“How compromised are you?”
Spoilers everywhere from here on out….
The season debut opened the case but no one could have predicted the dramatic, brave and shocking turn that True Detective would take this week.
The show has already thrown in a massive curveball that’s bound to have a seismic impact on the series. How prophetic are Ray’s words that “we get the world we deserve” now?
His character, Ray Velcro is already seemingly in a bodybag, but Dubliner has seen his acting stock rise sharply after two memorable shows.
“Caspere’s death is a window…into everything”
I’ve always been a fan of Colin Farrell’s work because for every film when he’s hammier than John Hamm in a West Ham jersey while listening to Ham Sandwich – Daredevil, Alexander and London Boulevard come to mind – he has also demonstrated that he’s a gifted actor when playing characters that are under pressure.
True Detective seemed to tap into the traits, strengths and skills that have made Farrell the global star that he is today. Detective Ray Velcoro was unhinged, unpredictable and violent but there was always enough empathy and heart behind his world-weary eyes to suggest that he wasn’t a complete bastard.
To me, it’s impossible to look at Farrell’s latest character in isolation because the Vinci detective is the culmination of the best roles from some of his previous work.
For example:
A world weary but magnetic character that has a tendency to revert to violence – Tigerland.
An unlikeable, untrustworthy but skilled detective that steals every scene he’s in – Minority Report.
A man that’s down on his luck, suffering huge personal problems while simultaneously dealing with a situation that’s beyond his control – Phone Booth.
A sleezy and violent hitman that’s suffering a moral crisis of faith but despite his horrible characteristics, there’s still enough pathos, humanity and heart to make people empathise with him – In Bruges.
It doesn’t take a detective to know that Farrell was perfect for this role and casting him was a superb decision.
In the first episode, he showed his incredible acting range, switching from the caring father (his first scene in the car) to an unhinged psychopath that almost beat strangers to death in front of his own son.
There’s no doubting that he was the star of the show again this week. After noticing that Ani was smoking an E-cigarette his remark that “maybe it was little too close to sucking a robot’s dick” showed his gift for dark comedy, while there was also a wry laugh from his remark “just so you know, I support feminism, mostly by having body image issues”.
This was probably also a thinly-veiled dig by the show creator Nic Pizzolatto at those critics who said that the first season didn’t have enough strong female characters.
Within the space of 30 seconds, after being told that he might be losing custody of his son, he went from being absolutely terrifying in front of his estranged wife by saying that he “will burn this entire fucking city to the ground” to the heartbreaking realisation that “this boy is all that I have in my entire shitty life”.
His final dramatic scene on the show, when he meets Vince Vaughn’s character Frank, was laced with melancholy and sadness. Here’s a man that was just tired with the world around him and was completely resigned to his faith.
This being said, he wasn’t beyond one final redemptive act.
He refused Frank’s money and went to do his job. Proof that doing the right thing can get you killed.
Kudos to the showrunner’s for making such a brave and shocking decision to seemingly kill of an important character so early in the season. I actually predicted a death in Season 2 but I never would have thought it would be so soon.
The debut needed to familiarise the audiences with the structure, characters and story. No one knew if Marty and Rust would have as long a TV career as McNulty and Bunk from The Wire but now that each season of True Detective is a unique case, the dramatic stakes need to be raised and killing a character off is always the best way to do that.
Maturity and experience has meant that Farrell has been more selective when choosing his roles but this brief tenure on the show will definitely stand him in good stead. It seems that True Detetcive is now in the realms of Game of Thrones though because no one is safe.
“All kinds of secrets in this world, all kinds of truth”
I hinted last week that Taylor Kitsch’s officer Paul Woodrugh might have the darkest past of the three main characters and it looks like that may be the case.
His time as a soldier in the Middle East has left him scarred, both physically and psychologically, but the wounds run much deeper. That very ‘touchy-feely’ scene with his mother left lots to the imagination and the fact that he didn’t make eye-contact with her was telling.
The remark that he almost punched a gay bank-teller along with that a lingering close-up of him, staring out of his window at a male prostitute, is an indicator of the character’s internal struggle.
Case notes
“Please, no more exposition.”
There’s a saying in film and TV that you show but don’t tell. It’s a visual medium but there have been too many moments so far that have focused on discussing the plot.
I understand that it’s a convoluted story but the first season excelled because plot was revealed through dialogue between the main characters, not shady businessmen in the background. Here’s hoping that’s at an end.
The landscape shots
New director, same stunning cinematography. Take a look at these images.
The psychiatrist
