Thu, July 31, 2008
LOS ANGELES - In Pamela Anderson's new reality show "Pam: Girl on the Loose," each episode has a name, such as "The Uncensored Confessions of a Trailer Camp Tramp" and "Crazy Bitch."
Truth is, if Anderson is crazy, it's like a fox. And her eight-episode show, which premieres Sunday on E!, is about as uncensored as Pravda during the height of the Cold War.
As an executive producer on this project, Anderson has final say over what gets in. It is soon obvious that she uses that power wisely. "Girl on the Loose" knows where it's going at all times as it carefully crafts an image of Anderson as an appreciative and approachable sex symbol, a doting mother, a tireless crusader for animals and a celebrity who's just as down to earth as you and me, by gum.
That she is able to accomplish all this even as she builds a Malibu mansion is testimony to her astute understanding of her public persona and how to burnish it to maximum effect.
That starts with the look of the series, which is on film. Grainy film, at that. The E! press release says Anderson wants the show to have a "'60s-esque artistic flare of a feature documentary." You can believe that if you like. Or maybe, at age 41, Anderson understands that the razor-sharp lens of an HD camera is no longer her best friend.
In the premiere, we meet Anderson's older brother, mother, driver, photographer and architect. Most offer testimonials to Anderson's finer and less obvious qualities.
To her everlasting credit, we do not meet Anderson's two boys. Fellow E! reality subject Denise Richards might not realize how irresponsible it is to exploit children to boost Mom's career, but Anderson is not so clueless.
The series has a generous amount of seminude and scantily clad shots and story lines that rarely last a few minutes. Meanwhile, Anderson uses a telestrator to caption each and every scene with pink lipstick. Is she really a "crazy bitch?" Sure, and Bill Gates is a tinkerer with no business sense.
(Agencies)
