‘Pam & Tommy’ – ‘Jane Fonda’ – Review
Things keep moving at pace in Episode Three of Pam & Tommy, ‘Jane Fonda’ as Rand looks to strike out in a way to profit off his newfound videotape goldmine, while Pamela and Tommy still oblivious to the theft make new choices in their life, while also dealing with changing times.
Having stumbled on a potential gold mine in the form of Pamela Anderson (Lily James) and Tommy Lee’s (Sebastian Stan) private sex tape, carpenter turned wannabe entrepreneur Rand Gauthier (Seth Rogen) decides to go mainstream with the tape. But it’s not as easy as he thinks. And while Rand is struggling to find a way to distribute his new ill-gotten gains, Pamela and Tommy are both having to deal with their own issues close to home and the glamour isn’t as shiny as we’ve been led to believe. But things take a turn for Rand when he locks on to a brilliant and world-changing idea that could lead him to the future he’s always wanted in the most unexpected way.
Director Craig Gillespie keeps the ball rolling with Pam & Tommy and it’s becoming very clear to audiences that this miniseries is the most addictive show on television. Finding a great mix between the truth, drama and comedy of the events that unfold before our eyes, Gillespie has his eyes on the prize as we move forward in ‘Jane Fonda’ the third episode of Pam & Tommy. With a plan up their sleeves, Rand and Miltie (Nick Offerman) make the rounds of LA’s biggest porn distributors but are quickly turned down over a couple of pesky releases. Perturbed by their lack of possibilities, a chance encounter sends Rand down a rabbit hole that will have world-changing implications for everyone involved.
In ‘Jane Fonda’ we come to meet another of Pam & Tommy’s key characters, Erica Gauthier played by Taylor Schilling. A full-on California porn star and Rand’s ex-wife, whom he still hasn’t quite gotten round to divorcing, and who is now in a lesbian relationship that drives him up the wall. Schilling portrays Erica as a spurned valley girl who has a particular love/hate, emphasis on the hate, relationship with Rand. Completely contemptible of her ex-husband and his failings as a man, Erica is a terrific foil for Rand and it’s interesting to see how Rand’s desire to re-capture their past love spurns his decision making forward.
By happenstance, Schilling’s appearance as Erica also sends Rand on a quest that leads him to the solution for his distribution problem. That solution: the internet. A burgeoning, underground technology in 1995, the world wide web is only just starting to catch on and Rand sees it as the golden opportunity for untapped and anonymous distribution. This decision is lost on Offerman’s Uncle Miltie, and it’s hilarious to see him try to decipher just what the internet is. But in the end, all roads lead online, but also to Mafiosa loanshark ‘Butchie’ (Andrew Dice Clay) who decides to front the operation. Get ready to cue the dial-up because Gillespie takes us back there and it’s hilarious to see it all unfold as Rand and Miltie take a step into the unknown of the wild west of the internet as it existed in the 1990s.
While all of this is going on we also get to see how newlywed lovebirds Pamela and Tommy are going on, and all is not as it seems. While struggling to conceive a child, the couple are also dealing with their own insecurities that are the result of a changing time. Lee might be a rich, impulsive rockstar, but he’s not topping the charts anymore and the new sound of grunge is hitting the airwaves and it’s lost on him. Pamela on the other hand is looking to take the next step in her career and transition into the role of serious actress. Not happy with being a mere sex object and with her superhero blockbuster Barb Wire on the horizon she’s keen for a change and a crack at showing people that she’s more than just a pretty face.
What we see in ‘Jane Fonda’ is the representation of a clear theme of not judging a book by its cover and that’s exactly where this third episode takes us. This is particularly relevant for Lily James’ portrayal of Anderson who in a meeting with her new publicist, the no-nonsense maneater Gail Chwatsky (Mozhan Marnò) makes it clear that she would like to replicate the career of the famed Jane Fonda and be seen in that same light. While she might be the world’s sexiest woman, Pamela is very much an innocent, bubbly, kind-hearted person and someone who’s being taken advantage of by the Hollywood system and not being given the chance to actually show she has more value than her mere appearance. It’s interesting to watch James’ performance of Pamela in this regard and this also plays into the genuine love that is shared between Anderson and Lee in their marriage.
The die is cast for a game-changing moment for the realms of celebrity, technology and sex in ‘Jane Fonda’ and Pam & Tommy is about to get all kinds of interesting as we move forward in the narrative.
Pam & Tommy streams every Wednesday on Disney+
Image: Walt Disney Pictures
