Mini-series - 7 episodes
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Created by: David E. Kelley, John Bloom & John Atkinson (based on the book by)
Starring: Elizabeth Olsen, Jesse Plemons, Patrick Fugit, Lily Rabe, Krysten Ritter
Rated: TV-MA
Watch the trailer
Plot
Two churchgoing couples enjoy small town family life in Texas - until somebody picks up an axe.
Verdict
It's a salacious story, an affair in a small town turns deadly. This gets to the murder in the third episode, but we don't see exactly what happens until the final episode. There's too many episodes for the story. The first three episodes set this up perfectly, but the second half drags too much. The second half of the series is the court case and that lacks the secrets and intrigue of the first half.
It depends.
Review
This true story was adapted into the Hulu mini-series Candy last year.
This starts when Candy (Elizabeth Olsen) tells her best friends husband Alan (Jesse Plemons) that she's attracted to him. That opens the door, and you know where this will go. I don't know what happened in reality, but it's a setup that seems like a shortcut for television. It seems they both have regret over the encounter, and that it stems from them wanting to be desired and needing an emotional connection. There's this secret that pervades every scene, and the question is when will it escape. This is too small of a town for the affair to remain a secret. With Candy and Alan's wife Betty (Lily Rabe) being best friends, they can't get away from the affair. They keep seeing each other and are reminded of this affair.
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| Jesse Plemons, Elizabeth Olsen play Alan, Candy |
In the third episode the murder at the center of this story happens. We're left hanging with a lot of questions. One secret is swapped for another as now Candy must hide this murder while the town makes accusations about what happened.
As the cops investigate the crime, the affair is revealed. Now there are no secrets driving the plot and it loses that drive. There's still the question of what the court will decide that drags out over more episodes. It's hard to refute forty blows with an axe. This runs into the final episode where Candy finally testifies. We finally get to see the altercation upon which the case hinges. We don't know what way this trial will go.
The performances are great, but this is just too long. The case takes up too much space with only a verdict to push us to the end. The first half of the season is driven by secrets, but second half only has the question of what will the jury's verdict be, and that's just not enough to carry this show.
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