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Lessons in Chemistry (2023)

2023 · Drama · historical-period, family-relational, workplace-prestige

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Lessons in Chemistry is a warm, intelligent, and emotionally satisfying US prestige drama set in 1950s California, following Elizabeth Zott — a fiercely capable female chemist navigating a world built to diminish her — as she becomes an unlikely cooking show host and cultural force. The show balances sharp social commentary on gender and race with genuine humor, a tender mother-daughter relationship, and a central love story that reviewers describe as deeply moving. Brie Larson's performance is universally cited as career-defining. The tone avoids both saccharine sentimentality and gratuitous darkness, landing in a register reviewers consistently describe as 'delightful,' 'inspiring,' and 'elegant.' Best suited for viewers who want prestige drama that makes them feel something without punishing them.

From the reviewers

It is subversive of genre in many ways. The acting is great (Larson is perfect casting especially). It's unpredictable, thematically cogent, and gets messaging right- something tv shows rarely get right. Usually they beat you over the head with it or else have little to no point at all.
Her almost robotic quality in so captivating.
Too often children are written as saccharine cute or so smart and precocious as to be annoying. This is another aspect that the show gets right. Madeleine is gifted, and Elizabeth has to find her a school that will challenge her enough to prevent her from becoming bored. The relationship between mother and daughter is played so beautifully and naturally it was one of the highlights for me.
In one episode we get a narration from the dogs point of view that also avoids falling into any traps and is just as important to the story as the other episodes, acting only to add more layers onto the 'lasagne'. The writing and direction is excellent.
A great show moves our feelings and thoughts to our own lives, drawing out our empathy for the characters and connecting our own experiences. A great show helps us see something about our own lives, threads of connections we may not have known were there until we looked back and saw the pattern.

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