Monday 20 February 2012

REVIEW: Homeland (Channel 4)

I'm just watching the first episode of Homeland, which is currently being shown on Channel 4 in the UK after a prize-winning series in the USA.


The story follows Marine Sergeant Nicholas Brody (played by Damian Lewis) who returns home after eight years having been missing in Iraq. Carrie Mathison (Clare Danes) is a CIA officer who suspects there's more to Brody's story than meets the eye. She thinks he might be plotting an attack on the USA.

The script is fairly fast-paced and the basic concept is presented in such a way that the events are believable. Mathison veers back and forth between driven, paranoid and, possibly, slightly unhinged (she is recovering from a mood disorder). She is certainly determined to find the truth.

Brody's wife has moved on, assuming that her husband was dead, and suddenly has to snap back into the role of supportive wife as Brody is treated, on the one hand, as a national hero and, on the other, as a source of information about possible terrorist groups.

Mathison watches him closely and spots a pattern of finger movements that Brody does whenever he is on camera. Is he sending a coded message to someone?

Lewis and Danes give brilliant performances and are supported by an ensemble of fine acting. So far, at least, everything seems very realistic.

The first episode manages to avoid "first episode syndrome" - taking too long to set up the whole premise and seeming a bit dull as a result.

It looks like an excellent series. Very much looking forward to episode two to see how this develops.

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