And what a scrumptious hidden gem this is! Parody meets ridicule, and they’re both wrapped up in layers of spoof propaganda, mystery, and action, sprinkled with some comedy and sharp enough sneers to make Ronald Reagan and Nicolae Ceausescu and Mao Zedong cry somewhere deep in the beyond.

Amazon Studios’ ‘Comrade Detective’ (2017) is the show we never knew we needed in these trying times, as people throw words like ‘socialism’ and ‘communism’ around without fully understanding their meaning and complexity. And considering that it was mainly aimed at an American audience, I’d say creators Brian Gatewood and Alessandro Tanaka do a fine job of delivering not only the definitions but also the extremes of two political tenets that have been warring for decades: Communism and Capitalism.

‘COMRADE DETECTIVE’ (2017), ©ALEXANDRU IONITA/AMAZON STUDIOS

Pretending to be found footage of an ‘80s cop buddy TV series of the Romanian Communist era, ‘Comrade Detective’ has been curated and dubbed to fit more modern times. It also features a few hilarious introductions from Channing Tatum, who is also executive producer, and author Jon Ronson.

With a throng of beloved comedy actors dubbing the Romanian characters involved and accompanied by what I can only describe as the most decadent and cheesiest soundtrack, the show packs a funny but bitter pill to swallow. It makes light of both sides in terms of politics and ideology. The West versus the East wrestle behind the Iron Curtain of ‘80s Bucharest, Romania, where a killer wearing a Reagan mask wreaks havoc through the city and even through the ranks of local police.

‘COMRADE DETECTIVE’ (2017), ©AMAZON STUDIOS

Enter Gregor Anghel, splendidly portrayed by Florin Piersic Jr. and voiced by Channing Tatum, and Iosif Baciu, played by the uber-talented Corneliu Ulici and voiced by Joseph Gordon-Levitt. One is a jaded detective who doesn’t always play by the rules, but he’s eager to avenge the murder of his dear colleague, Nikita Ionescu, at the hands of the Reagan killer. The other is a more empathetic and eager police officer who transferred from the countryside to the big city in order to avenge the murder of his dear childhood friend, Nikita Ionescu, at the hands of the Reagan killer. Their different personalities collide and become homogenized by their deep Communist values and their disdain of Capitalism.

Directed by Rhys Thomas of ‘Saturday Night Live’ fame, the series is a surprisingly tasteful pastiche that sort of claps back at the likes of ‘Red Dawn’ (1984) and ‘Rocky IV’ (1985) which, according to Mr Gatewood, was essentially propaganda in the United States at the height of the Cold War. Mr Tatum went on to remember his own childhood in the ‘80s, where virtually every movie had a Russian villain. With ‘Comrade Detective’, the writers decided to show the world what life would have been like for the ‘other side’, for the dreaded ‘Commies’—in an anything-but-serious fashion whilst also delivering a remarkably poignant message for America and the West, in general.

‘COMRADE DETECTIVE’ (2017), ©AMAZON STUDIOS

From an ideological perspective, both political establishments get skewered in this series. Russian Communism, for its indoctrination and often absurd, bloody extremes despite its otherwise good intentions, and American Capitalism, for its hypocrisy and lack of self-control, for its greed and absence of social justice. In the end, both dogmas are the villains, and their representatives are simply doing the best they can with what they are given, genuinely believing that their path is the righteous one. Though it pretends to portray the real Communist society of Romania from that period, ‘Comrade Detective’ treads gently when it comes to character development. Credit where it’s due, as Gatewood and Tanaka do a surprisingly good job of portraying a world that very few in the West ever got a chance to truly observe.

‘COMRADE DETECTIVE’ (2017), ©AMAZON STUDIOS

Of course, there are plenty of bloopers and minor inaccuracies, but I’ll forgive it all for how the writers treat their characters from beginning to end. There are twists and there are plenty of turns—not to mention questions. The villain is the psychopathic embodiment of American Capitalism, but we also get a reluctant yet helpful hand through Jane, Secretary-turned-Ambassador for the United States in Bucharest.

There is also a plethora of the chucklesome and the chilling along the way, too. While American viewers might find themselves forced to peer into an exaggerated mirror that shows the ugliest side of their culture, Romanian viewers will have a hard time letting go of the bitter taste of nostalgia. Few people miss that decade.

‘COMRADE DETECTIVE’ (2017), ©AMAZON STUDIOS

In terms of performances, Mr Piersic Jr. and Mr Ulici are exquisite loyal Communist cops with smart-ass jabs and multifaceted pasts. Olivia Nita is an intriguing Jane, additionally spiced up by SNL alumna Jenny Slate’s dubbing. And speaking of voice acting, this series managed to put together an impressive cast that includes Jason Mantzoukas, Fred Armisen, Chloë Sevigny, Nick Offerman, Beck Bennett, and Daniel Craig, to name but a few. The Romanian actors are equally stupendous—I was particularly impressed by Diana Vladu’s Sonya Baciu, Iosif’s loving and fiercely Communist wife. A Mexican proverb says that the house does not rest on the ground but rather on the shoulders of a woman—it certainly applies to Sonya.

With a score composed by Joe Kraemer of ‘Jack Reacher’ (2012) fame, ‘Comrade Detective’ aims to immerse its viewers into the gritty atmosphere of an era long gone. Quality-wise, the series is infinitely better than what Romanian studios would’ve been able to produce at the time. Sam Goldie, better known for his work on ‘Green Zone’ (2010) and ‘Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone’ (2001), is the cinematographer in charge of rendering this delightfully fun morsel of lampooned propaganda. Worth noting here that the team behind this project, beginning with the writers and going all the way into the set decoration and costume departments, never aimed to spoof Communism as Americans but rather imagined themselves as the Communist Romanians who “created” it.

‘COMRADE DETECTIVE’ (2017), ©AMAZON STUDIOS

A tip of the hat goes to Dan Toader, production designer, also known for ‘What Happened to Monday’ (2017) and ‘The Sisters Brothers’ (2018). Drawing from reality and his own memories of the Communist period, Mr Toader finds the appropriate design and colour tone to make ‘Comrade Detective’ just a smidge more realistic. I find it easier to believe the story and its anything-but-subtle characters when everything around them reminds me of my own childhood.

But all the talents involved aside, I would like to go back to the idea behind this witty production, which was so simply and eloquently described by Joseph Gordon-Levitt in an article penned for IndieWire. It ‘isn’t only making fun of Eastern Bloc Communism. It takes a few shots at Western Capitalism, but in my opinion, that’s not it, either. There’s a different “ism” that I think it’s really getting at—tribalism.’

And in that sense, he couldn’t be more right. Yes, we can make fun of the silly woollen hats and the preposterous propaganda and the appreciation of televised chess matches as though they were Superbowl Sunday games, and we can make fun of the overweight Americans gorging on hamburgers and the summarily dressed American women who snicker at the ways of these backwards Communist ‘pieces of scum’, but we’d be blind to the bigger picture. Both sides wholeheartedly believe that their culture is the best and that everything else isn’t just wrong. It’s evil.

‘COMRADE DETECTIVE’ (2017), ©AMAZON STUDIOS

It’s enough to take a look around today and see how polarized the world has become. The Left versus the Right. Labour versus Conservatives in the United Kingdom. Democrats versus Republicans in the United States. Naturally, no one really likes the politics of life in this day and age, yet it has all become an integral part of our existence. We forget that what we do and who we are—regardless of our creeds and affiliations—wasn’t always this, and it won’t always be this, either. Policies change. The world itself changes.

And though ‘Comrade Detective’ addresses a society that is no longer there, we can’t help but look at it as a thinly veiled warning. It won’t be the resurgence of Communism or the malignancy of out-of-control Capitalism that will destroy us. It will be the aforementioned tribalism and our growing inability to look beyond our bubbles. In that sense, the series does raise a few queries.

How much of what we believe is actually ‘right’? How wrong are we in our ways, and we didn’t even know it? Given what a complicated year this has been thus far, I say it’s time we consider finding answers to these questions.

During these trying times, I’ve learned to make the most of what the lockdown has had to offer. Catching up with my movie watchlist has been my favourite activity so far. It brought me to Edward Norton’s ‘Motherless Brooklyn’ (2019), the actor’s second directorial foray and the first which he has written, directed, and starred in. It’s been nineteen years since ‘Keep the Faith’ (2000), the romantic dramedy in which he shared the screen with Jenna Elfman and Ben Stiller, and one can easily tell how much Mr Norton has grown as a filmmaker.

‘Motherless Brooklyn’ received a mixed bag (albeit predominantly positive) attention from critics and the awards circuit, including a nod from the Golden Globes for its emotionally exquisite soundtrack penned by Daniel Pemberton, better known for ‘The Man from U.N.C.L.E.’ (2015) and ‘Steve Jobs’ (2015). Edward Norton received a Satellite Award as a film auteur, as did Beth Mickle and Michael Ahern for their production design and art direction. Dick Pope, of ‘The Illusionist’ (2006) and ‘Secrets & Lies’ (1996) fame was also nominated for his stellar cinematography at Camerimage in Poland.

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Based on the eponymous book by Jonathan Lethem, published in 1999, and while retaining the overall style and story elements, ‘Motherless Brooklyn’ takes place in 1950s New York, as it borrows heavily from the Neo-Noir of Hollywood cinema. In his quest to deliver a memorable film, Norton ultimately throws out the book and offers a different flavour, a period oeuvre that reminds us of those immensely addictive dime detective tales while still doused in a powerful political fragrance.

The move to ‘50s New York was made in part to satisfy Norton’s years-old fascination with Robert Moses, the controversial and dangerously powerful city planner. The film was meant to capture ‘the dark, the shadow narrative of how modern New York really got built—the racism that was sort of baked into the city’, the actor-director once said in an interview. Moses Randolph, Alec Baldwin’s villainous character, is based on the city planner. This creative operation further helped define Norton’s Lionel Essrog, the Tourette-affected private eye, as ‘a really terrific vehicle for going deep into the murk of what happened in New York in that time’.

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Lionel refers to himself as ‘spastic’, a term more frequently heard during the ‘50s. Despite his twitchy and complicated condition, he does everything in his power to find out who killed his friend and mentor, Bruce Willis’s Frank Minna, and to protect Gugu Mbatha-Raw’s delightful Laura Rose. Norton’s performance is beyond exceptional, thoughtful, and respectful of a man suffering from Tourette’s. It is also deeply moving, particularly during the bebop jazz scene—the Trumpet Man, portrayed by Michael Kenneth Williams (you might remember him as Omar Little in ‘The Wire’), delivers a series of random beats and abrupt changes in melody that reach a surprisingly tight unison with Lionel’s own fractured yet wonderfully beautiful mind.

If there is one thing that Mr Norton isn’t in short supply of, it’s talent. His performance works on an even more profound level when coupled with Willem Dafoe’s hallucinating rendition of the neurotic Paul Randolph, architect and humiliated brother of Moses.

Helping Lionel along the way—or, in one case, encumbering him in his efforts to bring Frank’s killer to justice, are the ‘Minna boys’, orphans and colleagues of the deceased detective whom he helped and protected and nurtured over the years. Among them, Bobby Cannavale’s Tony Vermonte stands out.

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Story-wise and specifically from a narrative point of view, the characters’ path will seem predictable at times. Parts of ‘Motherless Brooklyn’ have been done before in other detective movies, written in other Ray Chandler-esque novels. Seen this, done that, sure, and it’s rife with red herrings, of which some are more palatable than others, but, in the end, the film’s central message is powerful—an echo for today’s world. In it, power and ambition continue to shape our society, no matter who dies along the way to make someone’s dreams happen.

Unsurprisingly, the novel faced a similar issue. Salon’s Gary Krist even wrote once that ‘”Motherless Brooklyn” has a few problems—including some cartoon-like stock characters and one scene near the end that flirts with maudlin sentimentality—but it works far better than the average hip postmodern novel in terms of sheer emotional impact. Because Lethem never lets the metaphorical and linguistic possibilities of his narrator’s illness overshadow his immensely appealing humanity, we really care about Lionel and his search for his mentor’s killer’. In many ways, the same can be said about Norton’s film.

There are parts about Tony that might rub a discerning viewer the wrong way, especially in the way he makes his suggestions. Moses’s overall demeanour might carry a bit more flair than usual, and perhaps even Paul’s neuroses may be over the top. In the end, it doesn’t matter, because we are so emotionally invested in Lionel’s quest for truth and justice in the muddied heart of the Big Apple that we cannot be bothered to put the entire movie under a microscope. His resolution is too important. He deserves it more than anyone.

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Dick Pope’s illustrious cinematography brings out the true charm of noir flicks with a modern smoothness that is not easy to attain. There are layers of beauty and sensitivity that require discussion. The two-time Oscar nominee has worked with Norton before on ‘The Illusionist’, therefore having already established a fluid professional relationship with the actor-director. In an interview with SHOOT, Mr Pope said that the biggest creative challenge he had to deal with was ‘bringing to the screen and matching the cinematic expectation of the film that Edward had lived with and dreamt about for nearly 20 years’. Fortunately, the cinematographer was given a gorgeous photobook that Norton had compiled to express his singular vision, to begin with.

According to Mr Pope, there was a clearly spoken desire for an artful lushness to be embedded within the image. There, the old cinema patina was required but without suggesting that the image had been in any way treated or altered. ‘Motherless Brooklyn’ is, in many ways, an ode to ‘Chinatown’ (1974), but it also draws inspiration from ‘40s and ‘50s New York photography by Saul Leiter, Vivian Maier and Robert Frank. Norton even came forth with his own collection of photographs to support the cinematographer’s process—among them, stills of the original Penn Railroad Station were a brilliant source of inspiration for how the movie’s lighting functioned.

As far as the palette and composition are concerned, the desired effect was accomplished. The cinematography of ‘Motherless Brooklyn’ is one of its strongest points, capturing our focus with its powerful shades of yellow and red, its abundance of shadows and darkness, its plays of reflections and negative spaces, and the way in which Lionel’s loneliness and isolation are significantly amplified through camera movement.

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The look and feel of ‘Motherless Brooklyn’ were accomplished with production designer Beth Mickle’s unwavering support and a plethora of inspiration from Robert Caro’s ‘The Power Broker’, a popular biography of Robert Moses. Ms Mickle had her work cut out for her, of course, considering the abundance of period pieces required for the sets.

In one interview, she talked about the initial creative process. Pinterest and Google are key sources of visuals in this day and age, but she still had to do some old-fashioned research along the way. ‘We used to have to go [to] the image library of New York, and we still do a bit of that. But that’s the first step, collecting all the imagery and getting a better sense of the architecture, signage, and graphics. Looking at what kind of vehicles populated the streets. That’s general period research.’

While some of New York’s legendary landmarks remain the same—see the Chrysler Building or the Empire State Building or the Brooklyn Bridge, for example – it is a city that consumes itself and goes through radical changes almost every year. For most New Yorkers, it’s a point of gratification. For Ms Mickle, it’s a point of in-depth analysis. And since Lionel’s journey takes us through the entire city, offering even a breath-taking car chase across Harlem, New York had plenty to offer. The production design and Michael Ahern’s award-winning art direction only took what was already there and brought it back into the ‘50s with minute re-façade techniques.

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Gorgeously rich in sharp, fast-paced dialogue and jazz melodies that are typical of the Neo-Noir style on the silver screen, ‘Motherless Brooklyn’ features music by the revered Wynton Marsalis and a group of veteran jazz musicians such as Joe Farnsworth. Since part of the story takes place in a north Harlem jazz club, Norton has concentrated a substantial amount of effort into creating a genuine and realistic atmosphere of that era, which is why one scene even gives us a dizzying performance of ‘Blues Walk’, originally recorded by Clifford Brown and Max Roach and ‘a staple of that hard-bop era’.

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The film ultimately and successfully transports the viewers into ‘50s New York. Its depiction of Lionel forces them to root for him, to ride out the twitches and the moments of utter loneliness before the sun rises again and sheds light on the ugly truth that dwells in the foundation of one of the world’s most famous cities.

‘Motherless Brooklyn’ has been a long time in the making, its screenplay finished in 2012 and with seven more years of pitching and tweaking to follow before gaining the support of eminent producers like Gigi Pritzker of ‘Drive’ (2011) and Sue Kroll of ‘A Star Is Born’ (2018). A long time in the making, yes, but certainly worth the effort.

Let’s face it. From the moment Stephen King started writing, the world has never been the same. A master of blending suspense and horror with the supernatural in terrifyingly realistic ways, Mr King has given us at least 97 books up to date. It doesn’t look like he’s stopping any time soon, either—not that we mind.

His numerous bestsellers have become movie and TV rights darlings. Production studios continue to wrestle each other for a chance to put his stories onto the screen. Most of Mr King’s books have been adapted in one form or another: feature films (classics such as ‘The Shining’ of 1980 or ‘Carrie’ of 1976, as well as more modern takes like ‘It’ and ‘It: Chapter Two’ of 2017 and 2019, respectively); TV series (see Audience’s ‘Mr Mercedes’ featuring Brendan Gleeson and Harry Treadaway, or Hulu’s Stephen King-inspired ‘Castle Rock’ with Bill Skarsgård and Lizzy Caplan); and plenty of mini-series (remember the original ‘It’ of 1990, ‘Rose Red’, or ‘The Dead Zone’?).

BILL SKARSGÅRD AS PENNYWISE IN ‘IT’ (2017), ©NEW LINE CINEMA

He has written so much and so well that it’s a task and a pleasure to keep up. Not all of his book adaptations have been stellar, however. ‘The Mist’ (2017) was an absolute flop, while the earlier film from 10 years earlier, directed by King-aficionado Frank Darabont did noticeably better. The original ‘Pet Sematary’ of 1989 became a cult classic, but the remake of 2019 left much to be desired. ‘The Tommyknockers’ (1993) was dismal, yet John Carpenter’s take on ‘Christine’ (1983) brought the horror genre to a whole new level. Despite the risk of utter failure, the remakes and adaptations of Mr Kind’s source material keep coming. ‘The Stand’ (1994) was a moderate success for its time, starring Gary Sinise, Rob Lowe, and Molly Ringwald. It, too, is getting a remake this year, via CBS and featuring James Marsden, Jovan Adepo, and Whoopi Goldberg. We’ll see how that one turns out. The point is, Stephen King is a master storyteller, but his books are not always the easiest to transform for the screen. It’s a hit-and-miss game with his tales of the dreadful and the unbelievable.

‘THE OUTSIDER’ (2020), ©HOME BOX OFFICE/HBO

Enter ‘The Outsider’ (2020), HBO’s first foray into his world. Plenty of networks and hordes of more than capable producers have taken on his works, though few were able to reach the level of this most recent Stephen King adaptation. Based on the eponymous book published in 2018, ‘The Outsider’ follows a seasoned cop and a peculiar investigator as they try to make sense of a seemingly straightforward murder investigation that turns out to be anything but.

From the very first episode, we’re confronted with a difficult premise: how can someone be in two places at once?

Created by Oscar-nominated Richard Price of ‘The Wire’ (2003-2009) and ‘The Deuce’ (2017-2019) fame, ‘The Outsider’ offers a supernatural answer to the above question. The best part? It is so well put together, that we actually believe the unbelievable.

BEN MENDELSOHN AND CYNTHIA ERIVO IN ‘THE OUTSIDER’ (2020), ©HOME BOX OFFICE/HBO

The series is written by Mr Price and Mr King, with three directors at its helm: Andrew Bernstein, better known for ‘The West Wing’ (2000-2006), ‘Tom Clancy’s Jack Ryan’ (2019), and ‘Ozark’ (2017-2018); Charlotte Brändström, of ‘The Witcher’ (2019) and ‘Counterpart’ (2019); and Jason Bateman, actor and director most famous for his work on ‘Arrested Development’ (2003-2019), ‘Bad Words’ (2013), and ‘Juno’ (2007). HBO has put together a truly exceptional team for this project, and it shows right off the bat.

As soon as episode 1, aptly titled ‘Fish in a Barrel’ opens up, we’re vehemently absorbed into the story. Terry Maitland of Flint City, Oklahoma—all-around good guy/dad/baseball coach for the local boys’ team, is arrested for the horrific murder of little Frankie Peterson. The evidence and a slew of credible witnesses are against him, while he insists on his innocence. His reputation is obliterated, his family torn apart, and then compelling proof and witnesses putting him miles away from Flint City at the time of the murder emerge. The mystery is set. How could Terry Maitland have raped, murdered and mutilated an innocent kid, when he was all the way in Cap City at a teacher’s conference? By the end of this episode, we’re left baffled, asking the same question, over and over. How is this possible? How is there solid and indisputable evidence and testimony both incriminating and clearing of Terry Maitland?

JASON BATEMAN IN ‘THE OUTSIDER’ (2020), ©HOME BOX OFFICE/HBO

This brings back one of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s most memorable quotes: ‘Once you eliminate the impossible, whatever remains, no matter how improbable, must be the truth.’ It would be safe to assume that ‘The Outsider’ boldly spins the impossible and twists it into the truth. 

The HBO series is, at its core, a gruesome crime drama. The classic jump-style horror is swapped for a mood of pure dread. The characters are shaken out of their regular lives, their rhythms disrupted by this terrible murder—everyone is involved in it and in its aftermath, one way or another, and the series does an exquisite job of following them all.

JULIANNE NICHOLSON IN ‘THE OUTSIDER’ (2020), ©HOME BOX OFFICE/HBO

In an elegant set of parallels, Terry, superbly played by Jason Bateman, struggles to prove his innocence, while his wife, Glory, portrayed by Julianne Nicholson, juggles a suddenly chaotic existence—her husband in jail, her daughters scared and confused, and the whole town scowling in their general direction for the awful crime that Terry is blamed for. At the same time, Detective Ralph Anderson, brilliantly brought to life by Ben Mendelsohn (Danny Rayburn in Netflix’s ‘Bloodline’, Talos in ‘Captain Marvel’, and King George VI in ‘Darkest Hour’), tries to make sense of what was supposed to be a dead-to-rights arrest. His main suspect appears guilty and innocent at the same time. Meanwhile, the Petersons are falling apart in their grief, one by one, until none are left standing.

The writers do a stellar job of infusing fear and realism into what is basically a heart-breaking tragedy, neatly wrapped up in layers of the supernatural. When talking about ‘The Outsider’, Stephen King said: ‘I write stories that are supposed to be fun and scary and make readers believe the unbelievable.’ That can be easily observed throughout the series’ first few episodes. By the time we meet Cynthia Erivo’s Holly Gibney, that’s it. We’re hooked. Terry Maitland had to be innocent. Something else happened. We have to know the truth. Take us to the truth, Mr King, no matter how weird and unexplainable it is!

YUL VASQUEZ ‘THE OUTDSIDER’ (2020), ©HOME BOX OFFICE/HBO

In terms of performance, each of the actors manage to stand out, breathing life into their characters like few other thespians can. Jason Bateman completely sells us this baffled version of Terry Maitland, a guy whose worse crime was that cowboy-style belt buckle. Glory Maitland is absolutely fierce, the lioness who must protect her cubs at all costs, as they’re now living in a town that has basically turned on them. 

Yul Vasquez of ‘Russian Doll’ (2019), ‘I Am the Night’ (2019), and ‘Captain Phillips’ (2013) as Yunis Sablo of the GBI brings a certain flavour of his own—the moderate bridge between Detective Anderson’s empiricism and Holly Gibney’s strangeness. A favourite scene so far is when these three characters meet in the diner to discuss a partnership aimed at finding Frankie Peterson’s real killer. ‘I have no tolerance for the unexplainable,’ Ralph tells Holly. ‘Well then, sir, you have no tolerance for me,” says Holly before she goes on to briefly but eloquently explain why she is different and definitely the right person to investigate the glaring mystery behind the kid’s murder.

BEN MENDELSOHN IN ‘THE OUTSIDER’ (2020), ©HOME BOX OFFICE/HBO

Referring to Ben Mendelsohn’s character, Stephen King said: ‘I had the idea of writing about a guy who was in two places at once, and what really turned my dial, […] I thought to myself, I’d like to have a protagonist here who has skin in the game.’ 

And Ralph Anderson certainly has that. He’s a father who lost a child of his own to cancer—coincidentally, Derek was also part of Terry Maitland’s baseball team, just like the Peterson boy. If anyone has what it takes to make this truly personal, it’s this weathered detective. But as we begin to peel away at the inconsistencies, we begin to understand that nothing is what it seems. 

Where storytelling is concerned, ‘The Outsider’ has not only succeeded in bringing Mr King’s tale to life, it has exceeded all expectations and elevated the standard once more for the crime and horror genres worldwide. An ample degree of insight and finesse are required for a writer to be able to show us how a person copes with the unbelievable, when nothing else explains what is right there, in front of his eyes.

‘THE OUTSIDER’ (2020), ©HOME BOX OFFICE/HBO

Of course, ‘The Outsider’ would be nowhere near as effective without its prolific cinematography. Kevin McKnight, Zak Mulligan and Rasmus Heise were brought on to help Mr King’s vision reach its full potential. Worth noting here are the image compositions, not only where the characters are involved in terms of on-camera position, but also where lighting and the establishing shots are concerned. There is a certain intensity that comes into each frame, as well as a nagging feeling that something worse has yet to happen. In an interview with IMDb, Stephen King said that he learned his ‘chops’ from some of the writers behind ‘The Twilight Zone’ (1959-1964), a fact which becomes obvious once you read one or more of his books. The cinematographers thus had the task of setting that mood across the board, inviting viewers to accept the fantastic in order to justify the horror that has befallen Flint City. 

Art directors Jason Perrine and Justin O’Neal Miller do a marvelous job of enhancing the story through its set designs and impressive detail work. One particularly memorable scene is when Yunis Sablo enters the barn to investigate the bloodied clothes. The ensemble of cobwebs and old wood against the forensic spotlight leaves an impression onto the viewer’s mind, further following the show’s overall visual patterns. Aiding in the rendering of this frightening realism, the editing team, comprised of Tad Dennis, Leo Trombetta, Dorian Harris, and Daniel James Scott, proceed with great care as they weave the scenes together, delivering a smooth selection of haunting and petrifying moments. Frank Peterson’s suicide scene continues to haunt us, even now.

‘THE OUTSIDER’ (2020), ©HOME BOX OFFICE/HBO

In case you’re wondering why we’re going to such lengths to applaud each and every member of this production and post-production team, it’s because they all had a part to play in making ‘The Outsider’ a tour-de-force of modern television. 

They deserve a standing ovation, for it is truly rare and surprising for an adaptation to surpass the book’s original craft. It takes talent and visionaries behind and in front of the camera. 

Fortunately, when HBO gambled on this series, they understood its potential and assembled the right team to take on the project. Not only is ‘The Outsider’ loyal to its source material, it goes that extra mile of adding more, of seamlessly reproducing and magnifying that Stephen King vibe which is so difficult to attain.

Over the past ten years or so, there has been a resurgence of crime and mystery dramas. Specifically, of European crime and mystery dramas. With streaming services constantly shelling out new content, it’s no wonder that a significant chunk of their budget goes into TV series of this darker genre. The viewers love it, too. 

‘The Killing’ (2007), otherwise known by its original title, ‘Forbrydelsen’, was a massive hit on the international market, earning a BAFTA award in the process. It even led to a Netflix remake that was surprisingly almost just as good, featuring the brilliant Mireille Enos and Joel Kinnaman.

With highly rated productions such as ‘Bordertown’ (2016), ‘Deadwind’ (2018), ‘The Chalet’ (2017), ‘La Mante’ (2017), and ‘The Forest’ (2017), among many others, it’s clear that European creators and viewers have a preference for the thrill of a murder enigma. We are unrepented suckers for a good mystery—the disappearance of an innocent girl; a body washed up on the shore of a small town somewhere in the cold countryside of Finland; a police detective with a dirty secret; broken families; and plenty of red herrings to keep us distracted for weeks on end.

Most of these shows follow a well-established formula. The pacing is slow, and great care is given to the characters, both main and secondary. Each of the story’s participants are three-dimensional and as close to real humans as they will ever get. We understand addiction, misery, anguish, loneliness, frustration, and depression. And we all want to get to the truth, one way or another. 

The journey isn’t easy. We must peel away at the layers. Perhaps the girl that went missing isn’t all that innocent herself. Or there’s a greater conspiracy at play, with the victims getting tangled into these webs of nefarious origin. Either way, by the end of the first season, we’re all feeling cold, our hearts pumping as the story picks up its pace and dives into a head-spinning finale. The killer is revealed. The motive is often shocking. Unpleasant realities come forth. Hearts are broken. Relationships are shattered. But we are all the wiser and justice was delivered. The mystery was unravelled… and then we move on to another series, because we quickly need another fix.

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This is where ‘Black Spot’ (2017) stands out from the rest of its predominantly Scandinavian and French counterparts. It follows a familiar pattern, but it boldly steps outside the conventions for its hybrid genre. It’s relatively slow paced, and it involves a missing girl, yes. However, it also brings in some supernatural elements that others might have trouble weaving into such a story. It’s dark and moody, with plenty of gloriously wooded establishing shots, as well as intimate close-ups and brutally honest views of the people whose lives it’s documenting.

Streaming platforms like Netflix operate in bulk these days. Out of ten series they produce and distribute, three might be decent. Out of the three, one will be exceptional and often highly anticipated before it is even released—as was the case with ‘Altered Carbon’ (2018), ‘The Crown’ (2016), or ‘House of Cards’ (2013). 

Unlike the aforementioned giants, ‘Black Spot’, produced by France Télévisions and Ego Productions, sort of… slipped through. It was a hidden gem of sorts, but once it caught its viewers’ attention, there was no turning back. The show just works on so many levels, it has become a crown jewel of Netflix, a French/Belgian Koh-i-Noor whose third season we’re all breathlessly awaiting.

Created by Mathieu Missoffe of ‘Criminal: France’ (2019) and ‘Profilage’ (2009), ‘Black Spot’ follows an uncanny blend of characters who join forces more or less willingly in order to solve strange murders in a small and isolated French town. Villefranche sits on the edge of a mysterious forest in an area known as a ‘zone blanche’ (also the show’s French title), which means the cell phone reception is particularly poor in these parts.

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The town’s sheriff, Laurène Weiss, was once the victim of a crime herself, now dealing with a piling of bodies and disappearances—some of which are startlingly connected to her own harrowing experience. The incoming inspector, Franck Siriani, is a quirky fellow with a sturdy share of phobias and unresolved issues, desperate to solve these crimes so he can earn his way back into the big city from where he was banished. The sheriff’s deputy, Nounours, is a cuddly bear-type gay man who ends up falling for a possible suspect in another murder. The mayor, Bertrand Steiner, whose daughter, Marion, has been missing for a year, is torn between his corrupt father, his frustrated wife, and his affair with the sheriff Weiss. Clearly, there’s a lot to unpack here, and we’re only four characters in.

Suliane Brahim does a stellar interpretation of sheriff Weiss, a single mother still struggling with memories of her abduction and near-death experience at the hands of a forest creature of sorts—every day is an effort to keep reality and nightmares apart from each other, in a bid to retain her sanity while she tries to bring justice to the victims of a recent surge in violent murder. ‘Black Spot’ is the much-awaited breakthrough an actress of her calibre and potential needed, and we can certainly see why she shines so brightly.

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Sheriff Weiss is a tormented woman who loses sleep over the dead bodies that keep popping up in Villefranche. Her daughter, Cora, is the typical difficult teenager with an extra emotional baggage of being Marion’s best friend and eager to find out what happened to her—by whatever means possible, even if it gets her involved with a group of extremist environmental activists hell-bent on ruining the Steiners’ toxic business ventures.

Bertrand Steiner wants to be a good mayor to his constituents, but his father’s immoral practices, lack of ethics, and army of goons persist as a stain on his record. He wants to be a good husband to his grieving wife, as well, but his feelings for sheriff Weiss keep bringing him back to her bed. When his daughter’s body is finally found, Bertrand loses control and begins a slightly predictable downward spiralling trajectory—at the end of which he’ll be forced to make a choice: pull the trigger or retain his humanity.

Franck Siriani is an interesting addition, a bright yellow on a palette of darker blues and greens. He stands out, despite his polite demeanour. His fear of germs borders on the ridicule. His desire to restore his record, however, reaches into the realms of the obsessive. Inspector Siriani wants to do the right thing, too, and that means solving the many murders that have been plaguing Villefranche. But he also wants to take down the biggest beast of all—the Steiners, whom he sees as his ticket back to civilization and an area with good cell reception.

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Walking through Villefranche for the first season alone, we’ll come across many interesting characters. Some are terrible and depraved, harbouring dark secrets and murderous intentions. Others are nice and well-meaning, with routines they deeply care for and families they work hard to support. A few are cynical, perhaps even a little jaded. A handful seem to know a lot more about this place and its history than they let on. Put together, however, they’re woven into a fascinating canvas—a town that has been around since the Roman soldiers were trying to conquer the Celtic Gauls, a town that tries to modernize but cannot fully abandon its occult past.

You see, what really sets ‘Black Spot’ apart is the fabled existence of Cernunnos, the Horned One, a deity once worshipped by the Gauls. While very little is known about him due to the absence of written Gaulish literature, Cernunnos is thought to have been a god of animals and nature. In ‘Black Spot’, he first emerges as a silhouette, a faint idea, the origin of sheriff Weiss’s nightmares.

As the story progresses, as murders are solved and as we’re brought closer to the grim truth behind Marion Steiner’s disappearance, Cernunnos’s role becomes clearer as sheriff Weiss’s possible abductor, definite stalker, and eventual saviour. This modern-day godlike creature is also a killer and the origin point of an old coming-of-age ritual that got sheriff Weiss kidnapped as a teenager, in the first place. He’s no longer just a legend. Cernunnos becomes a twisted, unpalatable reality, and our crime-solving heroes are gradually forced to accept his influence, while also trying to explain it in a way that makes sense.

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It’s not easy to blend a supernatural element into a drama that is partially based on the police procedural. It’s not easy to make it verisimilar enough for the viewer not to scoff and switch to another series. And it’s certainly not easy to gradually bring it from the bottom layers of the overarching stories all the way to the top, by the time the first season is over. This achievement is indisputable as we open with sheriff Weiss’s apparent resurrection in the second season. Our minds are blown, and we cannot look away.

We want to learn more about Cernunnos, about the role he plays in Villefranche’s mythology. Who else knows about him? Who else has crossed paths with this mysterious creature? Who else survived the encounter? Who has the answers we need to make sense of all this? Season two mercilessly teases, shocking with some of its answers, but it doesn’t let go. Its hold is strong.

It is truly a wonderful thing to witness—a show’s ability to grip its viewers so tightly, that they’re left on the edge of their seats, counting the days until the next season. For this alone, I’m pleased to give ‘Black Spot’ all the praise it deserves.

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Of course, the production would be nothing without its splendid cinematography. Christophe Nuyens, best known for his work on ‘Riviera’ (2017), ‘Versailles’ (2018), and ‘A Discovery of Witches’ (2018), brings his skill to new levels in eight episodes of ‘Black Spot’. It even earned him a Jury Award from Camerimage and the Best Cinematography Award from the Luchon International Film Festival. Brecht Goyvaerts of ‘De Dag’ (2018) fame handles another eight episodes with a steady, in-depth view of Villefranche and its secrets. Bruno Degrave and Matias Boucard complete the team with four and three episodes, respectively. 

From ‘Au Service de la France’ (2015), production designer Eddy Penot and art director Laurent Khalife manage to create a Villefranche so real, we feel the shivers down our spines with every panoramic view of the forest and every close-up of its streets. The look and feel of ‘Black Spot’ are exactly the way it’s meant to be: dark, gritty, unapologetically real, with a whiff of supernatural which we are compelled to follow, even after the show’s writers try to drag us back to reality.

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Among the non-English speaking shows currently streaming on Netflix, ‘Black Spot’ takes a serious lead. Its weird factor is cranked up to a healthy eleven, well above ‘Osmosis’ (2019) or ‘Parfum’ (2018), taking it away from the strictly procedural or definitively dramatic creations of Scandinavian origins mentioned earlier. Stuffed with secrets, murder, whodunits and an apparently immortal horned god who makes a habit of starving and gutting his victims, one might have a hard time finding a reason not to like ‘Black Spot’. Especially when it turns out the supernatural isn’t all that… supernatural, per se.

Going back to the original premise of how Netflix absolutely nailed it with this show, the answer lies in the abundance of twists and turns, and in how we are all virtually played with right until the conclusion of the second season, where we learn that nothing is what it seems. Not even Cernunnos.

There is more mystery awaiting. More to the origin story. More connections to follow. And, of course, there are also more questions, which will hopefully be answered with the upcoming third season. At this point, one can only expect more of that dark and weird fun that Mathieu Missoffe is so obviously good at.

They say the best stories are true, and that stands surprisingly true in ‘The Old Man and the Gun’ (2019), by David Lowery. Based on David Grann‘s article of the same title from The New Yorker–which later made it into his second non-fiction book, ‘The Devil and Sherlock Holmes’, the movie tells the real life story of Forrest Tucker, charming old man and bank robber extraordinaire.

Written and directed by Lowery, ‘The Old Man and the Gun’ is an homage to both 1970s cinema and Robert Redford, who bows out gracefully in this last acting role at the age of 82, and with a titanic list of cinematic accomplishments. Among them are, naturally, an Academy Award for Best Director thanks to ‘Ordinary People’ (1980), a Lifetime Achievement Academy Award, and a BAFTA Award for Best Actor in a Leading Role, in ‘Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid’ (1969).

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Filmed across the United States–mainly in Ohio and Texas, the film earned a series of glowing reviews, including a 93% score from Rotten Tomatoes, along with a Golden Globe nomination for Robert Redford’s performance. Its festival circuit reception was bright, as well, gathering nominations at the Cork International Film Festival, Dublin Film Critics Circle Awards, and the London Film Festival for directing, cinematography, and Best Film, respectively.

The story follows Forrest Tucker in the sunset of his life, working with his long-time crew of talented and resourceful criminal friends, as he continues to make the best use of his good looks, dapper sense of style, courteous approach and downright devilish charm to rob banks. He is, in fact, so good at what he does, that he doesn’t even use a gun–though he always brings it with him. It only serves the purpose of making a statement, at best. By the time he’s done, the bank managers and tellers only remember how nice he was, as they handed him thousands of dollars in cash.

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Robert Redford plays Forrest Tucker by bringing in his signature flashing smiles and twinkling eyes, much in the way he played throughout the ’60s and ’70s, and we can’t help but love him for it. His character is tested when he crosses paths with John Hunt, played by Casey Affleck, the policeman who identified Tucker’s robbery patterns in the first place, and when he falls for Jewel, brilliantly portrayed by Sissy Spacek. Jewel loves Tucker, even though she knows exactly what he does for a living.

Danny Glover steps in as Teddy Green, and Tom Waits is John Waller, Tucker’s partners in crime. Green was an escape artist who met Tucker during his 1950s stint in Alcatraz, while Waller was Tucker’s escape mate when they fled San Quentin back in 1979. Thanks to Hunt’s detective work, they eventually became known as the Over-the-Hill Gang.

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All in all, the cast is beyond illustrious, with four Academy Award winners–Robert Redford, Keith Carradine, Sissy Spacek, and Casey Affleck, plus one nominee, Tom Waits. 

The story takes us to 1981, and its entire production is a combination of classic cinematography methods combined with modern technology, which not only accomplishes a faithful rendition of that time, it also takes us deep into its folds.

Much like Affleck’s character, we, too, find ourselves impressed by Tucker’s ability to elude the law and get bank staff to basically give him the money without a single objection. Of course, only part of that is owed to the true story of Forrest Tucker. The rest is all Robert Redford’s superior acting. Even in the twilight of his career, Redford stands out, capable of becoming a man who fascinated the world and gathered flashy headlines in the media for years.

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What is most loved about Redford’s portrait of Forrest Tucker is the way in which he brings out the old robber’s philosophy–you see, Tucker didn’t rob banks to make a living. He did it because it made him feel alive. It was his way of experiencing life to its fullest, a constant cycle of stealing and doing time and escaping from high security prisons, simply because he could. Much like Redford, Tucker’s career also spanned decades.

Sissy Spacek’s Jewel captures our hearts as much as it does Tucker’s. Her onscreen chemistry with Redford is simply undeniable, and we cannot help but root for these two as a couple. Despite Tucker’s criminal endeavours, we wish for their happy ending. To some level, even Hunt has a slight hesitation when it comes to capturing him–a man like Forrest Tucker is such a unique character to come across.

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However, it isn’t just the performances that stand out here. Along with the film score, composed by Daniel Hart, Joe Anderson’s cinematography is a masterpiece of camera movements and montages that are each worth their own round of applause. Worth noting is the fact that Daniel Lowery tends to work with the same industry talents on most of his projects so far–likely because their collaborations have been successful on a professional level, and that he trusts them. For instance, Hart also composed the scores for ‘Pete’s Dragon’ (2016) and ‘A Ghost Story’ (2017), while Anderson did the cinematography for ‘Ain’t Them Bodies Saints’ (2013), where Lowery also worked with Casey Affleck. Naturally, ‘The Old Man and the Gun’ was bound by synergy from pre-production.

The cinematography is stupendous, to say the least, as Lowery and Anderson managed to shoot a film with plenty of car chases, crashes and stunts, and made it look and feel authentic, even though they only had an independent film budget to work with. Anderson’s expertise and Lowery’s experience came together to complete one another, delivering a true work of audiovisual distinction.

‘The Old Man and the Gun’ was filmed on Super 16mm film, a challenge to which Anderson rose proficiently. Combined with a series of superb montages and long panoramic shots, the movie was enhanced by the older, classic look with a grainy feel and exquisite colorization by Alex Bickel, best known for his work on ‘Moonlight’ (2018).

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Zoom shots were key, included by Lowery early on into the script, and seamlessly executed by Anderson. Both knew they would be the best and most heartfelt manner of bringing back the stately charm of ’70s cinema, to which Robert Redford is anything but a stranger. 

Loved by viewers and critics alike, the montages play a crucial part in understanding Redford’s character. A gargantuan amount of work and detailed planning went into them, especially considering the medium they filmed in–Super 18 requires great care and attention, as well as a hefty amount of additional editing in post-production. 

The crown jewel of ‘The Old Man and the Gun’ was definitely the last montage, a masterpiece comprising mostly from scenes where Redford’s character is shot from the back or a partial side, forcing us to imagine a younger Redford without actually seeing him clearly. However, there is one sequence where we do see him, and it was borrowed from one of his older films–specifically, Arthur Penn’s ‘The Chase’ (1966), a classic to this day. This assortment of flashbacks tells us about Forrest Tucker through his numerous escapes from prison, that he is relentless in his quest for freedom to do and live as he pleases.

Moving on from the beautiful cinematography, it is worth giving David Lowery an appreciative nod for the references to Redford’s younger days, including the opening credits which so aptly remind us of ‘Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid’ (1969). Such ‘Easter eggs’ were absolutely wonderful additions to what is Redford’s last performance and a sweet farewell that stays true to the onscreen persona he has bewitched us with for so many years.

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‘The Old Man and the Gun’ is, by all intents and purposes, the masterful adieu that both Robert Redford and Forrest Tucker deserved. A legend plays a legend in this ‘dramedy’ that weaves threads of the past into the present to depict a single man’s ambition to live his life to the fullest, criminal record be damned.

It will not come as a surprise, then, to learn that Redford was the one who approached Lowery about adapting David Grann’s New Yorker article, though it did take quite a few drafts to create the kind of Forrest Tucker that Tucker himself would’ve wanted to see. The actor then had to step into the man’s shoes, to the collective elation of many.

Despite its independent budget and its modest opening weekend of just $142,000 in a limited release, ‘The Old Man and the Gun’ reached a gross $16 million worldwide budget. It couldn’t have been an easy feat, and it’s reasonable to assume that Redford’s name played a principal role in the marketing strategy, but the success is also attributed to David Lowery’s writing and directing. He is one of the best filmmakers of today, with a wide range of interests and a tendency to make liberal use of multiple media styles to tell stories.

His is a promising talent, and we hope to see more of him soon. Given his current track record, Lowery stands to leave quite the imprint on the world of cinema. There wasn’t a better director for Robert Redford to work with for his last performance, and ‘The Old Man and the Gun’ proves it.