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Against the Wall: reviews

US critics are giving the thumbs up to former McLeod’s Daughters star Rachael Carpani, now appearing in US crime drama Against the Wall.

Former McLeod’s Daughters star Rachael Carpani, is now appearing in US crime drama Against the Wall alongside Treat Williams and Kathy Baker.

Carpani stars as Abby Kowalski, a police detective who joins the Internal Affairs division which causes a stir in her family.

According to several early reviews, she is being pretty well received.

It airs on cable network, Lifetime.

Hollywood Reporter said:
Secondly, there’s Carpani, who looks to be a breakout star. She’s got the looks, of course, but her acting chops keep Against the Wall moving briskly — tackling drama, comedy, playing well alone or in a sex scene, dropping all traces of her Australian accent and deftly communicating a little something more with her facial mannerisms. Whatever she’s got, you pay attention to it enough to realize she’s getting the job done with impressive economy. If Carpani isn’t immediately discussed in the mix with her more famous peers on the broadcast side, she’ll be underestimated.

LA Times said:
Kathy Baker, who plays Abby’s wise and understanding mother, would have to be in something extraordinarily bad to not be worth watching. Williams is stiff-necked, but, you know, sweet. And Carpani, the latest Australian blond to strap on a local accent along with a side arm for American TV (see also: Anna Torv on “Fringe,” Yvonne Strahovski on “Chuck”), is an attractive lead who plays the drama for the comedy that lurks at its corners. Notwithstanding a character that for the moment reads as a cooked-up agglomeration of quirks — she likes the Chicago Bears, she’s a klutz, she’s claustrophobic, she sings old pop songs under her breath — there is life in her.

Chicago Tribune said:
“Against the Wall” has some positives: Carpani has an appealing twinkle in her eye, while Williams and Kathy Baker (as Abby’s mom, Sheila) always bring high-quality acting to their roles. With the three brothers plus Abby’s possible love interest, Danny (Chris Johnson), all played by attractive young actors, Lifetime’s core audience of women should be pleased.

Media Life Magazine said:
The episode gives us the usual beauty shots of Chicago, along with lots of Bears references, but no one even tries to re-create the local accent. It’s tempting to attribute Carpani’s on-screen awkwardness to the fact that she’s Australian, but her generic American accent is as good as the rest of the actors’ on the show. Although Carpani’s believably pretty looks and slightly ditzy manner make her better suited to romantic comedy, she’s not to blame for this show’s shortcomings. Cops may protect their own, but the creators of “Against the Wall” didn’t have their star’s back.

Television Without Pity said:
On the bright side, Against the Wall seems slightly aware how obvious the set-up is in the pilot, powers through the initial roadblocks quickly enough, and leaves us with a conflict that could eventually lead to a legitimately interesting premiere season. We’re also thrown the delightful twist of Abby having HOT sex with her brother’s partner, Brody (Andrew Walker). I’m not really invested in how much weight that whole dynamic holds; the interesting thing here is that Abby makes booty calls that don’t seem to totally give her emotional distress. I appreciate that Lifetime is making the effort to create female character that doesn’t fall into every unfortunate formula of a lady series, and I’m hoping we see more of that in future episodes.

7 Responses

  1. To succeed in Hollywood you still have to do a good ‘fake American’ apparently. Heaven forbid that US audiences might ever suspect that there are other than Americans in their midst!

    Given the amazing diversity of American accents, cultures and ethnic groups, why is it so necessary for an Australian to lose their accent to appear in their TV shows and movies? Even when they’re playing an Australian character (e.g. Chase in House) they can’t sound like an Australian!

  2. I like what I have seen so far – not to ‘chic-flicky’ that you sometimes get from Lifetime. Rachael’s American accent seems believable, unlike boyfriend Matt Passmore – just couldn’t take the Glades seriously with his awful attempt at an American accent.

  3. Liked her a lot in McLeods Daughter, but how amazing it is that things can change for the better.

    Rachael used to be in a relationship with Australian Rules Football player Chad Cornes from the Port Power, but after many years, they decided to move on i.e. Chad to stay with the AFL in SA and Rachael eventually moving to the US.

    Since that move she has been dating Matt Passmore, yes also from McLeod’s Daughters, who us currently starring in The Glades.

    Love a good story.

    The Glades is now into S2 and Against the Wall two episodes into S!.

    Well done to the Aussies. 🙂

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