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Mammals Review: From acclaimed playwright Jez Butterworth comes this oddity of a black-comedy that focuses on the failings of a marriage and staying true to that “one” even amidst all the infidelities that have been exposed. “Aren’t we all just Mammals?” the press release said, and that’s what pretty much the show tries to be around, and very much to a fault in many cases. Black Panther Wakanda Forever Movie Review: Tenoch Huerta, Letitia Wright Bring Their A-Game to Marvel’s Most Poignant Film Yet! (LatestLY Exclusive).
After going on a holiday with his pregnant wife Amandine (Melia Kreiling), Jamie’s (James Corden) life is sent into a whirlwind when she ends up suffering a miscarriage. Trying to be there for her and calling everyone to deliver the news, Jamie gets another hit to the chest when he discovers that his wife is also having an affair with someone. Absolutely broken, he enlists the help of his brother-in-law Jeff (Colin Morgan), whose own marriage with his Jamie’s sister Lue (Sally Hawkins) seems to be crumbling down, and tries to find answers.
In a very inspired choice, Amazon decided to release a show starring James Corden as a chef at a very unique time to say the least. Given the most recent controversy of the late-night talk show host, he actually comes off quite comedic in this dramedy that sees him turn in a jealous husband act. Turning basically into a special agent just to get all the life details related to the man his wife is cheating on him with, Corden delivers some of the more melodramatic comedy with a lot of conviction. Keith McNally Calls James Corden as ‘The Most Abusive Customer’, Bans the Actor from His Popular NYC Restaurant (View Post).
Sadly, that’s where the character work for the show practically ends considering Mammals is solely focused on delivering levels of surrealism packed in with a shade of reality. Some jokes very much fail to land because of how out of place they feel, and the characters themselves too just blur into the background. Melia Kreiling’s Amandine for that fact hardly feels much present in this six-episode show, and that’s kind of weird considering how important she is to the plot.
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The same can be said for Sally Hawkins’ Lue too. Concerned with an entirely different reality and having no idea of what her storyline entails for almost half this short-series, it just feels frustrating. It’s honestly even weird that I almost forgot about this character while watching and if it was not for Hawkins being in that role, I probably wouldn’t have even cared.
Thankfully, in the side characters Jeff remains hilarious and has good enough presence. Dealing with his own marital crisis while trying to provide aid to Jamie, Colin Morgan is hilarious in the role where he reluctantly does stuff in order to get his brother-in-law some answers. Given Amandine’s phone to investigate the guy she is seeing, the comedic timing here feels nice.
But in that search for answers, Mammals ends up losing a lot of its steam. A six-episode event that would have probably been better as a two-hour affair, the series feels uneven with its structure. You’re constantly being edged with info and no clear answer is there in sight until the end. It’s like knocking on a door and waiting for someone to open it for three hours. Zootopia+ Review: This Return to the Mammal Metropolis Is an Underwhelming Affair (LatestLY Exclusive).
Even its themes feel barely raised as Mammals seems more focused to getting to the next quip immediately rather than letting its moments breathe. It feels very opaque in nature and never provides worthwhile commentary on what the actual meaning behind the show is. While the core concept of Mammals might keep you hooked in those first few episodes, by the end of it you’ll just not end up caring enough for the final resolution.
Yay!
James Corden and Colin Morgan
Nay!
Uneven Structure
Final Thoughts
Mammals could have largely benefited with some tighter character work and a better commitment to how this story should have presented. While James Corden does provide for a few hilarious moments, its just too little. Mammals is currently streaming on Amazon Prime Video.
(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Nov 14, 2022 02:13 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).
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