10/10
The brilliant Kirsten Dunst headlines a superb Emmy-worthy takedown of capitalism
26 August 2019
Ostensibly about a multilevel marketing scheme (MLM) called FAM, what this show is really about is the American dream, capitalism, and the lies we tell to maintain an air of immense success right around the corner when nothing could be further from the truth. In one of the few series about working-class people, Krystal Stubbs (another iconic character from the truly underrated Kirsten Dunst who should have a million Oscar nominations by now) is a water park employee whose life is tragically upended because of her husband (Alexander Skarsgard, darkly hilarious) snarls, hisses, manipulates, and deceives up the ranks of the same pyramid scheme she despises.

Dunst is spectacular. There is really no other word for it. In her hands, Krystal isn't really an "anti-hero" but someone you actually really root for and empathize with-everything, after all, is for her baby daughter, Destinee! And her relationship with her "superior" (called "upline") Cody (Theodore Pellerin, destined for big things I'm sure) is twisted and delicious.

There's this crazy tone to the series. I've genuinely never seen anything like it. Sure, it's faithful to Florida weirdness but the surreal, weird, dark, and really, really funny is balanced with a tremendous amount of empathy for the working-class characters populating this show. At the end of the day, it's Dunst's show. And like her, the show doesn't give a crap about looking too ugly or being too weird or vicious or surreal or really, really funny. And it definitely doesn't give two hoots about its brutally satirical takedown of the peculiarly American brand of capitalism.
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