The author of the series, Bill Dubuc, worked as a docker on the Ozarks in Missouri as a student. The creator's youthful impressions are reflected in the script. Although the characters and circumstances are fictional. The showrunner and his colleague Mark Williams proposed the idea to the leaders of Netflix, and it was approved. The financial resources for the project were allocated by the corporation "Media Rights Capital".
Since Georgia has tax incentives for film production, full-scale filming was conducted not in the Ozarks, but near other reservoirs, Lanier and Allatuna (near the city of Atlanta). After sending an expedition to the Alhonna resort area, the group rented a property and installed decorations on the coastal territory. Some of the scenes take place in Chicago, where the central characters come from. A road banner at the entrance to the town of Lake Ozark and a sculpture of a Native American Joe – that's all that appeared in the frames.
The star of "Ozark" Bateman was going to put all the episodes of season 1. But the schedule did not allow, so the actor directed four episodes: "Sugar Stake", "Blue Catfish", "Coffee, black", "Ringing". And then-4 more. Other directors were Alik Sakharov ("Game of Thrones"), Andrew Berstein, Ellen Kuras, Phil Abraham ("The Sopranos") and others.
The plot is dedicated to Martin Byrd, who was "recruited" in 2007 by the dangerous head of the Mexican drug trafficking gang Camino Del Rio (Esay Morales). Things were going smoothly, but the cartel noticed that the money was floating "to the left". The "shortage "" amounted to millions of dollars. Having revealed who was behind the theft, the mafia boss dealt with the culprit. The same fate awaited the partner of the "rat".
After begging for a couple of minutes to say goodbye to his relatives in absentia, the accountant came up with a risky plan – how to legalize "dirty cash". He offered the leader to buy out non-profitable establishments on the shore of the Ozarks and organize a "laundering" through them. Having bargained for time for himself and his family, Martin is forced to act quickly, persuade the locals, fight the thieving rednecks and be afraid of the feds and the sheriff.
The drama premiered on July 21, 2017. The sequel followed at the end of August 2018, and then-on March 27, 2020. The management of the streaming service decided that the fourth "chapter" of Byrd's adventures would be the last. 14 episodes are planned, divided into two parts.
Martin Byrd is portrayed by Jason Bateman. The candidacy of the performer at first caused confusion: the artist is known as a comedian. He starred in the romcom "The Formula of Love for prisoners of Marriage", in the comedy "Obnoxious Bosses" and voiced the weasel fox Nick Wilde in "Zveropolis". However, the performer surprised the skeptics and coped with the role of a self-employed financial adviser trapped in a trap.
Together with the head of the family, the unfaithful wife Wendy moved to the resort town of Ozark. It was the three-time Oscar nominee Laura Linney. The woman participated in the election campaigns of politicians. And in a new place, she gets a job at a real estate agency of the resort, then-lobbies for the ideas of her husband, who came up with the idea of building a gambling house on the shore. The children in the series were played by yesterday's debutants Sofia Hublitz (Charlotte) and Skylar Gertner (Jonah).
The show has "strong" female characters. In addition to Wendy, this is a young girl Ruth Langmore (Julia Garner), the matriarch of an urban crime family. And also the owner of the Blue Catfish Hotel and bar, Rachel Garrison. This is Marty's reluctant accomplice, played by Jordana Spiro. And a Chicago lawyer, Mrs. Pierce (Janet McTeer), who defends the interests of the cartel.
Viewers of the series celebrate the creative opening credits of the drama. Artist Davis drew the letter "O": white on black. There are 4 symbols inside it, foreshadowing the main scenario events. The signs replace the other letters in the name. In the "pilot" episode, the man on his knees is "Z", the building looks like" A", the weapon is" R", the man who falls is"K".
The aggregator site "Rotten Tomatoes" has calculated the percentages of positive reviews for each season. For the 1st it is 70%, for the 2nd-76, for the 3rd-97 percent. TV critic Lauri spoke out:
"The idea of "fish without water" is an old trick on TV. But "Ozark" paved its "road" using clever plot twists, a flashback explaining how the hero began working for the mafia. And a strong performance of performers who are pleasant to watch."
Columnist Sonia Saraya noted the intensity of the show and the disarming image created by Bateman. And her British colleague Dooley praised Linney's work. The show has 32 Emmy nominations. In 2019, he managed to win two awards – for directing (Bateman) and supporting actress (Garner). The series "Ozark" can be watched online, in Russian, for free and without registration-on this site.
