Transparent 2014.
A five season series that is easily one of the best I've seen, and I've seen them all. A complex and complicated look at among other things Jewish life and identity lived by a privileged upper middle class family living and working in L.A. who are conflicted, torn, and confused but who are well meaning, kind, richly emotional and funny. Torn and worn.
The head of the tribe is led by Jeffrey Tambor as Mort a college professor who as we quickly learn is transitioning to a woman. He comes out to his family, his ex-wife exquisitely played by the great Judith Light, and his three grown children Gaby Hoffman, Amy Landecker and Jay Duplass all of whom have enough baggage to sink a large ship and all three are superb and complicated. Hoffman is also dealing with issues of her sexuality and her being Jewish, Landecker is bi and after leaving her husband for a woman who she marries with disastrous results, and Duplass who is a successful music producer who was sexually abused by his babysitter that went on through his teen years and finds he has a grown son from the relationship and that's only for starters.
The show is expansive and generous thanks to Joey Soloway who created, wrote and directed many of the eposodes along with her sister Faith, and they have a long personal story themselves with regards to the thick and complicated issue of transgender family members. As if the issue of transgenders wasn't enough to fill a series for a couple of years they also take on as I said Jewish life in all its complicated glory and misery including the religion, the holocaust, the politics of Israel and what it means to be a Jew for both men and women young and old.
The past of the Pfefferman's is also shown and dealt with in backward looks to the Nazi period in Germany, and the once thriving cultural life in pre Hitler Berlin and Mort/Maura's conflicted early life in dealing with her confused sexuality. The issues of sexuality and sex, both straight and gay and how these characters move in and out of these thorny themes are at times hilarious and scary, intimate and expansive, loud and low and sometimes embarrassing and sad to watch.
The supporting cast is also great with two standout performances from two trans actresses Alexandra Billings & Trace Lysette who are beautiful and commanding actresses. Some folks have complained about the role of Maura being played by a “straight actor” but I don't care. Tambor is a brilliant actor who gives a stunning performance. There is also a big elephant in the room about him which I'll go into later in this piece.
Also terrific and surprising was Bradley Whitford as Maura's straight cross dressing friend who spend a weekend in the Catskills at a cross dressing resort that is based on the real Casa Susanna a resort that existed for mostly straight and married men who would spend time there sometimes with their wives. A documentary about this remarkable moment and time in gay history can be found on PBS for those who are interested. https://casasusanna.com/
Also superb is the great Kathryn Hahn as a compassionate and caring Rabbi who has an emotional brief relationship with Josh/Jay Duplass, the also great Anjelica Huston (God how I lover her) as a straight cancer survivor who has a love affair with Maura and Cherry Jones (who ran into me on her bike some years ago as I crossed Hudson Street in the Village) as a radical lesbian poet and professor of feminism who is randy, promiscuous and has a tortured affair with Gaby Hoffman. As I said there was a controversy regarding Tambor which I quote from Wikipedia
“In November 2017, Tambor was accused of sexual harassment on the set.[On November 19, 2017, Tambor stated, "I don't see how I can return to Transparent" after a second sexual harassment allegation was made against him.He was officially fired from Transparent a few months later, on February 15, 2018.” For those who require more material on this you can search the internet.
This situation led to season five being only one long episode that was a mostly musical one. It was handled the best it could have been I suppose and I found it somewhat disappointing in the sense that I wanted the series to go on longer. The influences in the final musical episode were visible and sharp including Paul Thomas Anderson's masterpiece “Magnolia” and I would also say that William Finn's great musical “Falsettos” was also a big influence on the creators. Still with everything and all the luggage this is one of the best of the best.
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