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[Cornballer]

Kato Kaelin previews next week's episode:

- NY Daily News: ‘People v. O.J. Simpson’ Episode 2 has too much Kato Kaelin even for Kato Kaelin

 

[RatskyWatsky]

I enjoyed the episode enough. Don't think it was really that good but it was a decent starting point.

This is where I'm at. I thought it was pretty entertaining, and I'll definitely keep watching, but I also got serious Lifetime Original Movie vibes from it - in particular, the music and sound cues were ridiculously over the top and the direction wasn't particularly good.

The Kardashian mentions felt totally forced.

Yep!

He acts fine he's just not a believable OJ to me. I can't look at him and not see Cuba. Although that describes Ross from Friends and Travolta for me too. They're all doing a good job acting, but youre not seeing the people you're seeing the actors.

I agree. It got a bit better towards the end, but for the majority of the episode I had a hard time buying the majority of the main performances. Courtney B. Vance, Sarah Paulson, and, oddly enough, John Travolta were the (positive) standouts for me.

- NY Mag: Marcia Clark on What Episode One of The People v. O.J. Simpson Got Right and Wrong

That was a very interesting read.

 

[Cornballer]

- NY Mag: The People v. O.J. Simpson Creators on Their Relationship With Veracity and Why All Film Is Manipulation

These are all real people, many of whom are still alive. Were you in touch with any of them?
SA: We spoke to nobody. We felt it was important to keep our perspective. Everyone has written books and put across their perspective in endless interviews. Also, as soon as you sit down and meet somebody, you're going to form an impression, and you might suddenly want to be nicer to them. Or you might get a bad feeling and want to paint them in a harsher light. We felt like we had so much good research to work off of that we could take all that research and then distill it and, at the end of the day, say, "Okay, this is the version of Chris Darden that we choose to present in this show." And there's many people from the case who are no longer with us. Someone like Johnnie Cochran or Robert Kardashian. We just didn't want to get to the point where we're only talking to some people and not other people.

Do you have any thoughts on this whole [true crime] trend? Have you watched Making a Murderer?
SA: Yes. All of this stuff is great. It's fascinating. Less so in The Jinx, more so in Making a Murderer and Serial, it almost takes you back to sort of like the early '70s and the distrust of government. It takes you to a distrust of authority and a distrust of police.
LK: All the shows we get compared to are documentaries. We are a work of drama, and that sometimes allows us to go dig deeper. [But] even documentaries aren't as truthful as you think they are. [If] someone says something in a documentary and you cut to someone else's face, that filmmaker has made a decision. That filmmaker is taking you on a journey and making a connection. They are shaping the story.
SA: If you're watching a documentary and the guy says, "There's no way I coulda done it," and then you cut to a meadow and some butterflies on the flowers, that’s one choice. The guy says, "There's no way I coulda done it," and then there's a musical thing, “bum bum.” Well, that's two different ways in postproduction you change the audience's opinion of what the guy just said. Audiences oftentimes don't realize this. All film in manipulation.

 

[Sloane]

This is where I'm at. I thought it was pretty entertaining, and I'll definitely keep watching, but I also got serious Lifetime Original Movie vibes from it - in particular, the music and sound cues were ridiculously over the top and the direction wasn't particularly good.

At times it seemed like Murphy couldn't decide whether he was directing another episode of AHS or a Lifetime movie but overall it managed to be surprisingly entertaining despite having to introduce like two dozen characters. The strong beginning probably helped, almost impossible to tell it anything but gripping, even if felt a little cliché.

As for the actors, I'm not quite sure what Travolta was doing but that's pretty much expected. My only real issue is Schwimmer, he will never not be Ross to me. I guess it's his voice mostly, he just can't shake that intonation. All I hear is "Rachel, pleeeeease!".

 

[Cornballer]

- LA Mag: The Creators of The People v. O.J. Simpson on Turning the “Trial of the Century” into a Ten Hour Miniseries

 

[Dalek]

I really wish the entrie season was available now, because I would binge watch it. I thought Travolta was great in this.

 

[Jasper]

For those thinking the Kardashians have been shoehorned into the show, they actually haven't.

Beside's obviously Robert Kardashian's huge involvement during the O.J trial (and O.J living in the Kardashian house right before, were he did indeed threaten suicide in Kim Kardashian's bedroom), O.J, Nicole, Robert, and Kris were the best of friends.

Robert and O.J in particular were best friends for 25 years and were best men at one another's weddings.

Likewise Nicole Brown and Kris Jenner were the best of friends, and the day that Nicole was found dead - she and Kris were supposed to meet up for coffee. In fact Kris knew O.J was a threat to Nicole (as Nicole had secretly confided in her), and Kris has expressed it is her biggest regret in life not doing anything about it.

As for the Kardashian kids, O.J was practically an uncle to them growing up (they called him "Uncle Juice"), and both families were always going on family vacations together.

Finally as for the Kardashian children being at Nicole's funeral in the television show...well, that's because they really were at the funeral in real life (video footage for the skeptics https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W8fTuCCK5U0).

 

[GavinGT]

Here's an excellent 2.5 hour summary of the trial highlights:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gA5sj_zTD9M

Lots of crazy stuff in here. For instance, at one point the defense got ahold of tapes of Detective Mark Fuhrman being a racist piece of shit. He even insulted Judge Ito's wife (his former boss), and they almost had to declare a mistrial several months into the proceedings.

 

[RatskyWatsky]

For those thinking the Kardashians have been shoehorned into the show, they actually haven't.

For a show that is supposedly inaccurate in several important areas, it's odd that this is one of the things that they got right on the money...

 

[TWrecks310]

For those thinking the Kardashians have been shoehorned into the show, they actually haven't.

For a show that is supposedly inaccurate in several important areas, it's odd that this is one of the things that they got right on the money...

As someone who criticized it, I know how important the whole family is in the story. The issue is how they went so far out of their way to mention Kim and Khloe in a way that was like "Hey! You know these people! Guess what, they were there!"

It just felt cringey and forced IMO

 

[Mifune]

As someone who criticized it, I know how important the whole family is in the story. The issue is how they went so far out of their way to mention Kim and Khloe in a way that was like "Hey! You know these people! Guess what, they were there!"

It just felt cringey and forced IMO

They mentioned the kids like twice? There's nothing forced about it. It would be weirder if they went out of their way to not mention their names.

 

[Jasper]

But I will add that from what I have read, there is going to be more scenes with the Kardashian children in upcoming episodes.

One scene in particular that I have read in many articles about the show, is Robert Kardashian and his kids going out to dinner at a fancy restaurant and being treated like celebrities, in which Robert begins telling Kourtney/Kim/Khloe/Rob Jnr a speech about how insignificant fame is, how it should not be sought after, how it's fleeting, etc...

A bit of tongue in cheek from the writers of the show I guess.

 

[Cornballer]

- Deadline: ‘People V. O.J. Simpson’ Ratings Surge In Live + 3 Results

The February 2 premiere of The People V. O.J. Simpson: American Crime Story drew a best drama viewership debut for the cabler in Live + Same Day and now delayed viewing results have the Ryan Murphy-directed 1st episode doing the same in Live + 3 ratings.

With lifts of 62% and 68%, the opening of the Cuba Gooding Jr. starring tale of the murders of Nicole Brown and Ronald Goldman and the subsequent media circus of a trial pulled in 8.3 million viewers and 4.2 million among adults 18-49. That makes the beginning of the 10-episode first run of ACS the most watched series premiere in FX’s history.

That viewership number tops the series premiere of previous top slotted The Shield by 73% – of course the latter series debuted back in 2002, long before L+3 became part of the TV game. While the overall numbers are much bigger, the growth percentage comes just under FX’s drama debut L+3 viewership record. In DVR viewing, the Season 1 debut of Fargo on April 15 2014 jumped 67% in overall viewership and 74% in the demo.

Over its first run plus two encores, FX has the ACS debut garnering 12 million total viewers with 6.1 in the key demo.

 

[crazyrabbits]

They mentioned the kids like twice? There's nothing forced about it. It would be weirder if they went out of their way to not mention their names.

In a scene that focused on slow-motion shots of mourners entering a funeral parlor, the media being told to show some restraint and O.J. himself trying to come to terms with the media circus and his ex-wife's body in the casket, that namedrop was absolutely forced.

That being said, I was more distracted by Selma Blair's performance. There was something off about it - it just felt like she was playing herself, with no emotion whatsoever.

Overall, I quite enjoyed it. They really captured that sense of eerie peacefulness that you think of while reading accounts from Fuhrman and others on the night of the murder. It felt a bit too on-the-nose at points, but it's very solid. Looking forward to the rest of the season.

 

[Cornballer]

New episode tonight:

The Run of His Life

Spoiler

O.J. Simpson's lawyers must handle an intense situation when he goes missing.

 

[Cornballer]

- E!Online: The People v. O.J. Simpson Fact v. Fiction: Where the Ripped-From-Reality FX Series Gets Creative

 

[Cornballer]

New episode in a few minutes.

 

[BigJonsson]

Go away Kardashian kids

 

[Hasphat'sAnts]

Ahahahaha. This is hilarious.

 

[BigJonsson]

Alright! Sabotage!

 

[smokeymicpot]

Go away Kardashian kids

That better be the last time but I don't think it is.

Cuba is making me think of Tracey Jordan.

 

[RyanardoDaVinci]

How do you spell The People v. O.J. Simpson?

K
A
R
D
A
S
H
I
A
N

KARDASHIAN KARDASHIAN KARDASHIAN KARDASHIAN!!!

 

[Chamber]

How do you spell The People v. O.J. Simpson?

K
A
R
D
A
S
H
I
A
N

KARDASHIAN KARDASHIAN KARDASHIAN KARDASHIAN!!!

I didn't mind it last week but that scene was egregious to say the least.

 

[B.K.]

That bald guy is really distracting. He looks exactly like BTK.

 

[Mdot]

All these years later and I still can't believe the way this all went down.

 

[BigJonsson]

Pretty good

 

[Zoe]

It's not really sitting well with me how they made OJ so sympathetic here, but I guess it makes for good TV.

 

[TWrecks310]

I thought the last 5 minutes or so of this were really good.

Show is decent thus far, I think I've heard it gets better pretty soon though from the critics who got pre-screenings.

 

[friskykillface]

I hope there's a prop bet out there that has the KARDASHIAN kids in every episode

 

[Cornballer]

- Onion A|V Club review
- Sepinwall's review
- Vanity Fair: The People v. O.J. Simpson Recap: Episode 2 Fact Check
- NY Mag: Behind The People v. O.J. Simpson’s Bronco-Car-Chase Episode
- NY Mag review
- NY Mag interview: David Schwimmer on Why He Wanted to Play Robert Kardashian in The People v. O.J. Simpson
- Rolling Stone: 'The People v. O.J. Simpson,' Episode 2: Our Fact-Checking Recap
- NY Times: David Schwimmer on Playing a Kardashian in ‘The People v. O.J. Simpson’
- EW: In defense of Cuba Gooding Jr. as O.J. Simpson
- Vanity Fair: Watch the Real Robert Kardashian Read O.J. Simpson’s Suicide Letter Live on Air
- Slate: What’s Fact and What’s Fiction in Episode 2 of The People v. O.J. Simpson: American Crime Story?

 

[stupei]

Watching the repeat of tonight's episode now. I'm enjoying it so far. I'm really enjoying how it integrates the real footage.

- NY Mag: The People v. O.J. Simpson Creators on Their Relationship With Veracity and Why All Film Is Manipulation

They had a few similar thoughts on the most recent episode of The Business. (Unless this was already linked and I missed it.)

I always like the interviews Kim Masters gets out of people, even if they're pretty straight forward.

 

[Dishwalla]

I never knew there were two Broncos.

 

[B.K.]

I never knew there were two Broncos.

Me either. That AJ guy sounds like he had a really unhealthy obsession with OJ.

 

[BigJonsson]

Me either. That AJ guy sounds like he had a really unhealthy obsession with OJ.

I wonder if he referred to himself as Apple Juice

 

[Werd]

Liking the show so far, interested in seeing the Cochran get more involved now. Travolta has been fine IMO, and the second episode didn't have as many of the over the top acting moments I thought the first did. Although the Kardashian chant really was absurd.

 

[Wickerman]

Me either. That AJ guy sounds like he had a really unhealthy obsession with OJ.

AC not AJ

 

[Dr.Acula]

That bald guy is really distracting. He looks exactly like BTK.

You mean Andy Bellefleur?

Just trying to protect people from OJ and Vampires!

AC not AJ

 

[Ben Morales]

This is amazing so far! Sterling K. Brown freaking nails Christopher Darden's voice and mannerisms. Damn. And Sarah Paulson is incredible as always. I love cuba's acting in this but yeah his trademark voice is throwing it off.

I really would love for them to do a season on Casey Anthony. Seems to be perfect for them.

 

[ezekial45]

The one thing I'm looking forward to seeing, besides Johnnie Cochran's famous line, is Mark Fuhrman on the stand. That guy basically blew a giant hole in the prosecution's case, and they never were able to recover from it.

 

[RatskyWatsky]

I'm enjoying the show but I still can't get over how 'Lifetime Original Movie' it feels.

Go away Kardashian kids

I can see why people might have been okay with their appearance in the first episode (a casual namedrop as they run around in the background of a funeral scene), but the shit in tonight's episode was indefensible.

How do you spell The People v. O.J. Simpson?

K
A
R
D
A
S
H
I
A
N

KARDASHIAN KARDASHIAN KARDASHIAN KARDASHIAN!!!

Blegh.

I'm really enjoying how it integrates the real footage.

Yeah that's one of the cooler aspects of the show for sure, except when the real life footage doesn't line up with the dramatization - for instance, when OJ was shown driving down his street, it was packed with cars and people but when they cut away to the real footage, the street was completely empty.

 

[Dan]

I know what the writers are trying to do with the Kardashian kids, but they're so fucking toxic that any attention, even negative attention, inspires a visceral reaction of disgust.

 

[Officerrob]

I could overlook the Kardashian kids stuff in the first episode, but the scene in episode two was indefensible

 

[strafer]

So did anyone see this live back when it happened? the car chase stuff?

 

[Manmademan]

So did anyone see this live back when it happened? the car chase stuff?

Pretty sure everyone saw it

 

[ViperVisor]

So did anyone see this live back when it happened? the car chase stuff?

I vaguely remember being at my grandma's house.

And the verdict I remember being in the elementary school lunch room waiting line and the art teacher had a radio on to hear it.

It's strange how I can remember that stuff.

 

[oti]

Wow at that cast. I listened to a TAL episode about O.J. lately (I think it was about a failed prank show) so I'm very interested in this.

 

[Dishwalla]

So did anyone see this live back when it happened? the car chase stuff?

Yes. Everyone who was watching basketball saw the chase live.

 

[Grizzlyjin]

I can't tell if they're playing some of the younger Kardashians stuff for laughs or to highlight that the infamy of the case started them down the road of seeking fame, or what. It wasn't a big deal in the first episode, a little shoehorned in, but they were actually at the funeral so I guess it was the most organic way they could think of introducing them. But literally spelling the name and chanting was just bizarre. Which maybe was the point? I honestly can't tell. Haha

This bounces back and forth between being compelling and cartoony. They're doing a good job with selling the racial tensions in the case, especially relevant right now. Kinda gives it an anchor for the younger audience to grasp onto.

 

[Ultratech]

So did anyone see this live back when it happened? the car chase stuff?

I vaguely remember it, though I was a little kid at the time.

My mom was watching it happen in a bedroom.

I know the Trial ate up a TON of daytime TV though.
It'd come on while I was at a babysitter's, and it felt like it went on for seemingly forever.

 

[Grizzlyjin]

I vaguely remember it, though I was a little kid at the time.

My mom was watching it happen in a bedroom.

I know the Trial ate up a TON of daytime TV though.
It'd come on while I was at a babysitter's, and it felt like it went on for seemingly forever.

Yeah, especially since I was in grade school at the time. It felt like the trial was going on for the majority of my life. Constant punchline on the late night shows, it was everywhere. And it basically made Court TV.