London Spy (2015)

Whatever happened to the well-made plot? This series just chucks one gasp-gasp episode on top of another, with no attempt even to suggest they might be relevant to each other. Sure, there's a story line of sorts, and it's all 'explained', clearly hoping that the viewer is so gobsmacked that s/he has forgotten about all the loose plot threads dangling all over the show. That said, some good performances from actors who shouldn't be wasting their talents on this hogwash. But I suppose times are hard for the likes of Jim Broadbent and Charlotte Rampling. But Ben Whishaw could surely land something better than this.

Lots of style, little substance. They became so focused on camera angles they forgot about pace. It was tolerable in the first episode where it contributed to the love story, but after that it became annoying.

The near 5-hour mini began well with dreamy, boozy overtones enveloping an awakening London The haze descends upon our 2 lovers and the origins of their chance meet, Alistair aiding the woefully hungover and besotted Danny, assembling the pieces from a rant-induced phone toss. Danny at the "I should be living better than this" realization, clouded with the sleazy memories of the night before, begging and pleading for normalcy and love. Alas the sizzled and liquid love eyes cast upon him from the stranger (or so he imagines). Fast forward past the 4 hours of subsequent drama (including Alistair's death, Danny's reconnect with his original sugar daddy played by the puffy Harry Potter demon Jim Broadbent, odd encounters with Danny's parents, laughing including a tracyotimied father, an bizarre rendezvous in a upper-high class private gay men's club, a cheap and gaudy geisha performer, wisdom from the straight and exotic female roommate, Boogie Nights-inspired scene with a gay crack cocaine addicted sadist, etc. etc.) Fast forward to the closing scene with Rampling and Danny driving off into the sunset and cue the laughter.

As an old and picky consumer of espionage stories, I was attracted to this series by its title, besides the excellent reviews. After finding myself wasting 5 hours of my life, let me just cry: "don't you dare call this a spy story!" For the review of such bummer, I propose the technique of the "onion peeling", i.e. you remove layer after layer and see what is left at the core. Well, the first layer is the photography, the visuals, the imagery: very sleek indeed; next layer, soundtrack: very cool; then the layer of acting performances: pretty good, as the strong cast was promising. So we have removed all the layers supposed to wrap the core, i.e. the story, the plot, the idea.....ooops, there's nothing less....or, the little that is there is so implausible, so absurd that you would prefer the total absence. So in summary, a lot of window dressing, not much more....