I would be lying if I said Sharp Objects hadn’t been a little tough going, but suitably so – it makes it all so very worthwhile.
SPARK PAY FINALE INVENTORY SERIES
Matched with the mid-credit smash cut that disturbs and lingers long after the credits have rolled, it nails an astonishing ending that the series deserves. In the final sequence, where Camille discovers Amma’s secret and she retorts with three little words – “Don’t tell Mama” – you can almost feel the ground shake as that glimmer of hope is snatched away from the former. As unsustained as it is, the brief glimpse of happiness showcased following Adora’s arrest only compound the sudden shock of a last-minute bombshell bound to silence even the most resolute viewer. Often unacknowledged, some of the series’ most valuable players have been the team of editors who have so expertly-crafted an affecting and powerful piece that contradicts the harsh and ruthless nature of Wind Gap. It takes a heavy conclusion and lands on the perfect execution for the concluding moments anything else would have felt like a cheat, but Noxon and Flynn find a worthwhile way of wrapping up their stunning series. In an unbelievably well-parallelled moment, as two versions of Camille lie on the bathroom floor, we experience every moment of pain that has long conflicted her, with the screenplay from Marti Noxon & Gillian Flynn astonishing in the way it refuses to completely tie up loose ends, but severe them well-enough to satisfy – if satisfy is the right word. When Camille is “rescued” from the brink, it is almost a moment of catharsis for viewers longing for a happy ending of sorts we’ve seen her struggles and fragility, her perceived strength and her devastating suffering. It’s an oddly-unsettling notion but Sharp Objects has built itself on just that: unsettling its audience, with this final episode the most unnerving, viscerally-charged yet.
In a twisted way, as one grows weaker another becomes stronger. Her deterioration is genuinely terrifying to witness, mainly because the previous episodes have done so much of the heavy lifting: Camille is perhaps the most impeccably-developed character to materialise on our screen, with the series’ emphasis on the character study over the murder mystery binding us to the characters, for better or for worse. In her most precarious position yet, she is seen at her most vulnerable: both physically and mentally, she suffers a pressure cooker she hopes will provide her with the answers she yearns for, but pushes herself to breaking point in the process. source: HBOĬamille’s self-destructive streak has often been a focal point of Sharp Objects, manifesting in the character as part of the series’ wider focus and exploration of womanhood and femininity. Count this as a *spoiler warning * and your last chance to turn away if you haven’t read the book, or completed the show in its entirety. While my previous reviews of the series have avoided spoilers where possible, to fully explore this astonishing series finale, we will need to discuss the events as openly as possible. After sharpening its weapons and aligning the characters for one final showdown last week, Milk develops a conclusion so breathtaking and harrowing that the sharp objects in the show’s inventory pierce deeper than they have before. Fearing the past is catching up with her, Camille is desperate to put an end to the families’ suffering but finds herself too weak to do it on her own. In “Milk”, families have been ripped apart and lives are completely changed in a conclusion that cements the HBO miniseries based on Gillian Flynn’s novel of the same name as a certified masterpiece.įollowing “ Falling “ ‘s fallout and Camille’s epiphany, she returns home to find an ailing Amma under the care of Adora, before taking a turn for the worse herself. After an explosive penultimate episode, Sharp Objects‘ final hour instead feels like a gas leak: slowly suffocating and filling you with a real uneasy sense of dread before the spark lights and so ignites a blazing inferno that sends the series out with a bang.