TV Review: The Cook of Castamar (Netflix)
Jul. 29th, 2021 10:02 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
hrjI'm still very much in the middle of this series, so no hints at how it works out, but I'm enjoying it very much from both a visual and storytelling point of view (other than some obviously patriarchy annoyances inherent in the historic setting).
Setting:
1720 Spain, at the estate of the Duke of Castamar and at the royal court
Basic plot:
Family-saga type soap opera with lots of personal and political scheming.
Content notes:
On-stage sexual activity, male-gaze depiction of f/f sex, character peril, death of sympathetic supporting character, lots of historically accurate patriarchy bullshit, possibly other items that didn't register for me or that appear in later episodes.
Main characters:
Clara, an agoraphobic woman, mourning the death of her father, who takes the position of cook in the household of the duke, a talented cook and something of a natural philosopher
The duke, who is still very emotionally messed up by the tragic death of his wife, and who finds himself unaccountably drawn to his new cook...
Supporting characters
The rest of the duke's family, the women who are being thrown in his path with a mind to marriage, his political enemies, his friends (including two men in a forbidden sexual relationship), King Philip who is having historically-accurate mental health issues, an assortment of the duke's household staff including a housekeeper who seems to have been borrowed from a time-shifted Rebecca, a scheming kitchen servant jealous of the new cook who is given her own story arc and motivations, a developmentally handicapped young woman whom the duke promised to provide a home for, etc. etc.
Why I'm enjoying it:
Historic kitchen porn up the wazoo. Let me repeat that: if you are a fan of historic cookery, you're going to spend lots of time rewinding to watch the kitchen scenes. Great set dressing. Gorgeous and reasonably accurate costuming. Diverse representation in the characters: racial, gender, sexuality, lots of reasonably sensitive depictions of a variety of physical, emotional, and intellectual disabilities ("reasonably" because we're still operating within fairly accurate historic parameters). Women claiming agency within the limits of their setting.
Setting:
1720 Spain, at the estate of the Duke of Castamar and at the royal court
Basic plot:
Family-saga type soap opera with lots of personal and political scheming.
Content notes:
On-stage sexual activity, male-gaze depiction of f/f sex, character peril, death of sympathetic supporting character, lots of historically accurate patriarchy bullshit, possibly other items that didn't register for me or that appear in later episodes.
Main characters:
Clara, an agoraphobic woman, mourning the death of her father, who takes the position of cook in the household of the duke, a talented cook and something of a natural philosopher
The duke, who is still very emotionally messed up by the tragic death of his wife, and who finds himself unaccountably drawn to his new cook...
Supporting characters
The rest of the duke's family, the women who are being thrown in his path with a mind to marriage, his political enemies, his friends (including two men in a forbidden sexual relationship), King Philip who is having historically-accurate mental health issues, an assortment of the duke's household staff including a housekeeper who seems to have been borrowed from a time-shifted Rebecca, a scheming kitchen servant jealous of the new cook who is given her own story arc and motivations, a developmentally handicapped young woman whom the duke promised to provide a home for, etc. etc.
Why I'm enjoying it:
Historic kitchen porn up the wazoo. Let me repeat that: if you are a fan of historic cookery, you're going to spend lots of time rewinding to watch the kitchen scenes. Great set dressing. Gorgeous and reasonably accurate costuming. Diverse representation in the characters: racial, gender, sexuality, lots of reasonably sensitive depictions of a variety of physical, emotional, and intellectual disabilities ("reasonably" because we're still operating within fairly accurate historic parameters). Women claiming agency within the limits of their setting.
