A new drama series True Detective focuses on Martin Hart (Woody Harrelson) and 'Rust' Cohle (Matthew McConaughey) two detectives and former partners who worked in Louisiana's Criminal Investigation Division in the mid-1990s. In 2012 for reasons not immediately revealed the two are interviewed separately by investigators about their most notorious case: the macabre 1995 murder of a prostitute by a possible serial killer with disturbing occult leanings. As they look back on the case Hart and Cohle's personal backstories and often-strained relationship become a major... focal point. Episodes Comprise: The Long Bright Dark Seeing Things The Locked Room Who Goes There The Secret Fate of All Life Haunted Houses After You're Gone Void and Form [show more]
If you'd have told me ten years ago that one of the best dramas ever made would star Woody Harrelson and Matthew McConaughey, I would have laughed you out of town. But here in 2014, I have to admit that it's hard to think of two actors who could have made True Detective any more perfect.
Over the past ten years, both Harrelson and McConaughey have managed to escape from the typecasting that dominated their earlier careers - Harrelson as a comedy turn (after making his name in the sitcom "Cheers") and McConaughey as the staple heartthrob of countless lame romantic comedies - to become fine dramatic actors in their own right. And their pairing in True Detective is a masterstroke, creating that rare kind of chemistry that keeps you absolutely glued to the screen even when the core murder-mystery plot of this eight-part HBO series is moving relatively slowly.
True Detective makes use of a twenty-year flashback interval to show us Harrelson and McConaughey's characters - detectives Marty and Rust - at two very different times in their lives. The series' framing device involves the two detectives being interviewed separately in the present-day about a bizarre ritualistic murder that they worked on together in the mid-nineties. And as the story plays out, it gradually teases out details of their personalities that end up making the development of their own personal relationship even more interesting and compelling than seeing how the homicide case is resolved.
Not that the central mystery itself isn't worthy of your attention: from the very start, director Cary Joji Fukunaga ensures that the scenes depicting the crime are utterly disturbing and eerie, with supernatural and religious elements that end up becoming important themes for the series as a whole. Having every one of the show's eight episodes be directed by Fukunaga - and written by Nic Pizzolatto - lends the series a rare consistency of vision that you just don't get with longer-form shows that use many different directors and writers over the course of their lifespan. It's an innovative model that I hope to see adopted again, especially if it can produce results as impressive as this.
Because this series isn't just a murder-mystery, it isn't just a cop show, it isn't just a relationship drama and it isn't just a snapshot of the southern-US culture of Louisiana, circa 1995: it's all of those things, all at once. And unlike many who might try to take on such an ambitious mixture, Pizzolatto and Fukunaga cleverly manage to thematically connect each element of the show to all the others, with the characters' musings on subjects like family and religion tying into the social landscape of the Louisiana setting just as much as it reflects their own personal lives, and - gradually - starts to shed light on the motivations of the killer, too. The series also pulls off the difficult balancing act of not giving away too much information about the murder case in the present-day scenes (set long after the earlier investigation has played out), but just providing enough hints to tantalise you about where it's all heading.
But to come back to where I started this review, the best writing and direction in the world would be worth nothing if it weren't also for the superb acting ability of the show's two leads. And between Harrelson's nuanced, complex portrayal of a purported family man whose carefully-crafted image starts to unravel before our very eyes - and a ravaged-looking McConaughey's career-best performance as Marty's supremely damaged and haunted, yet also uncannily insightful and intelligent partner - you'll struggle to find a more brilliant pairing anywhere on TV today. Both Marty and Rust are about as far away from 'typical' Harrelson and McConaughey characters as you can get, and are all the more impressive for it.
True Detective is proper, grown-up television for people who are willing to invest time and effort in a show that repays that investment in spades. I've deliberately held off on addressing certain elements that arise in later episodes of the show as I wouldn't want to ruin your viewing experience, but for me the entire series plays out perfectly, offering up a satisfying and complete story and providing a perfect template for seasons to follow (True Detective is planned as an anthology show, with a completely different cast and storyline for each season).
One thing's for sure: True Detective season two is going to have a hell of a reputation to live up to.
Ravi Nijjar
If you start watching one new TV series this year, let it be True Detective.
HBO have done it yet again, adding an incredible new title to their long list of successes that already includes Game of Thrones, Boardwalk Empire, Girls, Curb Your Enthusiasm, Entourage, and the all-time classic The Sopranos.
That True Detective sits in such brilliant company should serve as a perfect indication of just how good this programme is. The eight-episode first season all but reinvents the wheel when it comes to the crime-drama genre, bringing us something utterly fresh and tantalising, unlike anything that's been on in years.
The series traces the course of two separate homicide investigations set apart by seventeen years, and the show's ability to create such an authentic background to the earlier investigation is beyond impressive. Such attention to detail is rarely seen on the small screen when it comes to more recent history, and they pull it off wonderfully.
Woody Harrelson and Matthew McConaughey are front and centre, starring as two of the detectives leading the investigations. The hunt for the killer reignites after almost two decades, and the tension remains on high throughout the entire season right up to its explosive conclusion.
Acclaimed director Cary Fukunaga (Jane Eyre, Sin Nombre) made his first foray into the world of television, and what a fantastic effort it is. Whereas most shows bring in different directors for each episode, Fukunaga was in the chair for all eight, and the result is a cohesive vision that feels like it all plays out in one long, incredible film. The eight-episode length really lets us get under the skins of Harrelson and McConaughey's characters so we feel like we know them as well as ourselves by the end.
The leading actors' performances are never anything less than stellar, putting in terrific work to bring these two detectives' lives to life on the small screen. Michelle Monaghan is excellent in the female lead as Harrelson's on-screen wife, with a delightful cast of supporting and recurring characters.
Ultimately, though, a show like this will always live and die with Harrelson and McConaughey's performances, and they make it soar. HBO has already commissioned a second season of the show, and like everyone else, I can't wait to see it all unfold again.
We will publish your review of True Detective - Season 1 [2014] on DVD within a few days as long as it meets our guidelines.
None of your personal details will be passed on to any other third party.
Please note this is a region 2 DVD and will require a region 2 (Europe) or region Free DVD Player in order to play. All eight episodes of the critically-acclaimed US television series starring Matthew McConaughey and Woody Harrelson. The series follows two Louisiana homicide detectives, Rustin 'Rust' Cohle (McConaughey) and Martin 'Marty' Hart (Harrelson), as they hunt for a serial killer over a 17-year period.
All eight episodes of the critically-acclaimed US television series starring Matthew McConaughey and Woody Harrelson. The series follows two Louisiana homicide detectives, Rustin 'Rust' Cohle (McConaughey) and Martin 'Marty' Hart (Harrelson), as they hunt for a serial killer over a 17-year period. The episodes are: 'The Long Bright Dark', 'Seeing Things', 'The Locked Room', 'Who Goes There', 'The Secret Fate of All Life', 'Haunted Houses', 'After You've Gone' and 'Form and Void'.
This site uses cookies.
More details in our privacy policy
