Jake Gyllenhaal (centre) and Bill Camp (right) in the television adaptation of the 1987 Scott Turrow novel of the same name, Presumed Innocent. Photo: Supplied.
When a prosecutor becomes the prime suspect in the murder of one of his colleagues, a long, drawn-out courtroom drama ensues and it’s inevitable that sparks fly, tension mounts, tempers flare, heated exchanges transpire and patience wears thin.
Such is the scenario in Presumed Innocent, a television adaptation of the 1987 Scott Turrow novel previously adapted as a Harrison Ford film of the same name directed by Alan J Pakula.
The premise of this new dramatization will be familiar to those who have seen the 1990 film. Rusty Sabich (played by Jake Gyllenhaal, Brokeback Mountain, Nightcrawler, Nocturnal Animals) is a chief deputy prosecutor in Chicago, working under State’s Attorney Raymond Horgan (Bill Camp, Sound of Freedom, Joker, News of the World), who’s in a tough re-election campaign against rival prosecutor Nico Della Guardia (O-T Fagbenle, The Handmaid’s Tale, The First Lady).
After the violent murder of county prosecutor Carolyn Polhemus (Renate Reinsve, The Worst Person in the World, A Different Man, Phoenix), Rusty takes the case without disclosing that he and Carolyn had an emotionally charged and passionate affair.
Though he has reconciled with his wife, Barbara (Ruth Negga, Loving, Ad Astra, Passing), their relationship is tenuous. She is the wronged wife and simmering underneath her congenial demeanour is her obvious fury against Rusty. Not only had he betrayed her, but their children were also being put through the humiliation and anguish of a trial. She is forthright and inflexible in her rage. The family is seemingly fractured.
Subsequently, when Della Guardia wins the election, it doesn’t take long for his deputy, Tommy Molto (Peter Sarsgaard, Memory, The Batman, The Magnificent Seven), to uncover Carolyn’s past with his adversary. He clearly dislikes Rusty, and when all evidence points to him being the killer, Molto’s ruthless streak shines.
Gyllenhaal – with his intensity and commitment – makes for an excellent hero, though that is not his characterisation here. His Sabich is irascible on one hand, impatient on another, brazenly self-centred, conceited, unsteady and justifiably frantic. He has been living a double life, a devoted husband and father who admits to being “obsessed” with his dead mistress, almost to the point of “basically stalking her”.
Casting director Jeanie Bacharach (The Bear, The Dropout, Station Eleven) has to be commended for gathering the impeccable cast, from the leads down to the smallest role.
As Raymond, Camp proves he’s an expert on dishevelled seriousness. Sarsgaard is skilfully intolerable as the scoundrel-like, patronising Molto, who displays an instantaneous drive to pin Carolyn’s murder on Rusty, which is certainly not driven by a wish to serve justice. Fagbenle instils a refining trace of veracity to the oratory of a domineering Della Guardia.
The supporting performances include Noma Dumezweni (The Undoing) as the eager judge overseeing Rusty’s trial; Lily Rabe (The Tender Bar) as Rusty and Barbara’s progressively stunned couples therapist, Dr Liz Rush; James Hiroyuki Liao (Barry) as an amusingly bellicose medical examiner; and Mark Harelik (Preacher) as an inmate who has pertinent information that Rusty wants.
This fast-moving legal thriller has a cliffhanger in each instalment. It unfolds over eight episodes on Apple TV+ and it’s stimulating to see a spin on nostalgia that feels quite fresh.
Perennially prolific television writer, producer and former attorney David E Kelley has generated one of the most creatively successful shows in some time, whereby the traditional storytelling skill has come to the fore on the small screen. Kelley has shaped and/or produced many hit television series, including Doogie Howser, M.D.; Picket Fences; Chicago Hope; The Practice and its spin-off, Boston Legal; Ally McBeal; and Boston Public.
In Presumed Innocent, we see adults having a conversation – actually talking realistically with each other – as Raymond and his wife, Lorraine (Elizabeth Marvel, Homeland, House of Cards, The District), discuss whether he should retire or take Rusty’s case.
A strengthened pivot in Presumed Innocent is on the bonuses and downsides of relationships – whether they be familial, personal, professional or romantic. With an unflinching prosecutor, who gets physical, aggressive and intense, the impassioned nuances are conspicuously played out. Allegiances are made and broken and irritabilities take hold as backstabbing and double-crossing take place.
While the accused desperately fights to hold his family and marriage together, the series searingly explores obsession, sex, politics, and the power and limits of love.
Presumed Innocent, an eight-episode miniseries, is streaming on Apple TV+
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