Time for another Emmy analysis! This time, it's
Best Directing for a Drama Series. The nominees are...
Margate Sands for
Boardwalk Empire (directed by Tim Van Patten)
Gliding Over All for
Breaking Bad (directed by Michelle McLaren)
Episode 3.04 for
Downton Abbey (directed by Jeremy Webb)
Q&A for
Homeland (directed Lesli Linka Glatter)
Chapter One for
House of Cards (directed by David Fincher)
I had previously seen the
Homeland and
House of Cards episodes. Q&A was an obvious standout this season for the show. I'll try not to spoil anything for those who may not have seen it or plan on watching the show later this summer/year/lives, but it features some stellar work by the actors and the writing is great. That said, the directing is pretty good, but nothing totally extraordinary. I think the Emmys love
Homeland, but do I think it'll be enough to get them this award? Probably not. On the other hand,
House of Cards has a lot going for it in this category. It's the new kid on the block and it's a major achievement from Netflix, so that will have it under a certain eye in this category. It's a pilot episode so there isn't a lot of catching up to do, as opposed to watching an episode of
Breaking Bad or
Downton Abbey in this category. It's got the clearest cinematography of the shows, and that certainly helps visualize the director's intentions. And speaking of the director, it just happens to be Oscar-nominated director David Fincher (who has directed a few movies you've definitely heard of including
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, The Social Network, and
The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo). Fincher has such an exact style and it comes across quite clearly here, so this episode is bound to be a major contender.
Boardwalk Empire is the episode to watch here. Not because it is a standout episode in any way, but because it is the two-time defending champion. The first time it won was for it's pilot episode, which was directed by Oscar winner and film legend Martin Scorsese. But last year, it was not considered a major frontrunner in this category, but pulled out a win, with director Tim Van Patten at the reins this time. The show returns for a third nomination, and while it is possible it could reclaim the throne again, I'm thinking it's less likely this time. Overall support for
Boardwalk Empire has shriveled faster than fingers on a child who has stayed in the pool for a few hours, and the buzz behind the show is basically gone. That said, being the two-time defending winner says something, so I can't completely discredit it.
I don't watch
Breaking Bad, which surprises some people considering the sheer amount of television I do watch. I started watching the first season a little after it premiered, but never really settled into it, and as the show has gone on, it's been harder for me to catch up. I think it'll be a show I watch once it ends (which is this fall). But in the meantime, I have seen episodes by watching these Emmy tapes. This one was the mid-season finale, and while the story was pretty accessible, I must say I really enjoyed the directing. It was cinematic in a way that still felt intimate, and there are some bright moments here. The direction of the final scene, in particular, was unsettling and have me craving what was coming next. Since I think Emmy support for
Breaking Bad is hitting an all-time high, I could see it winning this category.
I have a confession to make. I watched all the tapes for
Downton Abbey last year, and was not impressed. I didn't like the show and how it crammed about 60 storylines into one episode. Something about the fluidity of it all made me disappointed, because I figured a show that gets showered with this much Emmy love would be of much better quality. So I was kind of dreading watching this episode for this category, although I had heard it was a very good episode. And I must concur. I actually did like this episode. A major factor is that there seems to be one major story that some of the smaller ones revolve around. The episode is ambitious for the show, but not compared to some of it's other competitors. Whereas this episode has a major twist (which I won't spoil here), the other shows in this category are doing that every week. Like
Boardwalk Empire, I think the love for
Downton Abbey has decreased (although certainly not as much as the former), and I don't think the directing here was ambitious enough or outstanding to receive an Emmy.
My predictions:
1. Chapter One for
House of Cards
2. Gliding Over All for
Breaking Bad
3. Q&A for
Homeland
4. Margate Sands for
Boardwalk Empire
5. Episode 3.04 for
Downton Abbey
In much the same sense that Martin Scorsese was awarded for directing the pilot of
Boardwalk Empire, I think the Emmys won't be able to resist doing the same for David Fincher and
House of Cards. That aside, it is the most cinematic of the nominees and it knows it's footing immediately. A win for
Breaking Bad here would not be unworthy, and I would support it. If
Homeland is to win here, it will be because of overall support for the show, because while this is a great episode, it is not because of the directing.
Boardwalk Empire should really only be considered a contender because of it's past in this category, but I don't think it can make it three in a row here. And while I did like this episode of
Downton Abbey, the directing was nothing to write home to your mother about. I'll pick
House of Cards here.
Evan
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