The Offer Premiere Early Review

The following is a spoiler-free review of the first 3 episodes of The Offer, airing tomorrow on Paramount+

What could be better than seeing one of the greatest films ever made?

Easy.

The seeing of how that film got made.

Such is the case for Paramount+’s newest original series, The Offer, which focuses on the incredible journey of how The Godfather became a film. Of course, it would go on to redefine an entire genre as well as cement its legacy in the pantheon of great American cinema, but first, it started as a simple last gasp attempt from a writer who had hit a wall and just tried to write a book about a subject that was familiar to him.

In its first three episodes, The Offer immediately grabs viewers by weaving several engrossing narratives all set on a path of collision to inevitably make the film fans still worship to this day. At its heart is Al Ruddy (Miles Teller), a fledgling TV producer whose first jump into film production just so happens to be a throwaway attempt at luck by a studio that has been content being at the back of the pack as long as it’s making money. Teller brings a bravado and confidence to the role which is refreshing without falling into typical stereotypes and is able to serve as the lens through which we experience the wild journey of the film’s production. However, the true gem that makes this project work so well is the amazing cast placed around Teller who bring the entire vision alive in a way that grabs one’s attention from the opening moments and never lets go.

Two primary examples of this are Matthew Goode and Juno Temple’s performances as Bob Evans, head of Paramount Studios and the one who gives Ruddy his big break, and Betty McCart, Ruddy’s secretary who is invaluable to not only the producer but the entire film getting made. Goode’s ability to embody the studio exec in a way through which his character is more than just a suit yelling insults at his underlings but is a fully developed character himself is remarkable and every bit as interesting as Ruddy. Temple’s McCart is even more engaging as she is symbolic of a certain caliber of women during that age of male ego and chauvinistic machismo where her power is carried in a subtle and daring way making her arc achieve the same level of interest as the main storyline.

Evans and McCart are just a portion of what makes this show so fascinating because all the major characters are allowed to develop in their own time, proving their relevance and importance both on their own merits of interest and inclusive of the universally shared goal, making the best movie possible. Dan Fogler’s Francis Ford Coppola, Burn Gordman’s Charlie Bludhorn and so many others offer multiple layers to an already riveting story that anything experienced beyond the day to day problems of creating a film, albeit a gangster movie that has the actual mafia upset about its existence, is seen as icing on an otherwise constantly expanding cake.

While the first several episodes do well to establish a central interest in a story that all viewers will know the result long before it arrives within the series, there is so much more that is surprisingly explored beyond the film’s borders that unfold little details or concepts that will keep even the most devout fans alongside newcomers second-guessing what they know versus what might happen next. The Offer is something special that is delivered through an entertaining veneer, but if given the chance, presents a much deeper struggle for something beyond creating magic on a screen for money.

In the end, the series is the cultivation of something internal that refuses to accept one’s fate and seeks to strive for more in spite of all odds and everyone questioning why. More importantly, The Offer shines a perfect light on just how equally important the journey is as the destination.

still courtesy of Paramount

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Critics w/o Credentials

Trying my best to get all thoughts about TV and Film out of my head and onto the interweb.