By BYJACKNEWORTH CHANNELSURFING
WHEN I FIRST SAW “SCENES FROM a Marriage,” directed by the late Ingmar Bergman, I was just coming out of an intense five-year relationship. Being it was Bergman I wasn’t expecting a musical, but I also wasn’t prepared for how close to home it would strike. Put it this way, strangers in the theater wound up scolding me to stop groaning. (And it wasn’t that I had indigestion.) “Tell Me You Love Me.” which debuted on HBO Sept. 9 at 9 p.m. (Eastern) has been compared to “Scenes from a Marriage,” only with steamier sex scenes. Much steamier. (HBO’s theme, “It’s not TV, It’s HBO” may never be truer.) “Tell Me” is about the trials and tribulations of three couples in and out of the bedroom — actually four, including therapist, Dr. May Foster (Jane Alexander) and her husband, Arthur Foster (David Selby).
Each couple in “Tell Me” is trying to save their relationship. The acting is brilliant, as is the direction and much of the writing. There isn’t a false note. But the question is, are the couples’ dilemmas compelling and addictive enough to sustain an ongoing series? And if not, should the intensity of the sex scenes make up the difference?
Couple number one (I sound like the “Newlywed Game") is Jamie (Michelle Broth) and Hugo (Luke Kirby.) They’re young, beautiful. (not fake beautiful) and in love. Hugo wants very much to marry Jamie but is hesitant when his bachelor buddies ask him if he’s ready to sleep with only one woman for the rest of his life. Hugo’s answer, “I’ll deal with it,” suggests he anticipates the possibility of an occasional dalliance. It’s definitely the wrong answer, if for no other reason, than Jamie overhears it. Being honest, Hugo asks Jamie does she really think she’s never going to be attracted to anyone else as long as they’re married? She admits of course she will, but is troubled that the subject of cheating has come up before they’re even married. Soon, the wedding is put on hold.
Katie (Ally Walker) and David (Tim DeKay) are a seemingly happily married. They have good jobs, two healthy children and a house in the burbs. Their problem is sex. Katie wants more (or even some) but David says, “It’s tough to have two kids and still be sexual.” As often is the case in real life, sex isn’t the problem, intimacy is. But Katie’s positive things would be fine if their sex life improved and seeks help from Dr. Foster. David refuses to join her, saying, “To address a problem is to say there is a problem,” which he’s not ready to admit they have.
Palek (Adam Scott) and Carolyn (Sonya Walger) are also married and trying, unsuccessfully, to have a baby. Carolyn takes her continued bareness as a personal failure and Palek resents the pressure, however subtle. They too are in therapy with Dr. Foster, who recommends for the next week that they completely forget “trying” to get pregnant and just enjoy each other. This prescription somehow leads to Palek and Carolyn having sex when they take a break from his mother’s boring dinner party.
The creator and executive producer of “Tell Me You Love Me,” Cynthia Mort, said HBO executives threw up warning flags about the intensity of the sex scenes. She wondered why it was acceptable to show rapes and other mayhem on “The Sopranos,” but not intimate relations between married couples. (Given “The Sopranos” unbelievable success, I’m not sure Ms. Mort’s criticizing that particular show to HBO was the wisest choice, and yet she seems to have prevailed.) Even Dr. Foster’s relationship has potential problems. And yes, we get a glimpse of rather frisky senior sex. (Thankfully, or otherwise, only a glimpse however.) Arthur Foster has recently retired while his wife continues her therapy practice, the combination of which suggests potential conflict. As she readies for work, he’s in an amorous mood. She says that’s why he shouldn’t have retired. He says that’s why he did retire.
It’s almost impossible not to admire the honesty of “Tell Me You Love Me.” The biggest criticism will likely be the sex. Scott, who plays Palek, says every such scene is an integral part of the plot, which may be true but sounds defensive. And Broth (Jamie) may have appeared even more so when she told one interviewer, “We’re actors, not porn stars!”
The issue for me is not the sex, but are the characters’ problems sufficiently compelling enough to bring viewers back week after week? As with so many pilots, it’s difficult to tell. Judging from the integrity of “Tell Me You Love Me,” I hope they find a way.
“Tell Me You Love Me,” airs on HBO every Sunday at 9 p.m. (Eastern.) JACK also writes “Laughing Matters” which appears in this paper every Friday. He
Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on September 13, 2007. Read the original PDF.