Olive Kitteridge

:

Season 1
  • Network: HBO
  • Series Premiere Date: Nov 2, 2014
User Score
8.2

Universal acclaim- based on 125 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 109 out of 125
  2. Mixed: 4 out of 125
  3. Negative: 12 out of 125
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User Reviews

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  1. BogKid
    Nov 3, 2014
    9
    I have watched only the first two hours of this HBO mini-series. It is too soon, certainly for an sort lot final judgment. The production is superb. The acting, hardly surprising considering the cast, is first rate. The story, so far, is a bit depressing but it is also riveting. I could not stop watching even if I wanted to. I do not!
  2. ariel84
    Nov 9, 2014
    7
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. i would've given this series a 10 if it either didn't include the hospital robbery scene. in the book, olive does write to her assailant, just as louise wonders if she would. without that continuity, that scene just seemed extraneous. olive and henry could've had a blowup in some other way. and, although i loved bill murray's character, couldn't buy he and olive forming a bond so quickly. i know these two elements, the robbery and the late love affair, are part of the book, but they didn't ring true with series as a whole. the first episode was definitely the best. it was dark, complex, and touching. frances mcdormand is a national treasure. despite my disappointment with parts of the story, her portrayal of olive was perfect. she damn well better win a slew of awards.… Expand
  3. haw2991
    Nov 12, 2014
    10
    I haven't read the book but after watching this superbly acted mini-series, I wouldn't mind checking it out. While I did feel part four was a bit of a letdown, I didn't care for Bill Murray's character, overall, this series was fantastic.
  4. sky1
    Nov 4, 2014
    10
    I would watch it again, especially the last three episodes. The first episode dragged a bit because of the 'mouse' character (the weakest part). But after that, it was more about Olive, and that was a very good thing indeed. McDormand was wonderful. As another reviewer said, riveting.
  5. googolendtimes
    Feb 16, 2015
    9
    One of the best television shows of the year and HBO's best offering since "The Normal Heart", "Olive Kitteridge" is an expansive and riveting drama that retains a vital sense of intimacy even as it spans the course of twenty years or so. Though this miniseries is beautifully shot and scripted, what truly makes it stand out are the performances - Frances McDormand, in particular, isOne of the best television shows of the year and HBO's best offering since "The Normal Heart", "Olive Kitteridge" is an expansive and riveting drama that retains a vital sense of intimacy even as it spans the course of twenty years or so. Though this miniseries is beautifully shot and scripted, what truly makes it stand out are the performances - Frances McDormand, in particular, is nothing short of magnificent and she's bolstered by Richard Jenkins who, likewise, delivers a career-best performance. This is must-see television, transcending the bounds of its conventional family drama to be a heartbreakingly genuine mediation on age and loneliness that is blackly comical, soulful, and achingly sad.… Expand
  6. WonderWench
    Nov 9, 2014
    10
    This was the best HBO experience for me yet. Olive Kitteridge is a searing drama with such subdued depts of emotion and characterization that it sticks with you long after it's finish. I am looking forward to seeing it again very soon. It was brilliant! I was hooked right from the beginning and I cried when it finished. I rode the emotional roller coaster with each and everyThis was the best HBO experience for me yet. Olive Kitteridge is a searing drama with such subdued depts of emotion and characterization that it sticks with you long after it's finish. I am looking forward to seeing it again very soon. It was brilliant! I was hooked right from the beginning and I cried when it finished. I rode the emotional roller coaster with each and every character. The production values are outstanding. I give it 10 out of 10 and I wish there were more episodes tucked away just for me.… Expand
  7. EricCartman
    Dec 23, 2014
    10
    Well written and beautifully acted. McDormand and Jenkins are both amazing. This is probably the best mini-series HBO had done since Band of Brothers.
  8. JLuis_001
    Mar 10, 2018
    9
    This miniseries was released in 2014 and by then, making good memory I think it was probably Frances McDormand's best role since Burn After Reading, obviously not counting Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri because that film didn't exist yet and I've gotta say I'm really surprised that she won the Emmy and not the Golden Globe, now I need to see if Maggie Gyllenhaal's performance inThis miniseries was released in 2014 and by then, making good memory I think it was probably Frances McDormand's best role since Burn After Reading, obviously not counting Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri because that film didn't exist yet and I've gotta say I'm really surprised that she won the Emmy and not the Golden Globe, now I need to see if Maggie Gyllenhaal's performance in The Honorable Woman was indeed better.… Expand
  9. DemonSoul
    Dec 29, 2014
    10
    I would say this is in the vein of the movie sideways, very good but not as good, funny, but not as funny. good dialogue, but not as good, but longer in a good way.
  10. CelticView
    Nov 12, 2014
    8
    The superb acting, the atmospherics, and the story do nothing to prevent the viewer from being dragged under the somewhat depressing influence of Olive Kitteridge's life and the lives of the people she impacts upon. I'm not sure where I am at the end of it all - sad, melancholy, weary - certainly not uplifted.

    A thoroughly horrid individual, it takes some amount of understanding and    The superb acting, the atmospherics, and the story do nothing to prevent the viewer from being dragged under the somewhat depressing influence of Olive Kitteridge's life and the lives of the people she impacts upon. I'm not sure where I am at the end of it all - sad, melancholy, weary - certainly not uplifted.

    A thoroughly horrid individual, it takes some amount of understanding and generosity of spirit to allow yourself any level of sympathy for Olive. But, in the end, that just where the story leaves you.

    A slow moving, deliberate, yet riveting tale of a troubled soul - we all know an Olive Kitteridge.    … Expand
  11. Doodle02
    Dec 28, 2014
    10
    This is probably the most thoughtful show I've ever seen. I wasn't sure HBO could be engaging without the usual decapitation, **** and incest hooks, and this show has proven me wrong.
  12. zouz123
    Mar 16, 2015
    10
    I'm totally glad i took the chance to watch this mini-series. It's short, has an excellent cast, and you get unexpectedly attached to the characters. It's a really dramatic story in which you'll find yourself immersed. Definitely recommend
  13. Derek1101
    Feb 27, 2015
    10
    With all the mini-series's and sporadic seasons of tv shows, it can be easy to overlook a very simplistic and yet deep story with so much intellect about the world it can make you yourself look at life in a different perspective. Opening up onto a Olive Kitteridge a woman who has spent the better part of her life living in silent or not so silent judgement, we are taken onto a 30 yearWith all the mini-series's and sporadic seasons of tv shows, it can be easy to overlook a very simplistic and yet deep story with so much intellect about the world it can make you yourself look at life in a different perspective. Opening up onto a Olive Kitteridge a woman who has spent the better part of her life living in silent or not so silent judgement, we are taken onto a 30 year journey of her life through a telescope of flashbacks, flash-forwards, and relative everyday life. As she loses her husband and drifts emotionally and geographically away from her son, her life takes a 180, then ends on an almost unknown angle with us watching transfixed on her take of society. Such a descriptive and subtle glance into the quirks of life, this movie brings on the normal, abnormal, and downright absurd so pliantly it's almost like music.… Expand
  14. bobmeier
    Jul 31, 2016
    10
    Nothing Chodolenko did previous to Olive Kitteridge prepared me for the elegaic greatness that Olive Kitteridge has. I urge you to see it ASAP. I'd love to see this in a theatrical release-its too good for a small screen. That being said, sometimes I think O.K. would be better to close and the end of the third segment, when she gets in her car and says "who do I think I am? As much as INothing Chodolenko did previous to Olive Kitteridge prepared me for the elegaic greatness that Olive Kitteridge has. I urge you to see it ASAP. I'd love to see this in a theatrical release-its too good for a small screen. That being said, sometimes I think O.K. would be better to close and the end of the third segment, when she gets in her car and says "who do I think I am? As much as I love Bill Murray I felt including him was sort of pandering to a bigger audience. But maybe I'm wrong. The 4th segment is fine, just saying. Bravo Lisa! Can't wait to see your next project.… Expand
  15. Capecruseder
    Jan 17, 2021
    10
    Heartfelt, Sometimes funny and moving. If you dont like the first episode, don't continue, its not for everyone .

Awards & Rankings

8
#8 Best TV Season of 2014
93
#93 Most Discussed TV Season of 2014
81
#81 Most Shared TV Season of 2014

Critic Reviews

All reviews »
Metascore
89

Universal acclaim - based on 34 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 33 out of 34
  2. Mixed: 1 out of 34
  3. Negative: 0 out of 34
  1. The Oregonian
    Reviewed by: Kristi Turnquist
    Nov 3, 2014
    100
    Adapted from a Pulitzer Prize-winning novel by Elizabeth Strout, Olive Kitteridge is an extraordinary character study, featuring a brilliant performance by Frances McDormand.
    Read full review
  2. Chicago Sun-Times
    Reviewed by: Lori Rackl
    Nov 3, 2014
    75
    To McDormand’s credit, she lets us see through enough cracks in Olive’s gruff façade to reveal a vulnerable woman let down by life by ultimately unwilling to give up on it.
    Read full review
  3. Entertainment Weekly
    Reviewed by: Melissa Maerz
    Nov 3, 2014
    100
    We're taught that good drama relies on characters changing over time. Here, McDormand proves that a character's refusal to change can be just as compelling, and she hints at that stubbornness in exquisitely subtle fashion.
    Read full review
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