It seems these days that every time we turn on the TV we’re bombarded with crime. It has become a global obsession that we delight in spending hours watching, examining and discussing online… But that’s enough about the news, we’re here to look at streaming shows!
Across the different streaming services these days, we are treated to a staggering amount of crime dramas, both fictional and based on true stories. Some are good, some terrible, and there are some that never seemed to get the respect they deserved on their initial release.
Here are three on major streaming platforms that fit the latter to a tee.
American Crime Story: The People Vs O.J Simpson (Disney+)
The 1990s were, to say the least, a bit insane. It was the decade that introduced us to the cult of personality, the beginnings of the internet, reality television, and the introduction of live news broadcasts as mass entertainment.
Nothing else in this decade holds a candle to watching beloved sports and film personality, O.J. Simpson, on the run, live on TV for a double murder.
American Crime Story: The People Vs O.J. Simpson is a 2016 10-part Ryan Murphy drama series that charts the murders, the attempted escape, and the eventual trial that rocked the world.
With hindsight, it seems almost unbelievable that the events of the show actually happened. It was a trial that became a media circus, one that should have been a simple and easy conviction that simply got out of control. It concluded with a verdict that not only shocked the world but also cast doubts on any crime tried by the media thereafter.
Glossy, bold and sharp, the series is absolutely gripping from the start and absolutely deserves a watch. Performances across the board are fantastic, with Cuba Gooding Jr perfect as O.J. and David Schwimmer as a very convincing Robert Kardashian – yes, the man who gave the world its greatest gift: The Kardashians.
Kingdom (Prime Video/Freevee)
Kingdom is quite possibly the greatest hidden gem in all of streaming right now.
Released in 2014 to almost zero fanfare, the show charts the rise and fall of a US mixed martial arts (MMA) gym, its fighters, and the family who runs it. It is by far one of the most realistic portrayals of a fighter’s gym and the lives behind the scenes. It is authentic, brutal, realistic and meticulously researched.
And yet nobody has seen it or ever talks about it.
The casting is perfect with some well-known faces, including one of the Jonas brothers, showing amazing physical skills in the cage. It also sports a script that fires the show along at breakneck speed.
There is a constant air of dread and pressure throughout the show as we learn that life behind the scenes of the gym can be just as hard and brutal as what is brought to the cage. Characters come and go, but what remains is the constant belief that the gym itself is the pivotal focus and it has to survive no matter what.
Shocking, raw, brutal, honest and utterly watchable.
Monk (Netflix)
There is a phrase used within television study and review: “cosy crime”.
it describes a show where, despite the focus being on a murder (a horrendous and life-shattering event in a thousand ways), everything will be fine – the criminal will be caught and the world will move on with no real consequence or effect.
Think Murder She Wrote, Midsummer Murders and Death In Paradise.
Monk is by far the best of this type.
Following ex-police detective Adrian Monk, a gifted and unique individual who was drummed out of the force due to a mental breakdown, the show follows the same well trodden pattern: someone gets murdered, the detective gets involved, the crime is solved, all is well.
What it does especially well is centre on the human side of this. Monk himself is a fantastic and unique central character, unbelievably gifted but also straddled with serious issues that he has to endure and overcome. He is always one step ahead of the killer, but is sometimes let down by his own physical and mental limitations, resulting in the reliance of a core cast of supporting characters, all equally as great.
Tony Schalhoub gives a career defining performance as the eponymous lead and honestly the character has to be ranked amongst the best TV detectives, along with the likes of Columbo and Sherlock.
With all seasons now available on Netflix, it is absolutely the perfect cosy afternoon binge and a great way to block out the chaos of the world.
