Pilot Review: Marlowe

"Marlowe"
ABC PILOT

Jason O'Mara, Amanda Righetti, and Adam Goldberg

Concept: Film Noir for the 21st Century. This detective drama centers around Philip Marlowe, a Private Investigator on LA's Sunset Strip and the very seedy cases that unfold around him.

Review: The jury is still out on this one too. I like the main guy, a lot, I'm just not sure if America is ready for the film noir genre's valient return on network television. Take last year's Brick for example: while it was a critical masterpiece, the modern audience wasn't too impressed. Marlowe is complicated and fast-paced and, as quick as I am, I still found myself trying to focus my brain to keep up. This is not a show for the infamous multi-tasker. Still there is something about it that catches your attention, its a little reminiscent of an FX show (dark and disturbing), "Nip/Tuck" in particular.

Jason O'Mara. He took some warming up to, but I was really impressed with O'Mara's performance. He brings something new and yet nostalgic to the tv screen. His character is sarcastic and biting (like Dr. House on Fox but without all the bitterness), and yet has the perfect flavor of the old crime dramas of the 40's and 50's. He's charismatic and flawed all at the same time, and he carries with him a certain sex appeal that should be noted.

Amanda Righetti. I've never really been the biggest fan of hers, but here I found her presence almost distracting. She just seemed flat to me, and even her lines which were meant to be funny just came off annoying. Still, I'm willing to give her another chance to prove herself as a real actress with yet another series.

Adam Goldberg. LOVE LOVE LOVE in general. As for this, his pornstache was a bit much, but I thought he did a decent job. He's mastered the neurotic jewish character, and I'm proud of him for trying to step out of his box. There were definitely elements of the same old Goldberg, but I felt like he brought something a bit darker and more fresh than usual.

I don't want to give any more attention to the other characters because they are likely just guest stars, passing in the wind. Although, I was particularly annoyed by Jaime Ray Newman, who played the female victim. The "femme fatale" character played by Lisa LoCicero was good, and Aja Evans a co-star also caught my eye. My favorite though was the guy who played the dead guy's brother, Matt Dentzler. Of course, he's not listed on IMDB so I'll have to figure out who he is on a later date.