Dialogue Adds Depth to Setting
I’ve been watching the new USA cable television show “Complications” because it stars Jason O’Mara, who I like. According to the PR about “Complications,” he plays a disillusioned suburban ER doctor who finds his existence transformed when he intervenes in a drive-by shooting, saving a young boy's life and killing one of his attackers. When he learns the boy is still marked for death, he finds himself compelled to save him at any cost and discovers that his life and his outlook on medicine may never be the same. The show is aptly named as the complications pile up for the doctor as well as other characters. Goals and motivations are pretty well defined as the show hurtles from one episode to the next. So why am I discussing it? Because I think it suffers from a major flaw. The story is set in Atlanta, Georgia, but the none of the characters talk as if they are from Atlanta. In fact, the dialogue is so non-regional, I keep thinking they’re in Los Angeles. I’m sure the director i...