Clean Break is an four-part Irish drama set in the small coastal town of Wexford. The village is quaint, the surrounding countryside lovely, yet both show the scars of the economic downturn in that nation.
Frank Mallon, a local luxury car dealer, has already lost his wife, is slowly losing his daughter and is on the verge of losing both his home and business, plus some gorgeous seaside property he was planning to develop. He hatches a plot to rob the local bank, headed by the loathsome manager, the husband of a woman with whom Mallon once had an affair.
It would be giving away too much to reveal any more and I'm afraid I've already said too much if you're one of those who didn't even like that much information about a movie or TV show before you have a chance to watch. That said, there are some interesting plot twists and turns and some "Oh, no!" moments. Clean Break doesn't have a lot of action; no car chases or gun battles, yet it never is boring....which such a short series should never be and it certainly doesn't fail in that regard. I was riveted through each episode and eagerly awaited the next.
As was mentioned, the scenery is, for the most part, lovely and even the abandoned and dilapidated buildings in some of the scenes have a forlorn beauty all their own. For a four-part series, the character development was more than sufficient. The cinematography is first rate, the writing and dialog superb, the acting is excellent by all and the ending...well, I like to think I can usually see what's coming, but I certainly didn't see this one. To be honest, I didn't like the way it ended, but it wasn't disappointing...if that makes any sense and I reckon it will if you watch the series.
At this writing, the first three episodes have been uploaded to YouTube and if you're so inclined, the complete series can be found via your favorite search engine, I'm sure.
I gave it a "7" on IMDb, which might not sound as good as I made it out to be, but I'm very stingy with my grades. (It was probably a good thing I wasn't a teacher; the kids might have liked me, but they would have hated my grading) I've discovered some drama gems from British television and now I'm wondering what-else the Irish have done that I've missed. If Clean Break is indicative of their version of quality TV, then I want to see more.
Frank Mallon, a local luxury car dealer, has already lost his wife, is slowly losing his daughter and is on the verge of losing both his home and business, plus some gorgeous seaside property he was planning to develop. He hatches a plot to rob the local bank, headed by the loathsome manager, the husband of a woman with whom Mallon once had an affair.
It would be giving away too much to reveal any more and I'm afraid I've already said too much if you're one of those who didn't even like that much information about a movie or TV show before you have a chance to watch. That said, there are some interesting plot twists and turns and some "Oh, no!" moments. Clean Break doesn't have a lot of action; no car chases or gun battles, yet it never is boring....which such a short series should never be and it certainly doesn't fail in that regard. I was riveted through each episode and eagerly awaited the next.
As was mentioned, the scenery is, for the most part, lovely and even the abandoned and dilapidated buildings in some of the scenes have a forlorn beauty all their own. For a four-part series, the character development was more than sufficient. The cinematography is first rate, the writing and dialog superb, the acting is excellent by all and the ending...well, I like to think I can usually see what's coming, but I certainly didn't see this one. To be honest, I didn't like the way it ended, but it wasn't disappointing...if that makes any sense and I reckon it will if you watch the series.
At this writing, the first three episodes have been uploaded to YouTube and if you're so inclined, the complete series can be found via your favorite search engine, I'm sure.
I gave it a "7" on IMDb, which might not sound as good as I made it out to be, but I'm very stingy with my grades. (It was probably a good thing I wasn't a teacher; the kids might have liked me, but they would have hated my grading) I've discovered some drama gems from British television and now I'm wondering what-else the Irish have done that I've missed. If Clean Break is indicative of their version of quality TV, then I want to see more.
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