The Bronx is Burning

Okay, this is a television series, not a film. I do recall when Arnab first launched this blog (thank you Arnab) that discussing TV and teaching methods was verboten (Frisoli asked about the former, Jim Kincaid the latter), but since this blog has grown, we’ve included a lot of chat (actually some really inspired writing, tho never from me) about television. The Sopranos, Deadwood, Rome–basically really strong HBO and Showtime programming.

Well, I’ve become addicted to this ESPN series. Not because I’m a Yankees fan–I hate ’em, really, though I was a big fan of both Reggie Jackson and Thurman Munson when I was a kid (I was pretty upset when I learned of Munson’s fatal plane crash)–but becuase I’m a John Turturro fan. And he is brilliant. Not only does he really look the part, but he loads everything into the smallest gesture or look. Oliver Platt’s bloated, bleating Steinbrenner is fun, but just a few quiet moments of a somber Billy Martin, sucking down a Budweiser at a local bar is far more enjoyable to watch.

Actually, the whole cast is good. Kevin Conway (as Yankees president Gabe Paul) and Daniel Sunjata (as Reggie Jackson) are also very good.

I’m not entirely sold on the idea of putting in tandem with the Yankees turbulent season the story of the .44 caliber killer (aka Son of Sam). At one moment, we’re watching a shouting match between Jackson and Martin, then we cut to a young couple sitting in a parked car getting an unexpected visit from the .44 caliber killer. I guess I’m intrigued how the producers are managing to keep these events simultaneous yet independent, perhaps because we’re accustomed to multi-plot films whose writers and directors seem slave to the assumption that everything must tie together.

I wonder if anyone else is tuning in.

5 thoughts on “The Bronx is Burning”

  1. discussing teaching is still verboten! woe to he or she who tries!

    have not watched the show, but lee’s summer of sam also has baseball as part of its narrative, if i remember correctly.

  2. I’m keen to see this, but not keen to watch it fissured by commercials. I also want to give TNT’s miniseries, The Company, a look–but they’ll both have to wait for dvd.

    I’ve always hated the Yankees, but there was always something very engaging about Billy Martin, and I remember as a lad my keen fascination with Peter Golenbock’s _The Bronx Zoo_, recounting the personalities inside the locker room. Turturro is great–I can’t wait to see what he’s doing with the role.

  3. I watched the first fifteen minutes of “The Company” and it made me long for The Good Shepherd. I don’t know baseball from extreme sports and I don’t care enough to decide if I like or dislike the New York Yankees. Let them all take steroids . . . but the reviews for “The Bronx is Burning” were less than kind, so I passed. Am I really missing something (Turturro was embarrassing in Transformers but I guess a paycheck’s a paycheck so I throw him no ill will)? Still, the second season of “Weeds” was terrific on DVD. “Big Love” gets better and better and better. “Entourage” is on a roll, and Kyra Segwick in “The Closer” is heavenly. And while I may be one of a handful, I think “John, From Cincinnati,” though flawed, to be continually entertaining (even mind blowing on ocassion). Oh yeah, I watch “Big Brother 8” religiously, though I think that ranks up there with Arnab’s willingness to watch whatever’s on On Demand.

  4. entourage is on a roll? it gets worse every week. and john from cincinnati gets less bearable each week as well–but more on that in its own thread.

  5. Richard Sandimir of the New York Times gave The Bronx is Burning a good review, and I think he’s got it right:

    In one of the series’s fascinating clubhouse orations, Steinbrenner tells team members that they are family and that this family cannot be pulled apart. “So, as the head of this family,” he says pompously, “I’ve decided to give you your manager back.” The paternal benevolence bewilders Martin, framed alone on a sofa to highlight his isolation, who wears a relieved, if slightly goofy expression.”

    Turturro’s reactions to Platt’s blowsy Seinbrennerisms are perfectly honed, and it’s really a treat to see the two actors working scenes like this (and there are many).

    But are you missing something? I don’t know–it’s television. I mean, if it’s on, check it out. ESPN runs it Tuesday nights, but there are repeats scattered throughout the week. And as far as commercials, yes there are many long, frustrating breaks. But I’ll take high-def programming with commercials. I guess one can wait for the DVD, but it’s fun watching this show during the dog days of August–so I wouldn’t wait.

    Oh, and by the way, there is some brief commentary from the actual players (including Jackson) after each episode. Everyone gets a chance to chime in with his own opinions about the events portrayed.

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