'The Man in the High Castle' | Amazon Prime Series Review
Popular Amazon Studios television series 'The Man in the High Castle’ is an American dystopian alternative history loosely based on the book of the same name by Phillip K. Dick.
The show takes place in 1962, in an alternate history where the Axis powers (Nazi Germany) won World War II. As a result, it split the United States into two powers: the Greater Nazi Reich - taking the east coast, and the Japanese Pacific States - taking the west coast.
As a whole, the series follows characters from the Greater Nazi Reich, the Japanese Pacific States, and a rebellious group that all interline after coming into contact with a series of propaganda films showing a vastly different history from their own, and one that the audience knows very well.
The show had been in development with a variety of companies for a long time, beginning in 2010 when it was announced that the BBC would help produce a four-part mini-series alongside Headline Pictures, Fremantle Media Enterprises, and Scott Free Films.
In 2013, the adaptation then shifted to SyFy, with Ridley Scott continuing as Executive Producer alongside 'The X-Files' writer/producer Frank Spotniz. However, in 2014 the show finally shifted to Amazon Prime, where the pilot episode was filmed and set to be released on the Amazon Prime streaming service in January of 2015.
Much unlike other conventional television services – even that of Netflix, Amazon often produces a series of pilot episodes for prospective programs, and base their orders on the pilot’s success. Thankfully, 'The Man in the High Castle' was one of the shows to be picked up as a series.
With all ten episodes released at once, this program is a real step up from creator Frank Spotniz's previous work. Shows like 'Hunted', 'Transporter: The Series,' 'Night Stalker', and 'Crossing Lines' all received mixed reviews with nothing truly matching the exceptional quality of 'The Man in the High Castle’.
In all honestly, this series is unlike anything we’ve seen on television before. With well thought out parallels and deeply involving storylines that hook viewers from the get go, the audience has no choice but to immerse themselves in the captivating events that appear onscreen.
The concept is an interesting question in itself: what if Nazi Germany did actually win World War II? What would have happened? How would people, places, future historical events have turned out in later years? 'The Man in the High Castle' tackles those questions in such a way that is brilliantly convincing – a written experience that frightens its viewers into considering what could have been.
Although Season Two may have made less of an impact than the first, it most definitely expands on a fascinating premise and delves deeper into new directions of the world within the show. It boasts stunning visuals of Nazi Germany, and includes speeches in the Season Two finale that are absolutely jaw dropping. This episode leads the audience into new possibilities of what could happen next, now that their leader has passed. Will Nazi Germany cease to exist? What will present itself now that all they've strived for has fallen to pieces?
‘The Man in the High Castle’ is a must watch for all adult audiences - whether or not you’re a history buff is irrelevant. Though it may have room for growth in terms of honouring the original source material, it expands in its own way.
Juliana Crain (Alexa Davlos), Nobusuke Tagomi (Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa), and Obergruppenfuhrer John Smith (Rufus Sewell) are the elements that truly bring the screen adaption to life, bringing a sense of humanity and moral dilemma to the plot.
'The Man in the High Castle' is an hour of television packed full of suspense and horror, quietly chilling viewers to the core with moments that at times can be hard to watch. It's a show that will take its audience by surprise, and helps one to realise that the inconceivable could very well have been the conceivable had one action, decision or thought been different in history as we know it.
Immerse yourself into a world of insane possibilities. 'The Man in the High Castle' Seasons 1 and 2 are available on Amazon Prime now.
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