Apple TV+'s Truth Be Told Season 1 Review & Comments

Casimir Harlow

Movies Editor
Joined
Feb 28, 2005
Messages
9,255
Reaction score
18,866
Points
8,058
Age
45
Location
Reading
Last edited:
Excellent review, Cas. The premise sounds very promising, so will definitely check out. And thanks for adding some stuff in about the video quality, as I do feel this is a battlefield on which Apple is choosing to fight. And mostly winning.
 
Last edited:
This one also interests me out of the gate just like The Morning Show did which is a great show. I've been persuaded from the reviews on here to watch For All Mankind and that looks good so far. I will probably end up watching Signs but still not sure about See.
 
This one also interests me out of the gate just like The Morning Show did which is a great show. I've been persuaded from the reviews on here to watch For All Mankind and that looks good so far. I will probably end up watching Signs but still not sure about See.

See is a bit of quality rollercoaster. There are some scenes that are mesmerising (evading blind soldiers on the riverbank by silently rafting between them, for example - just superb). And there are some aspects that break the spell (quite hard to believe they're all blind sometimes). But, the quality of the production and the literally second-to-none video and audio quality constantly remind you why you care about AV.
 
We've really enjoyed Apple tvs offerings so far, For all mankind, the morning show, Dickinson and See are all really good.

The Truth be told isn't, the basic premise soinds really good but it doesn't even work and they try to cram in as many black people against a white world bits of dialogues as they can.

We watched 2 and a half episodes and it's not for us, not for any of our friends and colleagues either it seems as no one watches it.

It's a shame as the cast is really really good.
 
Looks interesting, so far they haven't disappointed, All for Mankind, See (now concluded) and Servant have close to perfection....

Produce less but produce quality........

Will review once I have finished Reprisal (Very much like Carla Gugino JETT) :)
 
Apple, too woke to go broke?
Truth Be Told. I've seen the first 3 and it has moments of the worthwhile mixed with the worthy. I like the black angle, if you will, with a quality cast. However, the writing seems a bit up and down. If for example, you look none-to-closely, it's clear that the AB (Aryan Brotherhood) offset to liking Cave has a not so polar black racist dimension against white's with Poppy's mixed criminality of her family but, whether viewers are supposed to overlook this because the AB's are so abhorrent I'm not sure.. Some reviews I've read smack of white apologists and/or just note how forward thinking it is of Poppy's character - and her albeit late wake up.
The show does however offer up both white and black racists in prison guards, bikers the AB and such but it's definitely weighted toward the black angle. And, as Poppy is this strong female character - nothing wrong there - they are overcooking some things, like her dealings with Warren Cave. In that she gives him a mocking speech about how he was no doubt traded and raped but she won't take any racist talk from him and makes him say he will not. At that point I laughed and said surely he'd fire back with you helped get me here lady and now you're trying to make me your bitch, but no. The dynamic is always in Poppy's favour where she lays down her truth and Warren just goes along for the ride, like he's still some scared kid underneath it all to be led about. He never stops to say this is at the very least quid pro quo and/or that she is dependent on him too.
There's lots to overlook with her do-gooder character breaking this or that law/morality but the most obvious being a supposed Aryan getting aid and visits from an African American and managing to skate by or, that jealous inmates won't mess up his release with it being dangled for all - as is the need to conceal such, as often noted in factual documentaries. But this is far from factual and, if you've got thus far, will be surprised to read that I'll probably stick with it, though weekly or wait for it to conclude and binge...
 
I'm hugely into true crime podcasts and always enjoy watching Octavia Spencer so, this seems to be right up my strasse. Will add it to the ever expanding list.

Paul
 
I've yet to watch anything on ATV+ but they do seem to be building a good, if microscopic library of content. Certainly streets ahead of Disney+ who have The Mandalorian and a mountain load of catalogue kids movies.

That said of course, as a value proposition Netflix (and even Amazon) are so far ahead it's difficult to imagine that anyone will ever catch them.
 
Well, I finally got back on this and it's a hot mess.
As this progresses, it's filled with more tropes though by now you're surely sticking with it for its daytime TV 'quality' or you've got trench foot. More cheese here than Edam.
But it's another drawn out Netflix affair, that makes the supposed rush against another murder get relegated to yet more incidental reveals or, merely character schedules. In fact, about the only thing Poppy didn't suddenly think of as necessary to meander over, was to stop and say she needed to redo her face first. However, possible points of interest such as her past get raised but then ultimately brushed aside for triviality and I was left thinking that choices over inclusion were somewhat scatterbrained.
The thought of season 2 approaching and its for sure heightened levels of both black and white racism that get differing levels of weight alone gives me pause. Season one at least had Poppy ending with yet another monologue that acknowledged her own shortcomings there but, by then, it was like Charles Manson agreeing that some bad was done whilst declaring s*** happens and walking off with a smile to his earnt Silent Nite pillow...
 

The latest video from AVForums

TV Buying Guide - Which TV Is Best For You?
Subscribe to our YouTube channel
Back
Top Bottom