If you live in Southern California, chances are you’ve pulled up at a stoplight and seen a billboard of Matthew Macfadyen’s face, feeling larger by sheer scale, as he adoringly looks at a pint-size Elizabeth Banks straddling a train and thought, “That’s a fake show, right?” |
“The Miniature Wife” is indeed real. And it may leave a big impact. Based on a 2013 short story by Manuel Gonzales, the comedy follows a couple, Les (Macfadyen) and Lindy (Banks), whose strained marriage reaches a breaking point when, during an argument, Les, a scientist, accidentally shrinks Lindy, an author struggling to pen her next hit, to a height of six inches. Jennifer Ames, who co-created the series with Steve Turner, says it’s a cross between “The Incredible Shrinking Woman” and “The War of the Roses.” And she stopped by Guest Spot to tell us more about it. |
Also in this week’s Screen Gab, TV critic Robert Lloyd tells you about an Italy-set crime drama that follows a recently widowed British detective who retreats to Capri but can’t escape the drama, and film reporter Josh Rottenberg suggests spending your weekend with a gripping Oscar-nominated thriller about a father and son traversing the desert. |
And if you’re in L.A. this weekend and need a break from the screens, come join us at the Festival of Books, aka Bookchella for people who like when their TBR list feels overwhelming. The annual event takes place at USC and general admission is free — separate ticket admissions are required for some talks — more info can be found here. There are authors and booths everywhere, and plenty of totes and bookish merch to get your hands on. On Saturday, I’ll be in conversation with former “Real Housewives of Beverly Hills” star Lisa Rinna and, later in the day, moderating a panel about the book-to-screen adaptation of Isabel Allende’s “The House of Spirits.” Maybe I’ll see you there? |
Until next week, happy watching! |
|
|
— Yvonne Villarreal |
Turn on |
Recommendations from the film and TV experts at The Times |
 |
Warren Brown as Joe Mottram, a recently widowed detective, and Phyllis Logan as Elena Da Vinale, Joe’s mother-in-law, in a scene from “A Taste For Murder.” (Colin Hutton / Britbox) |
‘A Taste for Murder’ (Britbox) |
There’s an obvious — I hesitate to say algorithmic — logic at the heart of this British import, which combines three pillars of comfort television (mystery, food, travel) into a single pretty package, blood notwithstanding. Metropolitan Police Detective Joe Mottram (Warren Brown), recently widowed (so many widowed police detectives!), travels with semi-alienated 17-year-old daughter (Beau Gadsdon) to spend the summer with his in-laws (Urbano Barberini and Phyllis Logan, whom you’ll recognize from “Downton Abbey” but perhaps from “Lovejoy” as well) at their seaside restaurant on the island of Capri. (That much of it was shot in Croatia won’t matter, unless you know Capri.) Murders happen, as they will in a show called “A Taste for Murder,” and it isn’t long before Brown will be poking around the investigations, to the annoyance and then acceptance of police inspector Cristiana Dell’Anna. Just as important as the mysteries are the family drama and, of course, the food — it stands for life — which the camera eyes hungrily and we sometimes see prepared. If you’d like a lesson in preparing uova in purgatorio (“eggs in purgatory”) to go with your crime-solving, this is your show. — R.L. |
 |
Luis (Sergi Lopez) and his 12-year-old son, Esteban (Bruno Nuñez), travel to the hot and remote mountains of Morocco in a scene from “Sirāt.” (Neon) |
‘Sirāt’ (Hulu) |
|
|
An Oscar nominee this year for international feature and sound, “Sirāt” is not the easiest film to describe — which is just as well, because it’s probably best seen knowing as little as possible. Directed by Óliver Laxe, the movie opens at a remote desert rave in Morocco, where a Spanish father and his young son are searching for a missing daughter. When the gathering is shut down amid signs of an erupting conflict, they fall in with a group of ravers and head deeper into the Sahara, following a rumor of where she might be. The title refers to an Islamic belief of a narrow path over hell that must be crossed to reach paradise, and the film slowly makes that image feel literal. What begins in a hypnotic groove turns into a tense desert ordeal in which the slightest wrong turn can mean death — think the 1953 white-knuckle classic “The Wages of Fear” set to a thudding EDM beat. By the end, the movie takes on the hallucinatory feel of an existential horror film, less about where anyone is going than what keeps them moving at all. — J.R. |
Guest Spot |
A weekly chat with actors, writers, directors and more about what they’re working on — and what they’re watching |
 |
Elizabeth Banks as Lindy in Peacock’s “The Miniature Wife.” (Peacock) |
Does size matter? For the couple in “The Miniature Wife,” the answer is a big YES. Now streaming on Peacock, the eight-episode series uses its quirky premise to explore the power imbalances and resentment that can reveal themselves in a marriage. Lindy (Banks) is a bestselling, Pulitzer Prize-winning novelist who has put her career on hold to accommodate her husband Les’ (Macfadyen) career, moving from New York to St. Louis — just as he had put his ambitions on the backburner for her. Now, with Les closer to achieving a scientific breakthrough as Lindy is struggling to write, their marriage is in crisis. An argument leads to Les cutting Lindy down to size — or rather, he sprays her down to size with his shrinking formula. High jinks ensue as they grapple over how to turn things around, with her size and their marriage. Over email, Ames shared what she found intriguing about the show’s premise and what helped her make sense of scale as she wrote. — Y.V. |
At first glance, the show’s name and premise can seem like an “SNL” sketch. How did that inform your and Steve’s initial pitch to Elizabeth and Matthew? And what stood out to you in the short story? |
Luckily, we had the pilot script written so Elizabeth and Matthew both read it and then signed on. I think being fortunate enough to have such powerhouse actors like Elizabeth and Matthew who can move seamlessly between comedy and drama helped ground the absurdity of the premise. |
| Keep up with California |
Your support helps us deliver the news that matters most. Subscribe to the Los Angeles Times.
|
|
|
|
|
|
Beyond that, what jumped out for me in the short story was the idea of who hasn’t felt small in a marriage? I found the power imbalance between the husband and wife both figuratively and, most importantly, literally so interesting and fun and oddly relatable, which got me thinking about my own marriage to my husband and my work-marriage to my work-husband Steve. |
That’s what drew me to the story coupled with it being “The Incredible Shrinking Woman” meets “The War of the Roses.” A big inspiration for Steve and me were the great studio comedies of the ‘80s and ‘90s that influenced the tone. “The Money Pit.” “Big.” “Home Alone.” “Romancing the Stone.” “Dirty Rotten Scoundrels” ... I thought, I’d watch that show. |
The actors faced their own obstacles navigating the heightened imagination required for their performances. From a storytelling standpoint, what proved most challenging about accounting for the science and visual effects elements related to size and scale in the story? |
I must admit, Steve is more of the science expert than me, but that’s one of many reasons we’re such a good team. He would say we decided on a 12:1 ratio and though we can’t miniaturize Elizabeth Banks quite yet, the quantum physics of it all is based on real science. |
Because you’ve only got me, I’ll say ‘yes, and’ we used a lot of what I call ‘fuzzy logic’ thrown in to make it fun. Additionally, I had an assortment of 6-inch-tall dolls at the ready to get my head around the 12:1 ratio and spent a lot of time crawling around on the floor. In short, it was a challenge and a giant puzzle to figure out, but ridiculous and fun. |
What sequence did you most enjoy seeing come to life through Elizabeth’s mini character — and what struck you about Elizabeth’s commitment to the bit in that moment? |
It’s so hard to pick just one. The set was truly so much fun every day, but I have two that immediately come to mind. |
One, Elizabeth tackling the fly was incredible. It was a sight to behold. Her commitment to the commitment of the bit and embracing the most ridiculous physical comedy is remarkable. She’s such a gifted physical comedian. Her comedic timing is brilliant. |
And two, Elizabeth burning down the dollhouse. To see her covered in ash and soot laughing maniacally riding around on the green screen set on an electric scooter was hilarious. She really went for it. And we all cracked up. We were never not laughing on set about something. |
How did the device of shrinking help you tackle everything you wanted to say about relationships and power dynamics? |
The miniaturization was the emotional reset these two characters with extreme personalities needed to recalibrate the balance in their marriage. These heightened expressions of emotion though, yes, ridiculous, really resonated with me. Life can feel heightened and ridiculous and so can relationships. I like to say that it’s possible miniaturization could be better, for some, than couples therapy. Our show allows couples to play out a kind of fantasy. Or wish fulfillment. Like, I am angry with you. I might dangle you over the toilet. And flush. That’s a real possibility on our show. |
What have you watched recently that you are recommending to everyone you know? |
“DTF: St. Louis” [HBO Max]. Steve Conrad [the show’s creator] executed it flawlessly. The tone. The story. The acting. It hits every note. The scene work is perfection. |
And “The Chair Company” [HBO Max]. I am a big Tim Robinson fan. He pushes the grounded absurdity to its limit, and it still lands with heart and warmth. |
What’s your go-to “comfort watch,” the movie or TV show you go back to again and again? |
The list is long, but I just finished comfort-rewatching “Veep” [HBO Max]. I just needed to hang out with those characters for a while. Now I feel better. Next up, “30 Rock” [Peacock, Hulu, Disney, Prime Video]. It’s been too long. I miss it. |
ICYMI |
Must-read stories you might have missed |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
