Mashup of Genres
This series is an original that pulls very different genres together in a bold experiment that works on net. There are cases when it fails miserably but these tend to be offset often enough by what works to make it an enjoyable experience.
One one hand it contains a lot of slapstick comedy with the loose plotting that goes with such comedies, but there is also frequent violent action with broken limbs and dead bodies (often done in by Vincenzo) littering the screen. Sometimes the transition from one to the other is jarring. Usually, an action comedy will downplay or hide the violence - think cartoons. And usually a gory action thriller will go light on comedy staying with witty one liners here and there. Vincenzo boldly throws these together and on net it works more often than not.
After a few episodes we get used to outlandish contrivances to get out of deadly situations.
On the serious side Vincenzo is an unapologetic mafia member straight out of southern Italy who by the last episode indulges in some seriously torturous contrived endings for the main villains of the story. The producers did not shy away from showing the blood and gore. In Vincenzo series we've put aside any pretensions to an absolute good vs bad and entered a world where relativistic laws prevail. Someone can be construed as 'good' if they only do bad to someone who is worse, in other words someone who deserves a painful ending delivered outside the law.
The show and character Dexter come to mind. Dexter is also an ostensibly evil character (he kidnaps and tortures people to death with a knife) who is the hero. Dexter in the show was toned down from the character in the book series. In the written version Dexter, in an uneasy alliance with a demon cohabiting in his mind, killed his victims by a long hours long torture - vivisection to be exact. The demon was delighted with the torture and in exchange endowed Dexter with some supernatural perception. Dexter followed a code which limited his hobby to people who really deserved it. For the show in early episodes this torture was alluded to but not shown, and then later it was suppressed entirely with Dexter dispatching each victim with a clean stab to the heart. Was Dexter, the hero of his story, evil? The writer ensures sympathy by making sure the reader is well aware of the sins of Dexter's victims (all serial killers). Dexter becomes a vigilante helping society cleanse itself of the hidden evil its justice system is unable to find and deal with. The TV show producers were not comfortable with the vigilante angle and eventually destroyed the character by portraying him as insane (no demon so no bargain),
In Vincenzo the producers are well aware of the issue of good vs evil and how problematic Vincenzo and his actions are. By the last few episodes there are a few occasions where Vincenzo candidly looks into the mirror and acknowledges that he's often doing what the average person would condemn. He offers a fatalistic justification, but the key is that he, the character, is well aware of the issue. And we the audience more or less are rooting for him.
One one hand it contains a lot of slapstick comedy with the loose plotting that goes with such comedies, but there is also frequent violent action with broken limbs and dead bodies (often done in by Vincenzo) littering the screen. Sometimes the transition from one to the other is jarring. Usually, an action comedy will downplay or hide the violence - think cartoons. And usually a gory action thriller will go light on comedy staying with witty one liners here and there. Vincenzo boldly throws these together and on net it works more often than not.
After a few episodes we get used to outlandish contrivances to get out of deadly situations.
On the serious side Vincenzo is an unapologetic mafia member straight out of southern Italy who by the last episode indulges in some seriously torturous contrived endings for the main villains of the story. The producers did not shy away from showing the blood and gore. In Vincenzo series we've put aside any pretensions to an absolute good vs bad and entered a world where relativistic laws prevail. Someone can be construed as 'good' if they only do bad to someone who is worse, in other words someone who deserves a painful ending delivered outside the law.
The show and character Dexter come to mind. Dexter is also an ostensibly evil character (he kidnaps and tortures people to death with a knife) who is the hero. Dexter in the show was toned down from the character in the book series. In the written version Dexter, in an uneasy alliance with a demon cohabiting in his mind, killed his victims by a long hours long torture - vivisection to be exact. The demon was delighted with the torture and in exchange endowed Dexter with some supernatural perception. Dexter followed a code which limited his hobby to people who really deserved it. For the show in early episodes this torture was alluded to but not shown, and then later it was suppressed entirely with Dexter dispatching each victim with a clean stab to the heart. Was Dexter, the hero of his story, evil? The writer ensures sympathy by making sure the reader is well aware of the sins of Dexter's victims (all serial killers). Dexter becomes a vigilante helping society cleanse itself of the hidden evil its justice system is unable to find and deal with. The TV show producers were not comfortable with the vigilante angle and eventually destroyed the character by portraying him as insane (no demon so no bargain),
In Vincenzo the producers are well aware of the issue of good vs evil and how problematic Vincenzo and his actions are. By the last few episodes there are a few occasions where Vincenzo candidly looks into the mirror and acknowledges that he's often doing what the average person would condemn. He offers a fatalistic justification, but the key is that he, the character, is well aware of the issue. And we the audience more or less are rooting for him.
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