Oz - The Complete First Season

Rating:
Summary: Addictive
Review: By now you've heard all about it. But you have to see it to believe it.

I was turned off by the subject matter of "Oz" from its inception, and so was hesitant, for years, to actually watch what the rest of the world was buzzing about.

Thank God for DVD series releases.

Oz is not as violent or as gritty as I had feared. While undeniably and unforgivably rough, raw, and crude, the violence and grit is palatable. And the drama and storylines that string the acts of violence together make this one of the most addictive television series of modern TV.

It has its flaws. The goings-on in Oz are over-the-top. Its unbelievable that prisoners and corrections officers alike engage in the kind of biting, intelligent, and relevant dialogue that routinely occurs in Emerald City. And while I've never been in prison, on either side of the bars, I suspect the kind of drama that goes down in just one episode may not even occur over the span of years in reality, if ever at all. But it makes for really good tv.

The acting here is above average, though at times borders on the melodramatic, and seems as if it would be better at home on the stage than on the small screen. Rita Moreno, as the resident nun/psychologist, is a comforting presence and sheds some light on the sympathetic qualities of the otherwise unlikeable inmates. Lee Tergeson ("Tobias Beecher") is great as the white-collar attorney who, by a series of events he lets out of his control, unwittingly ends up behind the walls of Oz, where he is sadly unprepared to adapt. J.K. Simmons is excellent as the dispacable white-supremist Schillinger. The true stand-out, however, is "Jefferson Keane", played by Leon Robinson, a hardened inmate from the ghetto sentenced to death and struggling with spriritual change.

The dismal lows in acting come through B.D. Wong ("Father Mukada"), who, though not as unbelievable here as he is on "Law & Order: SVU", nevertheless has a very limited range (perplexed and annoying). The most limited of ranges, however, comes by way of Eammon Walker ("Kareem Said"), who tiresomely plays his character through intense but laughable angry whispers, flared nostrils, and dirty looks, so over-the-top that you are instantly returned the reality that Oz is, in fact, nothing more than a serial drama.

Notwithstanding some low points in the acting, Oz Season One is definitely a triumph in television creation. The episodes ease you into the stark desperation and violence of Oz, and gradually build in intensity until the final, unforgettable episode.

Original, thought-provoking, smart, usually well-written, and always easy to follow, Oz is something worth watching. Only, prepare to kill about 7 or 8 hours in one sitting--it's totally addictive.

Rating:
Summary: There's NO PLACE Like "OZ"
Review: Wow!!!! When I first saw this show I was amazed. How can such gritty realism ever get on TV. Well it's not TV it's HBO. I never saw the show when I subscribed to HBO, but I took a chance and bought a previously viewed copy and was hooked. I watched the whole season in one night. ALL NIGHT!!! It was like "Law and Order" with nudity. This show is raw, but very well acted and directed. Lots of stars have either cameoed on this show or directed an episode. The cast is great, the script is great, and the show moves in many directions at once, much like a real prison.

Rating:
Summary: One Of The Most Watchable Shows Ever!
Review: What can you say about Oz other than watch it?

Several people have described the show as "addictive" - it really is, the very nature of a prison being a barren, essentially monotone and boring place means the show has to rely 100% on engaging characters - the true anchor of any great TV show or film. This is where Oz shines, the range of colourful characters really does get you hooked, and the futuristic pod-style housing gives the EmCity wing a certain flavour that would definitely not be present if the series was set in an older, more traditional looking jail.

There's no yardtime in Oz! I think these guys are just too dangerous to be let outside. There's certainly a noticable bodycount to say the least.

If you're looking for a down-to-earh, realistic portrayal of prison then despite what some reviewers seem to be saying or implying: OZ ain't it. It's over the top and paints in vivid colour where real prison would be using greys and blacks, but this is what makes it entertaining.

Oz has a very dark sense of humour to it which is almost hilarious at times but trust me when I say you have to have to be able to appreciate dark humour to find certain parts funny - much in the same vain as Australian celebrity criminal flick "Chopper". If you can look through the litres of prop blood and the hammed up actor screaming his head off while a steroid-infested TripleH look-alike puts his floor-sharpened spoon to wicked use then you might find a wry smile creeping onto your face - although I must admit that at times the violence crosses a line and there doesn't seem to be any sanctuary available while witnessing a character you really got to know and like being tortured to death by someone who's laughing at his face while he's doing it. You have to play it by ear in this respect.

Don't get me wrong, it's not a comedy, but certain parts certainly appear to me to be deliberately blackly comic - not everyone will agree though, not everyone can see past the essentially unfunny jailhouse window-dressing. I just don't think such an over the top steroid fuelled roller-coaster of a show such as Oz should be taken too seriously is all.

Watch it and enjoy it cos it is one of the most entertaining and unique shows ever to grace your TV screen.

Compulsive viewing!!!

Rating:
Summary: The best show on HBO
Review: From Homicide: Life on the Street creator Tom Fontana and Barry Levinson, Oz is one of the most compulsively violent and addicting shows to hit HBO. While the Sopranos garnered most of the attention from HBO viewers, the primal nature and sheer unpredictability of Oz made the series the definition of must see TV. Taking place in the Oswald Correctional Facility (known to the inmates as Oz) these eight episodes revolve around Emerald City: a cellblock overseen by prison reform advocate Tim McManus (Terry Kinney) and the warden Leo Glynn (Ernie Hudson) who is desperately trying to keep the peace among the inmates as the governor bans privlages including smoking and conjugal visits. We are introduced to a cast of compelling characters whom be both pity and despise, including meek lawyer Tobias Beecher (Lee Tergesen) whose transformation from frightened new convict to drug raddled madman must be seen to be believed, white supremicist leader Vern Schillinger (J.K. Simmons), backstabbing and double dealing Ryan O'Reilly (Dean Winters), the cocky and self loathing Miguel Alvarez (Kirk Acevedo), wheelchair bound narrator Augustus Hill (Harold Perrineau), and Muslim activist Kareem Said (Eamonn Walker) whose extreme policy of non-violence explodes in the season ending riot that sets the stage for season two. The rest of the cast, including Rita Moreno, the Sopranos' Edie Falco, and John Seda (even though he only appears in the first episode) does brilliant work, all of whom help make Oz unforgettable. If you've never seen Oz, you should definitely check it out and see for yourself one of the best and underrated shows on HBO and maybe even TV history, but do be warned, this series is not for the squeamish.

Rating:
Summary: A stunning series
Review: To put it bluntly, Im astounded that the cast and directors/producers of this show didnt win a PILE of emmy awards. This series, broadcast originally on HBO, is the most accurate, gripping depiction of life behind bars. Muslims, Aryans, Blacks, Latinos, pick a group and stick with it. Its full of provocative content, language, put the kids to bed!!! Adults Only!!!


My favorite HBO series by far, this is the season that started it all. Go get it!!!

Rating:
Summary: You won't find Dorothy or ToTo here
Review: You won't find ToTo here!!!! Oz is a prison where men are supposed to be rehabilitated. Instead the men are still committing crimes, being violated, fighting for their rights, their lives, and trying to maintain their sanity. Season 1 you are introduced to Warden Glynn, trying to maintain order in the prison, and keep the funding. McManus he runs the Oz section, but sometimes his best laid plans don't always work. Augustus Hill is in a wheelchair, and he narrates the episodes. Kareem Said is the Muslim leader. I love this guys character, despite being in prison, he still tries to bring a sense of discipline, order, and he does not allow anyone to mess with him or his religion!!! Do not try to cross this brother!! He tries to help other black men follow the faith even if they end up on death row. This man enters the prison, and you see people go nuts!!! Some men like him and some can't stand him and want to see him dead. Sister Peter tries to help the men with their drug problems. Beecher is the man that does not belong, he is a former lawyer who is serving time for driving while impaired, and for killing a young girl. He meets up with Schillinger and his life goes from bad to nightmare. Shcillinger makes him wear make up, violates him, and every chance he gets abuse and use him until Beecher has had enough!! Alvarez is not in prison for 5 minutes before he is stabbed. This show will have you on waves of emotion. You will be angry, you will be shocked, you will be surprised, you will be sad, you will cry, and in some cases you will find yourself laughing. You feel for some of the prisoners, you will hate some of the prisoner, and you will like or dislike some of the workers. This is a GREAT show, and I'm looking forward to seeing Season 2 of Oz.



Rating:
Summary: OZ...We're Not In Kansas Anymore Toto!
Review: Well, I'd seen HBO's other hit original series like "The Sopranos" and "The Wire", and I honestly thought that TV couldn't get anymore violent or better in story content! BOY WAS I WRONG! You have to watch the show from the beginning, but if you follow carefully you feel just like you're in the prison...which is exactly what the show's directors and producers have attempted to do by shooting in closed-in spaces and upping the anti on violence. It seems that movies are losing story conent and TV (with less censorship) is gaining much more edgy stories! Plus the cast is all-star from Rita Moreno (Sister Peter Marie) to the very under-rated Kirk Acavedo (Alvarez). Even the show's writer, Tom Fontana is so great at connecting stories and humanizing the most brutal killers in OZ. The only thing that I can find that irritates me is that these cast members keep doing LAW AND ORDER episodes! God! I mean, come on, it's better to burn out than fade away. Anyway, I've got to recommend this and the other seasons.