A apple tv+ series which has as an intro a theme with the voice of Mick jaggerto Gary Oldman as protagonist already Jonathan Price within the cast she does not run the risk of being bad, but that the wishes in relation to her are unattainable. To draw a parallel: it was impossible for the end of Game of Thrones satisfies all viewers. Oldman’s production, titled Slow Horses, is in the antipodes of the mentioned story. That reference is just an example. It’s not that ambitious either, but it builds an attractive atmosphere, interesting enough to make you want to progress through the chapters.
Slow Horses is an adaptation of six chapters of the homonymous novel written by Mick Herronwith Will Smith within the production team. It is a story in which one of the protagonists fails during a mission of MI5 (the British intelligence service) and ends up in an administrative area, which bears the name of the series. Part of the story consists of understanding power relations, while this member, played by Jack Lowden under the name River Cartwrighttry to clarify the facts and save another person involved.
In this narration suspicions, intrigue, fear and, at times, action predominate, within a police drama context. A mistake puts different power groups in conflict. That dispute leaves explicit moments in terms of violence, while the stories of the different characters develop and the pulse of power intensifies.
Slow Horses and another impressive performance from Gary Oldman
With shows like mindhunter (David Fincher) positioned as a kind of paradigm, when it comes to police stories, or True Detective, Slow Horses falls short in terms of aspirations. The detail is that this production drinks some things from them, without forgetting that it is a series about espionage and that it does not want to supplant them in terms of production. For this reason, it should be remembered that this is an adaptation, not a narrative in which production and direction have complete creative freedom.
Still, it’s not out of place. For good measure, because Gary Oldman shines (again). In the role of jackson lampthe person in charge of Slow Horses, the actor fills the screen appearance after appearance. At first he emerges as a kind of God, oblivious to the different conflicts, managing threads from his desk, until events lead him to get involved. The actor offers moments of intimidating seriousness and others in which it seems impossible not to laugh.
His relationship with River Cartwright runs through much of the series. A boss-employee bond that later mutates to someone closer. The story presents the viewer with the dispute between two groups. In this process, Oldman takes the lead and has several of the best lines, both for the black humor, key in the construction of his character, and in decision-making. A narrative success the weight it has in the story, taking into account the record and trajectory of it.
balance of the series
This relationship between the actors has its counterpart in another group, with visible internal problems and a natural tendency towards violence. While some resolve issues with words, others cut off heads and empty them with bullets. Both references are literal. While Slow Horses develops its plot, moves on those scales of violence. There is not as much blood as you might imagine; only what is necessary so that the dialogical sense of the story does not saturate the viewer’s experience.
It is not a memorable series, but it fulfills its narrative and aesthetic objectives through the chapters. That value, along with the performance of the Oldman, make this apple tv+ series a well constructed story. Like most productions, there are relationships between people that could have grown a little or aspects that could be improved, such as the rhythm in some sections. However, these questions are not enough to abandon Slow Horses.