American television limited series
The Lizzie Borden Chronicles
is an American television
limited series
following
Lizzie Borden
after she is acquitted of the murders of her father and stepmother in 1892. It premiered on
Lifetime
on Easter Sunday, April 5, 2015, and ended on May 25, 2015. The series is a continuation of the story begun in the network's 2014 film
Lizzie Borden Took an Ax
and, like the film, is fictionalized and speculative.
Plot
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In 1893, four months after Lizzie Borden's acquittal for the murders of her father and stepmother, she and her sister Emma try to start a new life despite financial troubles and Lizzie's ruined reputation. Meanwhile,
Pinkerton
detective
Charlie Siringo
arrives in
Fall River, Massachusetts
, to investigate the case for himself.
[1]
Cast
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Main
[
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Recurring
[
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Guest
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Episodes
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Production and release
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In October 2014, Lifetime announced plans for an additional limited series based on the network's 2014 film
Lizzie Borden Took an Ax
. Originally referred to as
Lizzie Borden: The Fall River Chronicles
, the series would take place after Lizzie's trial, with Ricci and DuVall reprising their roles as the Borden sisters. Hauser was cast as Pinkerton detective Charlie Siringo, who investigates other strange occurrences, including murders, centered around the Bordens.
[10]
[11]
Stephen Kay directed the first two episodes.
[10]
A teaser trailer calling the series
The Lizzie Borden Chronicles
aired on December 8, 2014, during the second part of
The Red Tent
miniseries, promoting a 2015 premiere. It featured the
tagline
, "Lizzie Borden Has an Axe to Grind".
[12]
The Hollywood Reporter
wrote in October 2014 that the series would consist of six one-hour episodes,
[13]
but by January 2015 the order was increased to eight.
[12]
[14]
The Lizzie Borden Chronicles
premiered on April 5, 2015. Most - if not all - of the series was shot in Nova Scotia, Canada, using period buildings and interiors in Halifax and other nearby communities.
Lifetime executive vice president and general manager Rob Sharenow said in 2014, “This series will take viewers further down Lizzie Borden’s dark path, revealing what many people suspected about her mysterious life."
[11]
Entertainment Weekly
reported that "while the film was inspired by real-life events, the series will take certain creative liberties, which draw from the mysterious events surrounding the deaths of those close to Borden in the years after her acquittal."
[12]
Ricci said in January 2015, "It’s an imagining of what could've happened... There are no limits of behavior. There are no rules. It's the ultimate playing a fantasy."
[12]
Director Kay added, "It's what would happen if you let this woman loose on a community."
[12]
Neil Genzlinger of
The New York Times
noted that "the show mixes tidbits of actual history?there really was a Charlie Siringo, for instance?with lots of fiction and speculation, so don't take anything here seriously".
[1]
In June 2015, Lifetime opted to not produce further episodes.
[15]
The complete series was released on DVD by
Sony Pictures Home Entertainment
on February 2, 2016.
[16]
Reception
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The series has garnered mixed reviews despite high praise for Ricci's performance as Borden. Jane Borden of
Vanity Fair
called the series "playful, wicked brain candy", adding that "Ricci was born to play a 19th-century ax murderer, as it turns out."
[17]
Keith Uhlich of
The Hollywood Reporter
wrote, "Christina Ricci brings us the axe! Would that her effort was worth it"
[18]
and Deborah Day of
TheWrap
noted, "Christina Ricci kills it, but even her brand of crazy is not enough."
[19]
Praising Ricci's Lizzie as "gleeful and ruthless",
The New York Times
called the series "period-piece television served with a wink".
[1]
Awards and nominations
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See also
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References
[
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]
- ^
a
b
c
Genzlinger, Neil (March 31, 2015).
"Review:
The Lizzie Borden Chronicles
, a Lifetime Series Starring Christina Ricci"
.
The New York Times
. Retrieved
April 24,
2015
.
- ^
Kondolojy, Amanda (April 7, 2015).
"Sunday Cable Ratings: MLB Baseball &
The Real Housewives of Atlanta
Top Night +
Keeping Up With the Kardashians
,
Mad Men
& More"
.
TV by the Numbers
. Archived from
the original
on March 5, 2016
. Retrieved
April 7,
2015
.
- ^
Metcalf, Mitch (April 14, 2015).
"SHOWBUZZDAILY's Top 25 Sunday Cable Originals (& Network Update): 4.12.2015"
.
ShowBuzzDaily
. Archived from
the original
on April 17, 2015
. Retrieved
May 28,
2015
.
- ^
Metcalf, Mitch (April 21, 2015).
"ShowBuzzDaily's Top 25 Sunday's Cable Originals (& Network Update): 4.19.2015"
.
ShowBuzzDaily
. Archived from
the original
on April 22, 2015
. Retrieved
April 29,
2015
.
- ^
Metcalf, Mitch (April 26, 2015).
"ShowBuzzDaily's Top 100 Sunday's Cable Originals (& Network Update): 4.26.2015"
.
ShowBuzzDaily
. Archived from
the original
on April 29, 2015
. Retrieved
April 29,
2015
.
- ^
Metcalf, Mitch (May 5, 2015).
"SHOWBUZZDAILY's Top 100 Sunday Cable Originals (& Network Update): 5.3.2015"
.
ShowBuzzDaily
. Archived from
the original
on May 7, 2015
. Retrieved
May 28,
2015
.
- ^
Metcalf, Mitch (May 12, 2015).
"SHOWBUZZDAILY's Top 100 Sunday Cable Originals (& Network Update): 5.10.2015"
.
ShowBuzzDaily
. Archived from
the original
on May 15, 2015
. Retrieved
May 28,
2015
.
- ^
Metcalf, Mitch (May 19, 2015).
"SHOWBUZZDAILY's Top 100 Sunday Cable Originals (& Network Update): 5.17.2015"
.
ShowBuzzDaily
. Archived from
the original
on May 21, 2015
. Retrieved
May 28,
2015
.
- ^
Metcalf, Mitch (May 27, 2015).
"SHOWBUZZDAILY's Top 100 Sunday Cable Originals: 5.24.2015"
.
ShowBuzzDaily
. Archived from
the original
on May 27, 2015
. Retrieved
May 28,
2015
.
- ^
a
b
"Lifetime Greenlights Limited Series "Lizzie Borden: The Fall River Chronicles"
"
(Press release).
Lifetime
. October 22, 2014
. Retrieved
April 16,
2016
– via
The Futon Critic
.
- ^
a
b
Zuckerman, Esther (October 22, 2014).
"Christina Ricci to play Lizzie Borden again for Lifetime"
.
Entertainment Weekly
. Retrieved
May 20,
2015
.
- ^
a
b
c
d
e
Abrams, Natalie (January 9, 2015).
"Lizzie Borden has an ax to grind in trailer for Lifetime series"
.
Entertainment Weekly
. Retrieved
May 20,
2015
.
- ^
Goldberg, Lesley (October 22, 2014).
"Lifetime Returns to
Lizzie Borden
With Six-Hour Limited Series"
.
The Hollywood Reporter
. Retrieved
May 20,
2015
.
- ^
Elavsky, Cindy (February 5, 2015).
"Ricci takes an ax to her latest role"
.
Florida Weekly
. Archived from
the original
on February 21, 2015
. Retrieved
February 9,
2015
.
- ^
Swift, Andy (June 24, 2015).
"
The Lizzie Borden Chronicles
Not Returning for Season 2"
.
TVLine
. Retrieved
July 16,
2015
.
- ^
"The Lizzie Borden Chronicles: Season 1"
. 2 February 2016 – via Amazon.
- ^
Borden, Jane (April 5, 2015).
"
The Lizzie Borden Chronicles
Is Playful, Wicked Brain Candy"
.
Vanity Fair
. Retrieved
April 12,
2015
.
- ^
Uhlich, Keith (April 5, 2015).
"
The Lizzie Borden Chronicles
: TV Review"
.
The Hollywood Reporter
. Retrieved
April 12,
2015
.
- ^
Day, Deborah (April 5, 2015).
"
Lizzie Borden Chronicles
Review: Christina Ricci Kills It, But Even Her Brand of Crazy Is Not Enough"
.
TheWrap
. Retrieved
April 12,
2015
.
External links
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