Am i the only one who thinks........Average?

What a freaking movie. So many twists and turns. Absolutely intense from start to finish.

This movie feels like it was made purely to piss off people who want good shows

The film never slows down or bores, plunging from one harrowing sequence to the next.

Let me set some background for me. I hate TV because 95% of it stinks. I can't believe the junk people waste their lives watching, and I am predisposed to hate any new TV that comes along. I've read several of Kem Nunn's novels, though found them terribly dark, and wouldn't have sought this out because he is a little too dark for me. I'm an atheist without any patience for religious nuts.So. I really liked this series and thought it was just one giant step away from being brilliant. If it's religious, it's religious in its best sense, a branch of philosophy rather than a dogma or excuse for hatred.Do not watch this if you are rigidly religious. Do not watch this series if you hate curse words. Do not watch this series if you don't understand that characters who are racist or homophobic do not equal the show's makers believing that racism or homophobia is fine. If you like thinking and if you enjoy art, give it a try.Some of what is going on well here: a) cinematography. I love the choice of filters or processing or whatever made the ocean scenes look as they did. And there are many shots that are pure poetry.b) acting. DeMornay's energy level is amazing as she shrieks her way through the mother/wife from hell roll. I had no idea Ed ONeill could actually act until I saw this--he has some chops. Brian Van Holt was affecting, sympathetic, and my attention was riveted whenever he was on screen. But nobody else was weak.c) writing. Not only this fascinating group of characters were written, not only this interesting premise, but a number of devices were at least clever. John's mimicry of others' words is occasionally brilliant and makes you stop and think about...how we sound to others...how we'd sound to ourselves...what communication is, really.This is the kind of work that makes me go back to the credits and say "who wrote this smart stuff?" "who directed that lovely moment?" I could go on, but I'll stop here. The whole thing was thought-provoking, and the last couple episodes reveals of the horrible thing that might happen in the future...that chilled me. Good work.

I'm usually highly disappointed in the way shows (especially shows cut short) end. but this one was perfect. It was perfect in the way it began, in the way it built up and in the way it ended. I know people who love this show think it ended too soon but i think the story went as far as it should and anything more would have been taken away from it. It really was more of a miniseries than an actual TV series.What i loved best about this show is that it never made an attempt to explain itself. To explain anything from the big like where John came from, where John went to the little like the dialogue between the Hawaiian and Freddy's associate. it just laid it all out like a documentary.And although the above attribute was great for all ten episodes what made each episode enjoyable to watch and re-watch is the lyrical dialogue. the different voices of each character and the flawed beauty of even minor characters that we get to know and love.a lot of people complain that it is just a tribute to the creators own vision/religion. And it may be that. I'm not denying it. But i say bring it on. Let's take a trip down someone's subconscious and see what it makes us feel.

"John from Cincinnati" was a very misunderstood show, imo. I think there is a lot of misdirected anger towards the show because of the ill-conceived notion that the other Milch show "Deadwood" was canceled in favor of this new one. If people raised their angry blinders and saw this show for what it is, I think there would be more fans of it rather than hurt and dejected fans of "Deadwood" cursing JFC's existence like an older sibling curses it's younger one.Unfortunately, I did not have cable when it was in regular rotation, so I could not watch it regularly, but I bought the DVDs after I saw the pilot when they reran the show in April or May. I immediately fell in love with the simplicity that was often demonstrated by this show and the beauty of it, both in terms of location but in the deeper meanings found when you read between the lines.JFC for me was a show about hope and the everlasting possibility of redemption, even after being at the lowest of lows. Every character on the show was working towards becoming a better person, healing old wounds/mistakes they had accrued throughout their lives, and moving on to a more enlightened and better place for themselves and their loved ones. John was just the catalyst for that change and the vessel for it as well.I loved Nichol's portrayal of John because he makes him so child-like and innocent, and he seems to do so effortlessly. I love the fact that surfing becomes a metaphor for life here, where the waves can thrash you around and even kill you if you're not careful, but when you catch a good one and milk that wave for all it's worth, it's a damn good ride.Everything about this show was great to me. The soundtrack was probably one of the most amazing and well though out soundtracks I have heard come from a show in years. Setting the show in Imperial Beach was an extra treat for me because I grew up going to that area, fishing off of that pier and swimming at that beach.All in all, this was a show that had such great intentions and had the possibility of going to great places, had HBO had any faith in it. I wish they had because these people who I have grown attached to seeing would live on and do great things. Oh well...

I have have HB0 for 6 months. While I liked Rome and the Sopranos, JFC was not like any other fare that HBO offers.The first three episodes were fairly slow, but were foundational for what would be the following days. If I had stopped after the first 3 weeks, I would not have discovered what a gem this show is, in a sea of juvenile humor and run of the mill programing, for fast food viewers of TV.The least important part of the show, for me, was the surfing premise. I did not care about the surfing other than it gave a basis of interaction for several characters.A significant weakness was the acting of the G. Fletcher who played Shaun Yost. It was painful to watch and hear him. I was glad when he was not on screen. If a good actor had been used to portray the teen, it would have added a great deal to the show.I also felt that Cissy Yost, Rebecca DeMornay, was painful to watch because she came across as a dysfunctional person on speed.The filthy language, in every sentence, was not needed to make these wonderful stories....With all those things considered, I loved this show.There are depths to the episodes that make you think. To get anything out of the shows, you have to actually pay attention to the dialog. Usually, I watched the program 3 times a week with the closed captioning engaged. I read the transcripts of the significant scenes. The scenes between characters, that are based around the Snug Harbor, are some of the most interesting aspects to this show.The characters are very quirky and down right strange, but it all works.The acting of Ed O'Neill is Emmy worthy. The writing for him and his acting ability, were highlights of the show.The actor portraying Butchie Yost was very talented. I had never seen him in any other work, but I hope to see more of him. He is able to give a depth to the role. His mannerisms, body movement and delivery of his lines makes the drug addict very believable.When you read the reviews of this show, done by recognized newspaper critics, you will see that they watched one or two episodes. The show evolves. The characters are fleshed out. It is sad that HBO has caved in to opinion of the press and has canceled the show.