Mare of Easttown DVD: A Master Class In Storytelling

If you have never seen Mare of Easttown (as I had not), you will find it to be a very deeply layered study of very realistic characters. I know people use the phrase a lot, but it really is a Master Class in storytelling.

Mare of Easttown is the story of Mare Sheehan (Kate Winslet), a police detective investigating the murder of a local teenage mother. Aside from that ongoing case, her life is crumbling before her eyes.

She used to be the town hero due to a high school basketball game decades ago, but she has the ghost of another missing young girl hanging over her that she has been unable to solve for over a year (which causes local people to doubt her abilities). She is dealing with divorce, loss of a child, and a custody battle over her grandson. It’s a lot to deal with.

This is clearly one of the most satisfying series this year, and that is thanks to Winslet and an amazing ensemble cast (Jean Smart, Julianne Nicholson, Even Peters) providing some very deep character work. While Mare of Easttown generally focuses on Mare and how she copes, the series has a lot of atmospheres and a much more organic-feeling approach.

It’s hard to write about this series while not giving away too much and it’s very difficult to really describe the nuanced performances and subtle things that you see. It manages to find a balance that mirrors real life. There is a serious tone and murder, but the amazing cast does bring moments to lighten up the throughout. It’s a top-tier series and worthy of the praise and awards it received.

A Look at the Mare of Easttown DVD

Warner Bros. Home Entertainment has given this series a stunning A/V presentation with a couple of special features. In addition to the 7-episode series, the two-disc DVD’s bonus features, starting with “Invitation to the Set” on Disc 2, interspersed with clips from the show and interviews with the cast and showrunners.

The featurette “Mare of Easttown: Welcome to Easttown” takes a more in-depth approach to the show’s ambient setting inspired by the creator’s own childhood. The last featurette (and longest) has behind-the-scenes B-roll and confessionals from the cast and crew offering audiences a longer look at how they brought the series to life with dialect, costumes, and setting.

Mare of Easttown is a satisfying emotional story that finds the perfect balance of reality and great storytelling. The characters are rich and add more layers to the story making it feel complete. It’s definitely worth a watch.

Mare of Easttown is currently available on DVD and Blu-Ray from Warner Bros. Home Entertainment