My Brilliant Friend: Season 1 | Rotten Tomatoes (original) (raw)
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Critics Consensus
My Brilliant Friend is an expansive epic that gleans rapturous beauty from the most desolate of circumstances, but it is the intimacy between the central duo -- and the remarkable performances that bring them to life -- that audiences will remember most vividly.
Rachel Vorona Cote Bitch Media Mazzucco's performance as Elena is especially exquisite in its quiet articulation of need. Mar 11, 2021 Full Review Emily Nussbaum The New Yorker My Brilliant Friend is often at its best when it invokes this same crisis of knowledge, of growing up where everyone knows your business and no one can admit the truth. It's about the escape hatch that clever girls squeeze through. Dec 3, 2018 Full Review Deborah Ross The Mail on Sunday (UK) This is an exquisite adaptation. This is like the books but better. Rated: 5/5 Dec 3, 2018 Full Review Linnete Manrique PopMatters HBO's My Brilliant Friend feels almost radical for its raw and un-romanticized depiction of female friendship and resistance in all its emotional complexities. Jul 20, 2021 Full Review David Zurawik Baltimore Sun The juxtaposition of their hopes and dreams versus the brutal reality of their lives under the rule of their uneducated fathers and male authority in the early episodes gets you rooting so hard for them you think your heart will burst. Dec 19, 2019 Full Review Víctor López G. Espinof An ambitious proposal whose start buries, with a tedious rhythm, its magnificent setting and production design. [Full Review in Spanish] Rated: 2/5 Jul 10, 2019 Full Review Read all reviews
Audience Member My Brilliant Friend is a unique show, for sure. And not a happy one. Its brand of drama is not my cup of tea, but the portrayal of its main characters is gripping. The story is told through an acute and compelling lens from the main character's perspective - plainly bringing the novels direct to screen. A disadvantage of this perspective is that it tends to flatten out the secondary characters and their motivations. The result is an often profound, but sometimes infuriating look at the human psyche and relationships. Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 01/02/25 Full Review douglas p This epic drama spans many decades and you are enthralled by its characters, especially the two main protagonist. Having watched many movies that are set in past the setting can sometimes leave you with a CGI effect, however I was pleasantly surprised with the backdrop of the small town as its totally believable and that adds to the overall beauty of the production. Rated 5 out of 5 stars 11/29/24 Full Review Ari WOW I'm hooked. The plot; the characters; the time and place! 👌 Rated 5 out of 5 stars 07/13/23 Full Review Josh B Beautifully crafted. Authentic. Rated 5 out of 5 stars 09/04/22 Full Review Audience Member Elena writes her first novel. An on-screen reviewer asks "why should we have to read a book about wretchedly miserable women?" And, he could have added, most of the men are rapists or would-be rapists, and the novelist's conclusion about heterosexual intimacy is that it's a bad idea for women, confirmed by the novelist's psycho best friend, who is only interested in heterosexual intimacy when she wants something from the man. Plus the novelist is a Communist or Communist sympathizer, who smilingly asserts "after Hiroshima the Americans should have been prosecuted for war crimes". The ultimate chick flick. Rated 3 out of 5 stars 01/09/23 Full Review Audience Member Good, but i don't like it so much, it's really well made, but. it doesn't inspire me to watch it again. Rated 3 out of 5 stars 01/09/23 Full Review Read all reviews
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Episode 1 Aired Nov 18, 2018 Le Bambole (The Dolls) The disappearance of her old friend, Lila Cerrullo, causes 60-year-old author Elena Greco to reflect on the early days of their friendship in 1950s Naples, when Elena and Lila are two very different girls at the top of their class. Details Episode 2 Aired Nov 19, 2018 I Soldi (The Money) As fourth grade draws to an end, Elena and Lila fight with their families for the chance to continue their education; a trip out of town becomes a day Elena will never forget; a death changes things in the neighborhood forever. Details Episode 3 Aired Nov 25, 2018 The Metamorphoses Elena grapples with the onset of puberty, her studies and her friendship with Lila, who now works in her family's shoe-repair store; as the girls' encounters with the opposite sex become more frequent, Lila takes a stand against the Solara brothers. Details Episode 4 Aired Nov 26, 2018 Dissolving Margins Entering high school, Elena vows to stay ahead of Lila, academically and romantically; promising a better future for the neighborhood, Stefano Carracci invites Elena, Lila and their families over for New Year's Eve. Details Episode 5 Aired Dec 2, 2018 Le Scarpe (The Shoes) Elena grows tired of Gino, while Lila rejects two potential suitors at a cost; a rare outing into the city turns violent; Elena worries about not being there for Lila after accepting an invitation to spend the summer away from the neighborhood. Details Episode 6 Aired Dec 3, 2018 L'isola (The Island) On the island of Ischia, Elena runs into the Sarratore family, reigniting her childhood crush on Nino; Lila's resistance to Marcello's pressing courtship reaches a breaking point; an unexpected encounter leaves Elena shaken on her 15th birthday. Details Episode 7 Aired Dec 9, 2018 I Fidanzati (The Fiancés) Elena returns to Naples to find Lila has made a romantic connection with Stefano, despite the looming presence of Marcello. Details Episode 8 Aired Dec 10, 2018 La Promessa (The Promise) With sales of Cerullo shoes lagging, Stefano cuts a business deal with the Solaras; after Elena gets kicked out of a class for voicing her opinion, Nino encourages her to write an article about her experience for his magazine. Details
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My Brilliant Friend: Season 1 Featurette - Recreating the Rione My Brilliant Friend: Season 1 Featurette - Recreating the Rione 2:37 My Brilliant Friend: Season 1 Featurette - Elena & Lila’s Friendship My Brilliant Friend: Season 1 Featurette - Elena & Lila’s Friendship 1:17 My Brilliant Friend: Season 1 Trailer - Defiance My Brilliant Friend: Season 1 Trailer - Defiance 1:37 My Brilliant Friend: Season 1 Featurette - Saverio Costanzo, Jennifer Schuur & Lorenzo Mieli My Brilliant Friend: Season 1 Featurette - Saverio Costanzo, Jennifer Schuur & Lorenzo Mieli 2:53 My Brilliant Friend: Season 1 Teaser My Brilliant Friend: Season 1 Teaser 1:59 My Brilliant Friend: Season 1 Episode 8 Finale Trailer - The Promise My Brilliant Friend: Season 1 Episode 8 Finale Trailer - The Promise 0:38 My Brilliant Friend: Season 1 Episode 7 Trailer - The Fiancés My Brilliant Friend: Season 1 Episode 7 Trailer - The Fiancés 0:29 My Brilliant Friend: Season 1 Episode 6 Trailer - The Island My Brilliant Friend: Season 1 Episode 6 Trailer - The Island 0:46 My Brilliant Friend: Season 1 Episode 4 Trailer - Dissolving Margins My Brilliant Friend: Season 1 Episode 4 Trailer - Dissolving Margins 0:37 My Brilliant Friend: Season 1 Episode 2 Trailer - The Money My Brilliant Friend: Season 1 Episode 2 Trailer - The Money 0:42 View more videos
My Brilliant Friend My Brilliant Friend My Brilliant Friend View more photos
Director
Saverio Costanzo
Executive Producer
Jennifer Schuur
Screenwriter
Elena Ferrante, Francesco Piccolo, Laura Paolucci, Saverio Costanzo
Network
HBO
Rating
TV-MA
Genre
Drama, Romance
Original Language
Italian
Release Date
Nov 18, 2018