Actuakers
One of my all time favorites.
CommentsXp
Best movie ever!
TheLittleSongbird
As a fan of detective/crime dramas, 'Above Suspicion' is, and never will be, one of my favourites, and it is a show that will divide viewers. For me, it falls into the reasonably decent but not great camp, after being riveted by 'Prime Suspect' and finding several impressive things with 'Trial and Retribution' there was the air of disappointment.Considering the mixed reviews it could have been worse. There are problems sure, the script gets the job done competently and is reasonably tight but with not much spark or fire, only really coming alive from the climactic interrogation scene onwards. The cliché-ridden characters are not yet very interesting and little is done with them, both main characters being stereotypically one-dimensional.The flashbacks have a tendency to be clumsily inserted, the sound can be sloppy and out of synch, the relationship between the two main characters is coming across as a bit contrived and makes Langton almost too much like a sleaze and some of the shock value is unnecessarily gratuitous (not quite as bad as "Red Dahlia" though). Lastly, Kelly Reilly is not doing much for me yet, pretty if implausibly young-looking but limited in expression and pallid in presence.For all the flaws that have been listed, there are things that are done well. The series looks great, the split screen is something that will and has divided viewers but was done interestingly and cleverly here to this reviewer, and the gritty but never overly-drab look is a good fit. The story at least didn't make me look at my watch or want to do something else, and there was some atmosphere (admittedly however there is an over-familiarity and there is a lack of suspense, which doesn't make 'Above Suspicion' as constantly gripping as it should). Despite his material not giving him much variety and such, Ciaron Hinds commands the screen very strongly.However there are two excellent assets. Much has been said about Jason Durr, and this reviewer can only echo the near-unanimous raving over Durr's chillingly creepy performance, especially in the interrogation scene. As for the interrogation scene, that was the other highlight, nail-bitingly intense and effectively harrowing it is by far the best individual scene of 'Above Suspicion's' entire run.All in all, reasonably decent but not particularly great. 5/10 Bethany Cox
blanche-2
Laura LaPlante has written many excellent scripts for British television, notably Prime Suspect and one of my favorites, the 1992 version of "Framed." Here she gives us "Above Suspicion," starring Kelly Reilly and Ciaran Hinds. The story arcs are done in a series of episodes -- the first story, about a serial killer, guest-starred Jason Durr in a fantastic performance, and the second story concerned someone who was copying the Black Dahlia murders. It was so interesting to me that the British detectives had never heard of the Black Dahlia, which in America is a famous case.These episodes are pretty graphic. Kelly Reilly, as a woman in a man's world has a lethargic way about her, giving the impression that she can't do her job. I think this is an acting choice. - quiet, obedient, but resourceful and smart. It's not a particularly well-written role. Reilly is gorgeous, with striking coloring and a beautiful figure, and very intense eyes that seem to bore into the various characters. The script seems to depend a lot on the camera work, with her in closeup. The role definitely could be stronger.Ciaran Hinds plays the somewhat unpleasant boss. He does a good job, almost too good because I really don't care for him.Good enough that I would watch another episode if one came out on Netflix.
Bob Lambert
Can I start by saying that, with a few changes, this would have got 7 or 8 stars. However.....Why didn't they simply ram the plane at the end. It wasn't moving, their car was doing at least 40mph, there's no way the plane would have got away - single engine light aircraft on grass just can't accelerate that quickly. It didn't need to be a spectacular fireball, just a tap to break the undercarriage. What persuaded the scriptwriters to make Travis refuse to do it - it made absolutely no sense. Similarly, why didn't Langton simply jump in the driver's seat of the car and chase the plane himself. Just ludicrous. Then, having let the plane take off, why didn't they get on to air traffic control and have the plane tracked? Its range would be around 400 miles maximum, forcing it to land in Europe i.e. somewhere it could easily be tracked and caught when it landed.Why didn't Travis remember the photo of the aeroplane, and do something about it - it's such an obvious way for a drug dealer to move around? Why did they believe the sister - a known liar - when she sent them on the wild goose chase to the railway station? Why didn't they call the airfield, or the police station nearest the airfield, once they realised they'd been had? Why hadn't they checked the sister's husband's background to find out who he was? Why did they believe an FBI man with an English accent? Why did they let him into the incident room, instead of showing him to an external meeting room? Why did the forensic scientist not call his facial recognition results though to the incident room instead of walking across to reveal the results? Why did the satnav have a route down the unmade track through the wood to the hidden farmhouse? I could go on......So, a reasonable plot idea, but turned into a poor excuse for a police thriller through complete lack of thought by the scriptwriters. Add the terrible stock characters with little or no character development, and you understand why it's only 1/10.
jc-osms
I do like a good TV thriller - "Wire In The Blood", James Nesbitt's "Murphy's Law", Sam Ryan-era "Silent Witness" and of course "Inspector Morse" all spring to mind, but this hackneyed "Junior Prime Suspect" re-write failed to overcome its stereotypical characterisation and (with one exception) by-numbers acting to leave a lasting impression.The plot is very second-hand to these eyes with Kelly Reilly bringing a Jennifer Aniston-type weight (i.e. none at all) to her part following in the big footsteps of her late cop dad, all high-heels and pancake make-up and how she convinces big bad lecherous superior Ciaran Hinds that she can do the job and become "one of the boys".I for one was sorry to see Hinds reduced to this one-dimensional role, the typical high-ranking chauvinist "guvnor" identifiable from any number of previous LaPlante dramas, who hits on his junior female officer and expects the older females to run after him bringing him tea and sandwiches (no tomatoes!).You at first think you're watching a whodunit but after you realise there are no other potential suspects on show and remember LaPlante's MO, you merely await the unravelling of abused child-cum famous actor-cum split-personality psychopath at the hands of the doe-eyed Lewis, although said breakdown is superbly conveyed in broad Mancunian by an excellent Jason Durr.That performance apart this came across to me as very much formulaic fare, with the by now over-familiar LaPlante techniques of split-screen depiction, unimaginative flashback inserting and undramatic cross-cutting of scenes, dumbed down for mass consumption by a writer long overdue an attack of originality.
