True Detective: Tune In To Sensational Please
The detectives are more interesting than their case
People, including my friends, are skeptical when it comes to introduction of new books, movies, television etc. While I don’t know much about scripted television, I do watch a lot of it. Airing Sundays at 9 p.m. on HBO, True Detective is a slow cooker. That’s probably not the most persuasive phrase, but it conveys what makes this show worth your time.
Limited Series
One of the more intriguing things about True Detective is that it’s only eight episodes. It doesn’t require seasons and seasons of dedication. From the beginning, we already know there will be an ending. Will it ultimately be a satisfying one? That’s not certain, but at least the story will close on its own terms, which isn’t always the case in today’s television landscape. Plus, if it were to continue after this season, it would be an entirely different narrative within the genre, presumably with a different cast, writer, and director.
Cohesive
Every episode of True Detective is written by Nic Pizzolatto and directed by Cary Joji Fukunaga. If one thing were to stay the same in a second season, I hope it’s these two remaining on board for another go around. What’s so engaging about this show is its narrative and visual consistency with each passing episode, no easy feat to meet even for the most accomplished shows. Jumping between 1995 and 2012 with confidence would be difficult to sustain with a roster of writers and directors. True Detective thrives on the less is more mantra.
True Detective Is About Detectives
The case is a mind-numbing puzzle, but the way it affects Rustin Cohle (Matthew McConaughey) and Martin Hart (Woody Harrelson) is what drives the series. Progress is slowly being made in the case, but the deterioration of these two fucked up cops is fascinating to watch. The way the story goes from interview segments to the homicide case they worked back in 1995 shows that 17 years, particularly in Cohle’s case, can be a lifetime. I’m not even sure I care if the case gets solved or not. I’m more invested in how Cohle and Hart became who they are from what they were.
The Six-Minute Tracking Shot That Concluded “Who Goes There” (Episode 4)
See it here
A masterfully constructed sequence, the first of which the show has executed in its run. Accomplished without a single cut, the dramatic impact it has on the viewer is what sticks. I don’t want to ruin the show for those who haven’t seen it (and you must), but this is the perfect turning point for a series halfway through its run. The fact that I have no idea what is going to happen next is a testament to how great this show is slowly revealing itself and how much its characters are unraveling. It’s truly remarkable.
