Are you DTF? Down to finally talk about the Emmy Award-winning limited series, DTF St. Louis? Because I am ready to dig into the juicy series that took home several awards on Emmy night, including Outstanding Limited or Anthology Series, Outstanding Supporting Actor and Supporting Actress, writing, directing, and cinematography! It took me a while to hop onto the show, but I am so glad I did, and I have some thoughts.
Jason Bateman & David Harbour
With respect to the awards the show and actors took home, they make a lot of sense. The cast was absolutely solid and full of A+ talent. While David Harbour and Linda Cardellini took home the wins in their supporting categories, Jason Bateman, Richard Jenkins, and Joy Sunday were also nominated in the same categories. Hugely unsurprising to me that several nominees were selected for each category. Harbour, Bateman, and Cardellini weave an incredibly complicated love triangle as the show takes us on its twists and turns. So it’s also no surprise the show won for outstanding writing. Even though it’s only seven episodes, the show consistently keeps us watchers on our toes, delivering new red herrings and theories of “Who Done It?” with every episode. The cinematography fed into these theories beautifully with brilliant shots and framing, winning awards as well for picture editing and cinematography, with a directing win for Steve Conrad.
Jason Bateman & David Harbour
From the beginning, with the way the show was pitched, we believe we are following two men on their quest to find some side action at the behest of their unsatisfying marriages. Clark Forrest (Bateman) is the local weatherman who is introduced to Floyd Smernitch (Harbour) as his new ASL interpreter. Floyd saves Clark’s life during a bad storm, and the two strike up a fast friendship. It isn’t long before they’re inviting each other to cookouts and discussing the flaws in their marriages. Clark’s different schedule from his wife, Eimy (Winn Everett), has essentially killed their sex life, but I don’t feel that bad for him. As someone who worked midnight shifts while my partner worked first shifts, you need to put in effort, but it’s not that bad. Sure, you have two kids, but they’re old enough to entertain themselves while you two slip away for some nookie. Meanwhile, Floyd’s dealing with attraction issues with his wife Carol (Cardellini) and the fact that he literally has a broken penis. I mean, the whole thing is bent! It’s not hard to imagine he’s having trouble getting hard. And then add on a stepson (Arlan Ruf) with borderline personality disorder. I feel much more for these two and their many months-long sex drought. And regarding the whole attraction thing, I felt it was goofy at first, him mentioning her umpire gear, but the more they showed her in it, the more I understood where Floyd was coming from in his not coming…
Linda Cardelllini
Richard Jenkins & Joy Sunday
As their investment in the dating app “DTF St. Louis” unravels, suddenly Floyd is dead, and we’re left wondering who possibly could have done it. Two police officers enter the scene to investigate: Donoghue Homer (Jenkins) and Jodie Plumb (Sunday). They are, of course, complete opposites on the policing spectrum and life spectrum. He’s an older white man; she’s a younger black woman. He’s quick and by the book; she’s in-depth and analytical of all the pieces and how they fit. One of my favorite parts of the progression of the show is how he treated her. Off the top, there’s a lot of talking down and minimizing, but she’s undeterred and keeps pushing, finding new evidence and revealing new theories. He goes from offhandedly calling her by her precinct name to finally calling her by her name and even coming to visit her at home. He realizes he’s actually learning a lot from her if he cares to listen, and the two are able to fall down all the rabbit holes this case takes us on, leading us viewers to the final conclusion.
Linda Cardellini & David Harbour
In seven episodes, this “Who Done It?” limited series takes us on a wild ride exploring the dynamics of marriage, friendship, and self-love. What does it mean to be lonely? What does it mean to be a good friend? What does it take to make a marriage successful? How do you weather the bad times and keep fighting for the good ones when you’re tired of the constant uphill battle? I don’t have all the answers, but I can tell you, “Nobody’s normal. It just looks that way from across the street.” Don’t judge the Joneses or worry about keeping up with them. You never know what’s happening behind their closed doors. For all you know, it could be Indiana Jones porn.
