Conversations With Friends - BBC 3 & Hulu.

Wombatman

3 episodes in and it's grating on the nerves a little. While unsophisticated socially awkward teenagers can have their charm, gauche adults who read too much into a bit of nookie are annoying and boring for the most part. Hope it improves or I might abandon it.

BlockPartee

I think Joe Alwyn does a decent Irish accent. He sounds much like D4 fellas I've met before so I can't fault him. The series is alright, it's quite slow but it's not bad. I haven't given up on it and I'm 9 episodes in.

olestoepoke

I enjoyed Normal people but not liking this so far, as others have said a bit slow.

I laughed when it was promo'd before Prime Time tonight and the continuity announcer remarked about Joe Duffy getting calls. That won't happen until the knickers on the bath room floor in episode 6 😁

Ep 7 is where Joe Alwyn's accent well and truly slips, it's mostly ok up to there but is all over the place at that point.

sam t smith

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119078686#Comment_119078686

Assuming anyone is still watching by episode 6.

riclad

We should be happy these programs make it look like Ireland is full of smart beautiful people who have deep meaningful intelligent conservations, not very realistic, but better than they old Hollywood stereotypes about drunken fighting Irish it's like an ad for the tourist board. I don't think it'll be as popular as normal people which got rave reviews

olestoepoke

I watched as far as the end of episode 3. It's very poor, that's me I'm out.

Wombatman

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119078921#Comment_119078921

Ep 3 was like watching paint dry. Utterly charmless. Any spark or chemistry that is supposed to exist between Frances and Nick isn't being conveyed very well. Will keep watching car crash style.

"...smart beautiful people who have deep meaningful intelligent conservations"? Wat? Are we watching the same show riclad? It's mainly vapid, self absorbed nonsense.

JP Liz V1

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119078499#Comment_119078499

No wonder Taylor Swift is praising hyping the show, Joe is her fella, he looks kinda like Luke Bracey

jamsie2001

I don't remember Sally Rooney having loads of English and Americans in her novels living in D4. I'm finding this first episode very pretentious, especially the accents. The characters remind me of some of the people studying English and Drama at TCD when I was there in the 90s.

freshpopcorn

I really liked Normal People. I did my Leaving Cert/went to college the same time it was set. I found a lot of the characters relatable from people I knew.(Certain bits were off of course).

Trying this but not excited so far.

screamer

As expected more moany, meek, mousey muck from the abnormal people talking with other abnormal people. Won’t be wasting my life following this series either.

Icsics

It’s very very slow & boring. Not much of a story & the little that’s there isn’t believable. A married couple suddenly becoming best friends with young women? Turned off at 3rd episode

bullpost

I watched snippets. I'll never get that time back unfortunately.

Man Vs ManUre

What’s the story with the Tommy Tiernan character?? Is he clinically depressed over wife leaving him?? Or mental problems?? He has a bit of money owning houses at home in country and in Dublin City centre. But doesn’t live in flashy way.

Hamachi

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119085301#Comment_119085301

I read the novel last year for my sins. Tommy Tiernan is playing her father. In the novel, you see him slipping deeper into alcoholism with each passing visit. The depression is mostly due to alcoholism, and is presumably also fueled by loneliness since the marriage breakdown.

In the book, the Dublin apartment is located down around the Liberties. It isn't owned by the father, rather by his brother, Frances' uncle. She's allowed to live there alone during the summer holidays but has to share with a paying tenant during term time. That's the girl you see moving out in episode 1, with whom Frances makes some small talk.

BTW, her home town in the novel is Ballina, if I recall correctly. I think the town portrayed in the TV show is Ballinasloe. I mentioned earlier in this thread that I hated the novel. I've only watched the first two episodes so far and I'm not impressed. I'll probably watch it, if only out of morbid curiosity. I don't like the casting, particularly internationalizing the 'Bobbi' character. Having said that, the actress playing 'Melissa' is pretty faithful to the source material.

Hangdogroad

I get the impression Sally Rooney is a complete dose of an individual.

Man Vs ManUre

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119086339#Comment_119086339

Thanks for great reply.

I thought I saw the ocean when she went home. Neither Ballinasloe or Ballina are seaside towns.

sam t smith

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119086414#Comment_119086414

“Rooney describes herself as a marxist and weaves her political beliefs into her novels.”

You aren’t wrong. Marxist propaganda.

sam t smith

Does Ms. Rooney write the screen plays also?

Nigel Fairservice

I thought it was dreadful stuff. Most of the characters seemed insufferable. I though Tommy Tiernan as the melancholic Dad was good though.

silliussoddius

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119086477#Comment_119086477

Richard Marx.

sam t smith

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119086783#Comment_119086783

A talented singer and song writer. My favourite songs of his would be ‘Hazard County’ and ‘Right Here Waiting For You’.

You may have spotted him doing a cameo a few years back as a wedding singer in ‘Life in Pieces’.

Married to Daisy Fuentes if I recall correctly, in spite of his mullet.

RoTelly

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119086339#Comment_119086339

Ah they should have made it Ballyhaunis

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119086481#Comment_119086481

She co-wrote Normal People's script but not this one.

john9876

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119086339#Comment_119086339

Thanks for confirming that it was Ballinasloe. I thought that was what was on the train station sign but wasn't sure.

It's ok, more style than substance.

The most annoying part is the amount of text messages used which means I need to rewind it, pause it and walk up to the TV to read the message!

embraer170

It is very French, but I am not hating it as much everyone else here.

Hamachi

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119086516#Comment_119086516

For God's sake, don't read the book, if you think the characters in the TV adaptation are insufferable.

Hamachi

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119086414#Comment_119086414

I know somebody who vaguely knew her in Trinity. She was heavily involved in the debating societies and was apparently very opinionated and strident.

She's clearly an intelligent woman and a decent writer. However, I get the sense that she isn't somebody you would want to go for pints with.

Man Vs ManUre

2 episode in and it has none of the magic of Normal People. NP has Mescal and DEJ, 2 unknowns but they were just magnetic on screen, and had serious chemistry. It’s setting was rural and realistic, ie gaa and secondary school in country town. This one, trinity students who moonlight as stand up comedy, gimme a break that’s complete elitism. So far the characters are not on the level of NP, the wife and outgoing friend are very unlikeable, and the main bloke doesn’t have the innocence and vulnerability of Mescal, he’s just a tortured rich D4 head, the only likeabke character is the main girl. Will watch it anyway, hope it improves but from what I heard it doesn’t, and episode 3 is painfully slow.

TheDavester

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119079670#Comment_119079670

it'll be championed by the una mullally/lousie o neill type, upper class late 20's/30s pretentious women/hipster market who think think its deep but its vain vapid crap