October 02, 2011

TV: Homeland (Showtime, Sun 10)

Very strong start for this one.

Damian Lewis plays an American POW who's rescued after eight years of captivity in Iraq; Claire Danes is the CIA analyst who suspects that he might have been turned by his captors, and is plotting some sort of terrorist attack in the US. She has a somewhat spotty work history, causing at least one international incident that got her removed from field work and put behind a desk, so her superiors aren't taking her concerns seriously.

I like the ambiguity of the principal characters; we have ample reason to believe that Lewis isn't telling the entire truth, but we also understand that Danes's history of instability (of various sorts) makes her not entirely reliable.

Fine performances from Danes and Lewis, as well as Mandy Patinkin as Danes's CIA mentor and closest confidant, and Morena Baccarin as Lewis's wife.

No comments: