Throughout the four hours of People Like Us (Sunday and Monday at 8 p.m., Ch. 2), there's as much glitz and glamour as any episode of "Dynasty" or "Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous."
Limousines, yachts, mansions, jewels, furs, antiques - the characters have them all. But in the end, even "People Like Us" can't avoid the heartaches that afflict everyone.Simplistic? Yes. But that's what this NBC miniseries boils down to.
It also seems designed to make those of us who don't travel in a world of wealth and power feel better - many of the characters are downright unpleasant.
As the story opens, author Gus Bailey (Ben Gazzara) and his ex-wife (Jean Simmons) are devastated when their daughter is murdered by her estranged boyfriend, Lefty Flint (Tom Schanley). Gus spends much of the movie trying to keep Flint, who received a light sentence, in jail.
This closely parallels the life of Dominick Dunne, the author of the novel on which the miniseries is based. His daughter, Dominique - who starred in "Poltergeist" - was killed by her boyfriend, who subsequently received a light sentence.
Gus decides to move to New York, where he covers the social set for society magazines. There he encounters a number of high-profile movers and shakers like:
-Elias and Ruby Renthal (Dennis Farina and Connie Selleca). He's a self-made billionaire who's involved in insider trading; she's the stewardess who married him. They're both trying to crack the social elite.
-Lil Altemus (Eva Marie Saint). She's a society doyenne, a member of an old-money family and the ultimate social snob.
-Justine Altemus (Teri Polo). She's Lil's daughter, a spoiled rich girl who falls in love with . . .
-Bernard Slatkin (Robert Desiderio). He's a social-climbing television newsman who isn't weighed down by morals. He marries Justine anyway.
-Hubie Altemus (Gary Frank). Lil's son. He's a homosexual who has contracted AIDS.
Hubie and Lil provide the show's most poignant moments. She refuses to acknowledge her son's homosexuality and closes herself off to the inevitability of his death. She won't even listen while Hubie tells her of his illness, then throws the silverware he's been using away.
"There's a universal aspect to `People Like Us,"' said Frank in a telephone interview. "There are qualities these people possess and circumstances they go through that can happen to anyone, whetherthey're in New York or Topeka or Salt Lake City."
"When you're faced with losing a child, it's the same no matter how much money you have. If that's something the audience takes away from this - that we have more in common with each other than we sometimes realize - then I'll be pleased."
Contrary to the promos that NBC has been running, this is not a story of Gus tracking down Lefty to exact his revenge. As a matter of fact, the 30-second advertisements contain more drama and suspense than the four-hour miniseries.
"People" either contains too many characters or is too short, depending on how you look at it. In addition to those already mentioned, there are another eight featured players. And none of the characters has enough time to develop.
One minute, stewardess Ruby is chatting with Elias on a plane. The next, they're married.
Paul Williams plays a character who's apparently supposed to be based on Truman Capote, but it's difficult to tell because his part is so small.
Ruta Lee is a movie star, but she flits in and out of scenes so quickly you're never quite sure what she has to do with anyone else.
Saint is excellent as the cold, unfeeling, snobby Lil. But Gazzara gives new meaning to the word somnambulent. He sleepwalks through the entire four hours.
And the miniseries itself never catches fire. Maybe if they'd cut back on the cast, maybe if they'd given more time for the characters to develop - and it was originally slated for five hours, not four - it might have worked.
But as it is, it doesn't. It's not terrible, but unless you really are interested in how the rich and famous live, it's not worth two nights of viewing.