Two months ago, I got into a UK TV series called Shameless which was about six children who were pretty much abandoned by their parents, having to look after themselves as well as each other, and dealing with their father's problems or obstacles that came their way. I loved that show so much and now today, I just can't stop thinking nor talking about it. I always wanted to watch it as a kid but it was always on too late. Now seeing that a remake for the classic British show arose, I always thought to myself that giving it a chance would be good as well as thinking that it was going to flop hard.
After watching a few clips that users had uploaded, I instantly pointed a dreaded finger at the series saying that it's the worst thing ever, making it out that the U.S should have not messed with a UK classic. Being opened minded about remakes, I decided to give the first season (which holds a total of 12 episodes) a go. I got it done in two days, not because I was addicted but because I was eager with many of the new elements they could come up with. As I just mentioned earlier on, I thought that it was going to be the worst thing ever. After watching Season 1, I don't believe it is the biggest pile of garbage I made it out to be beforehand, but I do still believe that the new Shameless suffers from many problems. I'll talk about why I don't particularly like the new Shameless, but I do have some positive points to touch up on as well as I don't think it's all rubbish. I'll intertwine the positives and negatives together. (Also Spoilers are seen in the review, so if you haven't seen the UK or US versions of Shameless, do not read on) Firstly, I believe that the cast were chosen well and the majority of the actors including William H Macy and Emmy Rossum do the best with what they're given. However, the material given is quite lacking at many points as this series has made it quite awkward for the characters. I believe the creators really screwed re-creating The Gallagher family. Frank's portrayal isn't the funny or stumbling drunk, which will talk about life's issues. Instead, he's too regular, just making mistakes. The creators make the new Frank one dimensional which blows. Despite William H Macy doing the best he can, it just never worked for me. Emmy Rossum is also given pretty poor stuff. Fiona in the original is a very strong woman. In this new version, it feels as if Fiona is trying too hard with all the responsibilities. Overall, I believe they ruined her too. Even though, Lip's portrayal was different, the actor with his material is great. He doesn't strand to far from the concept. Ian and Carl's material is awful. The actors were great, but their new personalities, horrible. I felt Debbie wasn't there half the time and Liam was natural. I also believe Steve was the worst portrayal because he was too desperate for Fiona, and the actor was dull. The rest of the cast were excellent with what they were given. It's just a damn shame that the Gallaghers were ruined.
Now, I'll talk about the re-creation of certain scenes. Half were good, while some were shown in a very lame or dull way. Many of the scenes are more dramatic than comedic and there is all this over the top emotion, instead of balancing it out. Many of these drama scenes which marked overboard didn't make me really feel sorry for characters. Scenes such as Ian telling Fiona he's gay, or Karen's father finding her under the table had no substance, which made it too clean. Other scenes such as Lip beating up Frank or Frank head-butting Ian were scenes which I thought they surprisingly re-imagined well. It was exciting to also see some new material, such as keeping Karen's father in the picture for more longer as well as see other twists and elements that made the plot strand.
Two last aspects I have to complain about is the way this new version was shot. The UK version for season 1 had some memorable shots which highlighted the events (tragic or comedic) to be remembered. It'll have a place in my heart. In the US version, I just found there were many shots which were angled awkwardly. It was quite mind-numbing to look at sometimes, as I found that they wanted to show everything, but at the same time, still remain on a key subject, I think they definitely went overboard.
I also believe that the way the story was set up was quite messy and muddled. I didn't really enjoy the majority of the 12 episodes only liking five of them at the most. I believe they should have strictly followed the UK version, because it would have made much more sense. At many different periods, I found that they were trying to cram many re-imagined or new scenes into the storyline at the last minute, which made it spin out of control.
Overall, I do not like the new version of Shameless but I don't absolutely hate it. Everything's being remade which is a shame, but it's a big thing in film or TV that no one can do about. If you the US version of Shameless, I'm totally cool with it, but for me, the UK version sticks better with me. It just felt more real life like. I would only watch the US version (some episodes) if I ever got bored one day. To me, it's something you would watch on a boring day. The UK version to me is something I'd watch for pure entertaining fun. 5/10
After watching a few clips that users had uploaded, I instantly pointed a dreaded finger at the series saying that it's the worst thing ever, making it out that the U.S should have not messed with a UK classic. Being opened minded about remakes, I decided to give the first season (which holds a total of 12 episodes) a go. I got it done in two days, not because I was addicted but because I was eager with many of the new elements they could come up with. As I just mentioned earlier on, I thought that it was going to be the worst thing ever. After watching Season 1, I don't believe it is the biggest pile of garbage I made it out to be beforehand, but I do still believe that the new Shameless suffers from many problems. I'll talk about why I don't particularly like the new Shameless, but I do have some positive points to touch up on as well as I don't think it's all rubbish. I'll intertwine the positives and negatives together. (Also Spoilers are seen in the review, so if you haven't seen the UK or US versions of Shameless, do not read on) Firstly, I believe that the cast were chosen well and the majority of the actors including William H Macy and Emmy Rossum do the best with what they're given. However, the material given is quite lacking at many points as this series has made it quite awkward for the characters. I believe the creators really screwed re-creating The Gallagher family. Frank's portrayal isn't the funny or stumbling drunk, which will talk about life's issues. Instead, he's too regular, just making mistakes. The creators make the new Frank one dimensional which blows. Despite William H Macy doing the best he can, it just never worked for me. Emmy Rossum is also given pretty poor stuff. Fiona in the original is a very strong woman. In this new version, it feels as if Fiona is trying too hard with all the responsibilities. Overall, I believe they ruined her too. Even though, Lip's portrayal was different, the actor with his material is great. He doesn't strand to far from the concept. Ian and Carl's material is awful. The actors were great, but their new personalities, horrible. I felt Debbie wasn't there half the time and Liam was natural. I also believe Steve was the worst portrayal because he was too desperate for Fiona, and the actor was dull. The rest of the cast were excellent with what they were given. It's just a damn shame that the Gallaghers were ruined.
Now, I'll talk about the re-creation of certain scenes. Half were good, while some were shown in a very lame or dull way. Many of the scenes are more dramatic than comedic and there is all this over the top emotion, instead of balancing it out. Many of these drama scenes which marked overboard didn't make me really feel sorry for characters. Scenes such as Ian telling Fiona he's gay, or Karen's father finding her under the table had no substance, which made it too clean. Other scenes such as Lip beating up Frank or Frank head-butting Ian were scenes which I thought they surprisingly re-imagined well. It was exciting to also see some new material, such as keeping Karen's father in the picture for more longer as well as see other twists and elements that made the plot strand.
Two last aspects I have to complain about is the way this new version was shot. The UK version for season 1 had some memorable shots which highlighted the events (tragic or comedic) to be remembered. It'll have a place in my heart. In the US version, I just found there were many shots which were angled awkwardly. It was quite mind-numbing to look at sometimes, as I found that they wanted to show everything, but at the same time, still remain on a key subject, I think they definitely went overboard.
I also believe that the way the story was set up was quite messy and muddled. I didn't really enjoy the majority of the 12 episodes only liking five of them at the most. I believe they should have strictly followed the UK version, because it would have made much more sense. At many different periods, I found that they were trying to cram many re-imagined or new scenes into the storyline at the last minute, which made it spin out of control.
Overall, I do not like the new version of Shameless but I don't absolutely hate it. Everything's being remade which is a shame, but it's a big thing in film or TV that no one can do about. If you the US version of Shameless, I'm totally cool with it, but for me, the UK version sticks better with me. It just felt more real life like. I would only watch the US version (some episodes) if I ever got bored one day. To me, it's something you would watch on a boring day. The UK version to me is something I'd watch for pure entertaining fun. 5/10
