I’ve been poking around trying to find some comments from anyone who has actually watched one or more episodes on Netflix. Maybe my searching ability is weak.
Is it worth my time to watch any of this, er, documentary? I’m not really interested in their personal relationship, but I’m always interested in the way money and power flows. I get the impression from several reviewers that this documentary series is more about the couple’s undying love and commitment to each other.
I’m curious also. My wife likes inside looks at skullduggery, the inner machinations of royalty and the like. I really don’t care much about the problems of rich, privileged people, but if she watches it, I probably will too.
Well, it’s certainly popular - more viewers than “The Crown”.
Here is part of a BBC review:
What we got - over almost three hours - were new, private details of their “great love story”, as Harry put it. Think soft focus lenses, Nina Simone playing in the background, lots of private photographs, videos and even, apparently, a call between Meghan and a friend as she was getting engaged (“OMG it’s happening” she says).
IMO. No, not worth my time. Not much of a fan of the Sussexes who are stuck rehashing all of their grievances from their very short stint in the RF.
Meghan who is a white presenting biracial successful actor and spokesperson who depicts herself as some as underprivileged, maligned innocent who carries and nurtures such deep resentment and anger towards her in-laws is cringy to the extreme.
Yes, how dare she complain about the substantial abuse she received and continues to receive from the media? And how dare Harry point out that the same RF bullshit his mother had to go through that drove her to suicidal thoughts also happened to his wife?
It’s worth noting that the same media who previously maligned her are now all engaged in a concerted effort to malign her again in order to distract from her talking about how they have constantly maligned her, thus ultimately proving her point.
If you’re not interested in their lives, don’t watch it - in the few brief bits I’ve seen there’s been nothing new or particularly newsworthy. But be aware that there are many others who are actively misrepresenting what is presented in it (most notably at the moment the whole “curtsey” thing), so if you are interested in their lives, watch it yourself rather than reading the press about it.
My wife is into their story so I watched the middle episode. Calling this a “documentary” borders on deceptive — it’s a puff piece, essentially an exercise in PR, with exclusively friendly interviews and probably more humblebragging than is healthy to ingest in a single sitting. If you like these two and find them interesting, it’d probably be a pleasant watch. For a serious look at the “phenomenon” of the Sussexes and how they bailed on the Firm, the film makes some stabs at contextualizing the racism of British society and media, but it’s not nearly rigorous enough to tell that story well.
My wife was watching it after a medical procedure last week, and I was listening in.
It struck me as very much Harry & Meghan propaganda- their side of the story as they want it told, not necessarily the whole story as it happened.
That said, their slant on things doesn’t seem entirely unreasonable- they didn’t like the press coverage, the inherent racism, and the outright hostility toward Meghan for having the temerity to not fit the mold of what they felt a princess should be. I’d probably have done something similar if I’d been in his shoes.
I won’t watch it as I’m tired of H&M. Yes, the British press are a pack of wolves and their relentless pursuit of Diana was a contributing factor in her death. Yes, it would be tough to lose your mom at the age that Harry did. Yes, there is very likely some racism in the royal family and Meghan was probably never fully accepted. OK, they may have some legitimate griefs with the press and with the royal family. But they can deal with it, put it behind them and move on. They’re young and financially quite well off. They’re outside of the UK and the American press is not as interested in them. They should be able to live happy lives. But as I see it, they’ve become professional victims and are milking their grievances for every nickel they can get out of it, so count me out of their sympathy tour.
I have to admit I’m finding it interesting. The British tabloids are shameless muckrakers, and the “deal” that Buckingham has struck with them is also shameless. Yeah, they’re not suffering financially, but I can see why they would want to air their side of things.
I’ve got no interest in them and wouldn’t believe a word of their propaganda.
They’ll tell a story and then, with a bit of luck (for them and us) the world will forget about them, what else do they have other than a sense of grievance and some one-sided dirt to dish?
Unfortunately I don’t see their marriage or media empire surviving much past that point.
They live around five miles away from me which is the perfect place for them to live since we pride ourselves on ignoring celebrities in public and letting them be. I honestly feel for Harry. Fame would be my worst nightmare. He was born into it and had no choice.
Anyway, I’m satisfied to just read about what was said and not watch any of it. It’s funny to read headlines about how the royal family is “seething” or “furious” about what seems to be pretty benign. They can’t really be that upset.
Would you mind briefly elaborating? I’m curious.
Absolutely. He had no choice and his mother died tragically young in the glare of the media. No-one would blame him in the slightest if he wanted to walk away from the royal family and live a quiet life away from the media glare.
Thing is though, If that is what you want then continuing to cash in on your royal titles, creating your own media company, signing a massive contract for a documentary series and writing a tell-all expose book seems like a weird way to go about it.
Seemed complicated to me, but they basically allow certain tabloids primary access to stories and for photo ops, along with the one paper that actually reports news instead of bullshit. I’d have to watch it again.
That’s what I suspected. I have heard that American celebrities will make deals with paps like “I’ll let you take pictures of my and my kids for a bit if you leave me alone for the rest of the day”
I honestly don’t know what Harry was expecting the palace to do to protect Meghan. It’s not like they can just order the media to leave someone alone. Even the Queen speaking out wouldn’t have changed anything, and would likely have made it worse.
Pretty much a no-win situation. I’m sure it can be soul-crushing for someone who doesn’t have a really thick skin.
OK, thanks everyone! I’m getting the impression that I won’t get much out of spending time watching this series. I was sort of hoping that it would take a more balanced view, possibly challenging some assertions made by H&M or the Palace.
Yeah, that’s a hard no.
It’s a pro-H&M show to counter all the anti-H&M stuff going around. It doesn’t remotely pretend to be balanced. Application of a certain number of grains of salt recommended.