I am seriously confused over all the low ratings for The Last Thing He Told Me offered by Apple TV as a limited series. I loved this show. I never even heard of the book before watching. But even I picked up about halfway through the series that this show was not about the love story between Owen Mitchell and Hannah Hall. It was about the love story between Hannah and Owen's daughter, Bailey. And so much hate toward Jennifer Garner's performance? I watch a LOT of movies and TV shows because I am severely handicapped and luckily, I am an avid reader as well as a movie and TV show lover.
I thought Jennifer Garner was excellent in this show. I know most of you will downrate me for this, but I watched it all the way through TWICE to see what I missed that the rest of you saw! Did many of you who wrote scathing reviews and downrated the show even get past episode 3? When I pulled my husband to watch it with me the second time, I warned him the first few episodes were slow but that it picks up fast after that! So, if you were bored by the third episode, then came in here and rated this show, I am sure the ratings system in IMDb failed this gem.
I had to tell my husband several times early on to stick with it. And he did, for me. At the end, I asked him what he thought. He said, and I quote, "You were right! I'm glad you made me watch it all the way through. It was very good!" We are so quick in today's society to judge anything that doesn't catch our eye like a sparkling jewel in the first half hour of a show! But in my many years watching more movies and shows than most people, I have learned an important lesson. WAIT! Watch at LEAST 5 shows. Watch at least 30 minutes of a movie before turning it off. Especially if you are going to come in here and leave your mark on that show or movie!
This was NOT MEANT to be a love story between Owen and Hannah. It was meant to be a love story between Hannah and a spirited, disrespectful daughter of a lover who abandons both of them. He IS part of the love story as he knew his spiteful, evil father of his daughter, Bailey's mother was eventually going to come after his grand daughter because Owen's wife, Bailey's mother, was killed in an auto accident and the grandfather ended up in jail because he is a felon who made a lot of money in nefarious ways. Evidently Nicholas, the grandfather, is also a powerful figure who, above all, cherishes family. He would do ANYTHING to get Bailey back. So, Owen disappears and leaves his daughter with Hannah whom he has come to trust implicitly in their short relationship to make the right choices for Bailey.
Hannah makes a decision that the Marshall's office vehemently disagrees with, wanting to put her into Witness Protection. She basically makes a deal with the devil because she is betting Bailey will be safer with her grandfather in her life, than going into hiding spending their lives running from this man. The last scene takes place 5 years after that decision is made and we find Bailey is happy and well adjusted and calls Hannah, Mom. For her part, Hannah gets validation in the last 5 minutes of the show that she made the right decision for Bailey!
If you were in a hurry, you would have missed many nuanced parts of this story! This was a lovely story, well acted despite what many people are writing here, and we'll done! Kudos to Ms. Garner's troubled and frightening portrayal of a woman put into an agonizing position! I loved this show. I encourage you to skip past the negative reviews and watch this show without interruptions all the way to the end. For once, it wasn't a waste of my time. A rare occurrence these days! I highly recommend you watch this show. It reminded me a little bit of Where the Crawdads Sing, a nuanced movie that has notes of betrayal all over it. Give this one a chance!
It wasn't perfect, so 9 and a half stars rated down because it was good enough for a 9 rating, but just short of a 10 rating. Still, excellent compared to most of the junk being offered as entertainment today!
I thought Jennifer Garner was excellent in this show. I know most of you will downrate me for this, but I watched it all the way through TWICE to see what I missed that the rest of you saw! Did many of you who wrote scathing reviews and downrated the show even get past episode 3? When I pulled my husband to watch it with me the second time, I warned him the first few episodes were slow but that it picks up fast after that! So, if you were bored by the third episode, then came in here and rated this show, I am sure the ratings system in IMDb failed this gem.
I had to tell my husband several times early on to stick with it. And he did, for me. At the end, I asked him what he thought. He said, and I quote, "You were right! I'm glad you made me watch it all the way through. It was very good!" We are so quick in today's society to judge anything that doesn't catch our eye like a sparkling jewel in the first half hour of a show! But in my many years watching more movies and shows than most people, I have learned an important lesson. WAIT! Watch at LEAST 5 shows. Watch at least 30 minutes of a movie before turning it off. Especially if you are going to come in here and leave your mark on that show or movie!
This was NOT MEANT to be a love story between Owen and Hannah. It was meant to be a love story between Hannah and a spirited, disrespectful daughter of a lover who abandons both of them. He IS part of the love story as he knew his spiteful, evil father of his daughter, Bailey's mother was eventually going to come after his grand daughter because Owen's wife, Bailey's mother, was killed in an auto accident and the grandfather ended up in jail because he is a felon who made a lot of money in nefarious ways. Evidently Nicholas, the grandfather, is also a powerful figure who, above all, cherishes family. He would do ANYTHING to get Bailey back. So, Owen disappears and leaves his daughter with Hannah whom he has come to trust implicitly in their short relationship to make the right choices for Bailey.
Hannah makes a decision that the Marshall's office vehemently disagrees with, wanting to put her into Witness Protection. She basically makes a deal with the devil because she is betting Bailey will be safer with her grandfather in her life, than going into hiding spending their lives running from this man. The last scene takes place 5 years after that decision is made and we find Bailey is happy and well adjusted and calls Hannah, Mom. For her part, Hannah gets validation in the last 5 minutes of the show that she made the right decision for Bailey!
If you were in a hurry, you would have missed many nuanced parts of this story! This was a lovely story, well acted despite what many people are writing here, and we'll done! Kudos to Ms. Garner's troubled and frightening portrayal of a woman put into an agonizing position! I loved this show. I encourage you to skip past the negative reviews and watch this show without interruptions all the way to the end. For once, it wasn't a waste of my time. A rare occurrence these days! I highly recommend you watch this show. It reminded me a little bit of Where the Crawdads Sing, a nuanced movie that has notes of betrayal all over it. Give this one a chance!
It wasn't perfect, so 9 and a half stars rated down because it was good enough for a 9 rating, but just short of a 10 rating. Still, excellent compared to most of the junk being offered as entertainment today!