Zen - the spoiler/review thread

[dreamer]

Jan 25, 2011 17:26:27 GMT rueful said:

The Pink Heart Society seems to be focused on the writing and reading of romance novels. This post is technically an appreciation of Rufus in general, but it was inspired by Zen, so I'm putting it here:

pinkheartsociety.blogspot.com/2011/01/male-on-mondayrufus-sewell.html

Male on Monday: Rufus Sewell

Sometimes you just know-- Michelle Styles makes the case for Rufus Sewell as hero inspiration

Anyone who saw the recent BBC adaptation of Zen (I believe it will becoming to PBS Masterpiece in the Summer/autumn) had to be impressed with the sheer magnetism of Rufus Sewell.

Rufus Sewell is one of those actors who when you see him, you go -- oh yes, I'd forgotten about him. Isn't he good? At 40-something, he has been around for awhile and his looks have matured like fine wine. From the curls and dimples of The Knight's Tale and Dangerous Beauty to the lean planes of Zen.
His looks have been described as mischievous and he brings a certain playfulness sexiness to his roles. He appears to have a keen sense of humour but there is also a sudden intensity as befits a Scorpio. he does not appear to take himself too seriously but there are certain things that are non negotiable. Amiable and charming, but also wants his own way....

He has also played a wide range of roles from villains to heroes and those more intriguing characters who are neither one nor the other.

But he does Venetians really well, and if you are looking for a playful alpha, Rufus Sewell might provide inspiration.

Very nice article and comments, especially that about Petruchio!
We all agree completely with them, don't we?

[kygal]

Thats why he is so special. Lots of great-looking and good actors out there, but his personality sets him high above the rest! He has turned a very practical person into a fan-girly who would normally not act this way about someone she doesnt know. Sound familiar?

Yes, anything he wants...and wouldnt have to ask...lol.

[vmaciv]

That is a wonderful article and seems so true. There are people that come away from fighting their inner demons much better people and he certainly seems to be. GREAT!!!!

[rueful]

Ok, this review isn't entirely positive--it doesn't give Zen enough credit in general. I loved Wallander, but I think Zen was also very good on many levels, not just the drooling level. However, I think the post is pretty hilarious anyway.

katyboo1.wordpress.com/2011/01/26/compare-and-contrast/

Compare and Contrast
Posted on January 26, 2011
by katyboo1| 8 Comments
My friend David sent me an e-mail a few days ago which asked me a deep and difficult question, viz:

Is Zen actually quite S**t? And not a patch on Wallander?

For my non-English friends I will elaborate.

Both are television shows involving detectives. Zen stars Rufus Sewell as an Italian detective, detecting things in Rome. Wallander stars Kenneth Branagh as a Swedish detective, detecting things in Sweden.

I had to confess that I have not yet watched Zen. It has been on on Sunday nights, and mostly on Sunday nights I am wrestling with Tallulah’s homework issues, or flat out on the sofa snoring and dribbling like a cat with no teeth. I have not had the time or energy to get involved in new crime programming from the BBC.

This is a shame, because I am quite enamoured of Rufus Sewell.

I keep promising myself I will catch up with it on iPlayer. I expect it’s not on there anymore, but I live in hope.

Anyway. Not having actually seen one of the programmes in question has not put me off giving an answer. I do like to give of my all when my friends ask me deep and profound questions like this.

To help me answer this particular question, I have elicited the opinions of several of my lady friends who have seen Zen, and amassed this information.

Zen is definitely not as good as Wallander, which we all acknowledge freely to be a work of brooding genius. This should not put you off of watching Zen for the following reasons:

Wallander stars Kenneth Branagh as the drink befuddled, highly dysfunctional, ageing protagonist, who also has something of a pot belly, and possibly the beginnings of a fine set of moobs. It is not that he is not a sympathetic, and indeed brilliant character, but he is not hawt:



Zen stars Rufus Sewell as the eponymous hero. Rufus is swarthy (in a good way), saturnine and louring. He has cheekbones you could slice Parma ham on, and is rather lithe and agile looking. He looks marvellous in sharp Italian tailoring and has eyes like deep, liquid pools, that promise much in the way of dirty, screaming like a banshee sex with no strings.



He is definitively hawt.

Wallander is set in Sweden which seems to consist of lots of lonely farm houses in acres of corn fields, where people eat raw fish and drink hard liquor before being disembowelled and set alight. It is picturesque but deeply agrarian, and very dangerous.

Zen is set in Rome, where you only have to walk two metres to trip over an ancient and glorious site of deep, historical significance. Not only that but there are lots of fabulous shops, bars and restaurants, and you get to drive everywhere on the back of a Vespa like Audrey Hepburn and Gregory Peck in Roman Holiday. You do not have to eat raw fish.

Wallander is thought provoking and gritty. It deals with issues like euthanasia, dementia, the meaning of life and the dark underbelly of society.

Zen is basically about sex.

Did I mention Rufus Sewell’s cheekbones?




I probably don't have to tell you my favorite line.

[kissmekate]

While I don't agree with the opinion of the series, I'm absolutely with her on Rufus!

Thanks for posting!

[dippyponge]

She is very correct when it comes to Rufus' looks. But the other statements are very wrong. I have not seen Wallander so I can't comment on that but as for Zen I thought the storylines were very clever and it wasn't all about sex. Anyway I loved it. Thanks for posting Rueful

[hippinschick]

I find it strange that the KB version of Wallander gets such good press - as if you watch the oroginal Swedish versions - especially the full long running series - it aint a patch on either of them....

Comparing it with Zen is like comparing apple and oranges - Zen is meant to have a lighter touch, some humour as well as complex plots. Wallander is much 'darker' and is meant to be so.

And of course KB cant twitch his eyebrows like our Rufus !!

[GreenEyesToo]

Thanks for that, Rueful. I have to say, though, that she lost all credibility once she said she hadn't watched the show.

Although, of course, she's dead right with the "deep liquid pools" comment!

[rueful]

Jan 27, 2011 21:53:12 GMT GreenEyesToo said:

Although, of course, she's dead right with the "deep liquid pools" comment!

Yes, she has an excellent point. ;D I want to emphasize that I only agree with that aspect, not the conclusion as a whole. Wallander and Zen are very different and I enjoy them both differently. I think the whole post was a bit tongue in cheek, really, or she wouldn't have mentioned that she hadn't watched.

[zenina]

Got this in my google alerts today

theitalianj0b.wordpress.com/2011/01/30/zen-italian-would-be-better/


Zen italian would be better!

Posted by theitalianj0b on January 30, 2011 · Leave a Comment

<h2>Zen in italain is better, bbc’s Zen detective show started in Italy this weekend</h2>

Got to say its much better in italian its more fitting, very strange to have something set in Rome and pretend to be Italian but with brummy english accent’s!

The story for those in italy and those intending watching it! -
Rufus Sewell and Caterina Murino star in Zen, a BBC One crime series based on the novels of Michael Dibdin
Fictional Italian detective Aurelio Zen is coming to BBC One in three feature length dramas on consecutive Sundays, starting on Sunday January 2, 2011. Rufus Sewell stars as Zen, created by British author Michael Dibdin. Italian actress Caterina Murino stars as Zen’s love interest, Tania Moretti, alongside an international cast including Ben Miles, Stanley Townsend, Catherine Spaak and Francesco Quinn.

Set in and around Rome, Zen features the attractions of Italy combined with the thrills of the Michael Dibdin novels.

In “Vendetta”, the first of the three episodes, Zen has to re-investigate a multiple murder. Flamboyant millionaire and government construction magnate Oscar Faso and his guests have been shot dead. Prime suspect and friend of Faso, Renato Favelloni, has “found God” in prison and is retracting his confession, a move that could send shockwaves through government – so Zen must intervene.
In the second episode “Cabal”, the body of Umberto Ruspanti, a member of one of Rome’s most prominent aristocratic families, is found underneath a bridge in the early hours of the morning. Zen is assigned the case to ensure a swift conclusion of suicide but he suspects murder.

The Actors in Zen

English actor Rufus Sewell has recently starred as Tom Builder in the TV series The Pillars of Earth but he had his first break back in 1992 when he played Billy in the TV series Gone to Seed and two years later he starred as Will Ladislaw in Middlemarch. In 1998, he played John Murdoch in Dark City, one of the best science fiction movies of all time. More recently, he played King Charles II in the 2003 TV mini-series Charles II: The Power & The Passion and Doctor Jacob Hood in Eleventh Hour.

Caterina Murino came to fame for her portrayal of Solange Dimitrios in the 2006 James Bond film Casino Royale but she was already known to Italian viewers for her role as Franca Baldini in the 2004 TV series Orgoglio. She also played Miss Maupassant in the 2007 film St Trinian’s.

“Zen’s a perfect mixture of all the things that I would love to see in the cinema – corruption, love, elegance and humour,” she said in the official BBC press release. “Everything mixed in perfect doses.”
Michael Dibdin and Aurelio Zen

Michael Dibdin, who died in 2007, wrote eleven novels about the fictional detective Aurelio Zen, starting with Ratking in 1988. Vendetta followed in 1990 and Cabul in 1992. The last of the Zen books, End Games, was published in 2007. He also wrote seven other novels, his first being The Last Sherlock Holmes Story in 1978.

“The relief reading the books is that there’s a lot of humour and personally I’m trying to bring as much of that out as possible, for my own entertainment and hopefully for the entertainment of anyone watching,” said Rufus Sewell in the BBC press release.

www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b00x9x43

www.bbc.co.uk/emp/external/player.swf

[zenina]

I watched Vendetta and Cabal last night and Ratking tonight. My first viewing on DVD - but I'm sure there will be many more.

I probably also will come to the conclusion that Ratking is my favourite - just the ending with Zen picking up the phone and saying "Chief Zen" - Rufus' face is priceless in that. But I love all three parts.

And it is just pure joy to watch Rufus' play Zen. I mentioned this already in my introduction in the newbie thread but when I saw the trailer of Zen the first time I knew that this was going to be good. And those 3 Sundays when it was broadcast were the highlight of the week (pathetic - I know )

[dippyponge]

Found this blog on the BBC website by a lady called Mrs Peabody and found it very good.

I caught up yesterday on the first episode of BBC 1¡äs Zen, adapted from the Aurelio Zen crime novels of Michael Dibdin. I haven¡¯t read the novels, and wasn¡¯t particularly taken with the trailer for the programme, so had dragged my feet a bit, but when I finally tuned in, I was pleasantly surprised.

The first episode, ¡®Vendetta¡¯, immediately grabbed my attention with its sassy styling. The production seems to be channelling sleek 60s films like The Thomas Crown Affair through its camerawork, music and sharp-suited look. Dark shades were much in evidence. The feel was very Italian, with lovely vistas of Rome and olive groves in the countryside, and a bleached Mediterranean light (or was that just my telly?). But it was all done with a bit of tongue-in-cheek humour and was tremendously fun.



Rufus Sewell was excellent as Zen. From the comments I¡¯m seeing elsewhere, his Aurelio is a little sleeker and more of a heartthrob than the one in the books, but the characterisation certainly played well with this 40ish female viewer. He¡¯s a genuinely accomplished actor, and his chisled profile was shown off to good effect during his encounters with the alluring Tania (a hint of Michaelangelo¡¯s David there?). There was a strong supporting cast too.

One interesting point: British and Italian actors mingle throughout, and it seems that everyone has been instructed to deliver their lines in their own accents (so we had Queen¡¯s English, northern English, Italian and possibly Irish accents bundled in together). It was a bit odd at first, but somehow seemed to work OK. Better than everyone trying to fake an Italian delivery and getting it tragically wrong.

I watched Zen with my 15-year-old son, who said he would walk after 10 minutes if it was no good. He stayed for the duration, which is a compliment indeed. We both liked the multi-layered plot (until the end, when we got a trifle confused due to the long, drawn-out meaningful looks and cryptic exchanges between the characters, which were undoubtedly significant, but not always intelligible to us).

We¡¯ll be watching the second episode, ¡®Cabal¡¯, tonight ¨C so the makers of Zen are doing something very right. In particular, I look forward to seeing how Zen¡¯s character navigates the increasingly tricky role of ¡¯honest cop¡¯ in an Italian police force portrayed as inherently corrupt.

Both episodes of Zen are still available on iplayer.

If watching Zen has made you want to read Dibdin¡¯s series, or other crime novels set in Italy, there¡¯s a good list and overview here, on the Italian Mysteries blog.

Update: Just watched the third episode, ¡®Ratking¡¯, which I think was the best yet, especially in terms of snappy one liners:

Man: ¡®I hear you¡¯ve found a body?¡¯

Zen: ¡®Yes, they think it¡¯s my career.¡¯

[kissmekate]

Jan 30, 2011 21:33:40 GMT dippyponge said:

Rufus Sewell was excellent as Zen. From the comments I¡¯m seeing elsewhere, his Aurelio is a little sleeker and more of a heartthrob than the one in the books, but the characterisation certainly played well with this 40ish female viewer. He¡¯s a genuinely accomplished actor, and his chisled profile was shown off to good effect during his encounters with the alluring Tania (a hint of Michaelangelo¡¯s David there?).

Nice comparison!

And I think he captures Zen's spirit from the books quite well - he's the kind of guy the book Zen may have been ten years earlier

[zenina]

That one loved it too ;D

www.geeks.co.uk/30057-zen-winter-gem

Zen – A Winter Gem
Zen – A Winter Gem

If you enjoyed Sherlock then you'll like this

I find it hard to believe that a show of such high quality has failed to be recognised by many review sites, and in fact many people, but Zen – the BBC’s recently broadcast show – was the best show since Sherlock or the new Doctor Who and it wasn’t written by Steven Moffat, rather based on the Aurelio Zen detective novels by Michael Dibdin.

The show follows Detective Aurelio Zen, an honest Roman cop who discovers that it is increasingly difficult to be the only honest cop in the ancient city; especially when surrounded by plotting politicians, a stressed boss, and vengeful gangsters who don’t make life that easy.

Starring Rufus Sewell (A Knight’s Tale, Amazing Grace) the show’s balance of dark and seedy crime, corruption and murder mixed with comedic coincidence and the lead’s witty and surprisingly intelligent plans is certainly one worth a watch. For that matter, it’s worth making into a proper British series: just like Sherlock - which if you enjoyed, then you’ll like this.

This crime drama is a refreshing breath of air when you think about the competition: Midsummer Murders, Miss Marple, and Silent Witness (the last of which is on a particularly good series this year), but this is one definitely worth a watch. Even if you don’t like crime drama, the Roman Architecture and sumptuous Italian locations will make this a pleasurable viewing experience. Zen let in a nice bit of sun into our winter evenings.

[GreenEyesToo]

I just read that one, Zenina! Thanks for posting it. I'm still sure all the reviews were from people who couldn't be bothered to pay attention properly!