My Brilliant Friend

Beautiful, subtle, and borrowing both its structure and pace from the deeply loved book series, this slow burn of a drama will please already-converted Ferrante fans and newbies alike. Antsy viewers who like everything spelled out for them may complain that things don't move along quickly enough -- a scene in the series' pilot in which Lila and a group of bully boys throw rocks at each other is a perfect example. The boys throw a rock, pause, Lila throws it back. The boys throw a rock, pause, Lila throws it back. And repeat, as the camera holds the two groups with its unblinking stare. Why are we watching these kids throw rocks back and forth for minutes at a time? Because the payoff, in which Elena transforms from an interested watcher of Lila to a faithful friend willing to protect her, is simply beautiful -- and made even more so by the true-to-life pacing.

It is a bit hard to distinguish who's who in the large cast, particularly since the show isn't really about peripheral characters but instead about Lila and Elena's impression of and reactions to them. And those who dislike reading subtitles will be disappointed to learn that there's no dubbed English track. But these small issues fade away as viewers fall under the spell of a naturalistic and epic drama set in a gorgeous place in another time, spooling out the twists and turns of the lives of two girls who feel real and immediate. My Brilliant Friend feels less like a TV show and more like an actual place, a place a certain type of viewer will want to visit, and linger.