporation, caused byan affair with a married man gone bad, Laura Dern (Amy) is shipped outto Hawaii. There she spends time in a rehab centre for anger managementissues. During this time she has an epiphany when she comes across asea turtle while swimming in the ocean. This alleged epiphany changesher outlook on life and she believes she's been given a new life. Shereturns to her old life with a different attitude and tries to sprinkleher goody two shoes, puritan spirit on to everyone else. Enlightenedwill show us Amy's difficulties coming to terms with the real worldafter her new found perspective keeps getting kicked in the crotch. Cast: Cast is headed by Laura Dern, who plays Amy, the enlightenedprotagonist. A veteran of Hollywood with over 30 years of experience,she has pretty much done every role possible in TV and movies. She hasan Oscar nomination, a Golden Globe win, among various other wins andnominations. Laura portrays Amy quite remarkably. She shows anextremely wide range of emotions that most actors fail to even comeclose to. In every scene, Amy is on a roller-coaster of some sort andviewers can expect a big smile on her face with the softest of voicesin one scene and screaming top of her lung ready to pull your hair outin the next. Sign of a good actor, I say. An Emmy for Laura is almostcertain. (Note: stay away from a person having a nervous breakdown, shecan show super strength and stop a moving life with bare hands) Rest ofthe cast, is half decent, nothing extra-ordinary. We have Luke Wilson,playing Amy's ex-husband, pretty much a typical Luke Wilson character.How many times have we seen him play that nonchalant, dope smoking,obviously single, loser guy? Add one more to the list. The only thingmissing in the first 3 episodes is him sitting on the Playstation orXbox. Nevertheless, he always stays true to his character. We know whathe'll give us, and we're okay with it. Diane Ladd, plays Amy's mother,incidentally she is real life mother of Laura. (Trivia: She has playedher mother in movies/TV shows 5 times). When Amy returns to her oldworkplace, she is forced down in the basement. Here she comes acrosssome very diverse and humorous characters. As she calls them circusfreaks. Here we see, Timm Sharp, Luke White (the creator of the show),Bayne Gibby among others. Overall, the cast has potential, ample amountof it. But needs time and a lot more dialogues. Funnier, dialogues. Overall look and feel: The show has a nice calm feel to it, asdiscussed in the summary. Although I've been a fan of voice-overs, butin this instance, it is a necessity. It feels like you're stuck in abubble and the wind is blowing you around from one point to the other.The background sounds, music, warm voice of Laura, all do supplementeach other to complete the feel of the show. Another interesting thingI noticed was, in every scene you'll see Something green. Maybe HBOtook a leaf out of Breaking Bad's book, with their rather successfulplay with subliminal color coding. But this green has that effect onthe viewer. Nicely done. Conclusion: Enlightened is very intriguing in some regards yet, lacksdirection. It is stuck between being a drama about an epiphany and acomedy about a dysfunctional work place. It is truly a dramedy, but,needs a bit more drama and a lot more comedy. I think the creators andwriters have to take some concrete decisions to take this show in acertain direction. As of now, its swimming in the open sea and notquite sure which way it wants to swim. That being said, it's a lotbetter than a handful of other dramedies around (or recentlycancelled). When we compare it to other female lead 30 shows likeWeeds, Nurse Jackie, The Big C etc it's doing its bit.