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« Law & Order: Criminal Intent
October 17, 2006: Bedfellows
Somebody at NBC must have issued an order to punch up Criminal Intent’s openings, because two weeks in a row, they’ve come out swinging.
Last week’s cops-and-fireman brawl was definitely a "what the?" moment, and this week’s was equally shocking – and twice as disturbing. For me, that wide-eyed little kid with spaghetti sauce (?) smeared all over his mouth evoked not one but two Sixth Sense characters – precocious-yet-creepy Haley Joel Osment (who these days doesn’t even see mailboxes) and the couldn’t-keep-a-meal-down Mischa Barton (who these days...on second thought, never mind).
Suffice it to say, the kid was disturbing enough, but when he led the cops into his parents’ bedroom and they pulled back the sheet to reveal his mother curled up with the corpse of his way-dead father – well, that’s just feel-good TV right there.
From there out, they kept my interest by turning nearly every member of this twisted clan into a suspect (read: red herring). Was it the murdered history writer’s wife, who had been cheating on him with some (gardening) tool? As Rip Torn (Get it? Rip, Torn) told Goren and Eames, she was a dirty, dirty tramp – which made her way too obvious a choice.
For a little while, they had me believing it was the author’s ne’er-do-well brother, proprietor of a dastardly Ponzi real-estate scheme. But he was kind of ruled out after being shot in the head (only a flesh wound), then stabbed in the stomach with a pair of scissors (getting deader), and, finally, bludgeoned to death with what appeared to be a polar-bear statue (J.J. Abrams wants royalties).
At one point, my suspicions even fell on little Haley Joel Barton. He did seem to really hate those stinky shakes....
But, alas, it turned out to be Ponzi’s wife, who apparently got the idea from Alfred Hitchcock’s Strangers on a Train. OK, I’ll admit it, that’s one of Hitch’s movies I haven’t gotten around to seeing, but still, bravo, CI writers. If you’re not gonna rip your stories from the headlines every week, you might as well "borrow" from the Master of Suspense.
So overall, not my favorite CI ever, but a solid one nonetheless. There’s nothing worse than figuring out whodunit by the second commercial break, then suffering through 17 chastising political ads - that election can’t come soon enough – and this episode kept me guessing.
Now, I’ve got a Hitchcock movie to go rent....
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Oct 17, 2006 10:55 PM
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Goren and Eames-my two favorite detectives on television! Never miss a show. Anyway, I suspected Ponzi's wife as soon as she was so caring toward the "other brother's" wife. You just knew there had to be a history there. One wife cheating on a very successful husband, the other married to a loser. To say nothing about the difference in looks! Anyway, Strangers on a Train is one of Hitchcock's best and I knew right away where the plot came from. Overall, an interesting episode, but then, like I said, I always find Goren and Eames (love Goren!) compelling to watch. The ending! Talk about someone (Rip Torn's character) not learning from his mistakes! Tried not to feel too bad about the one grandson being ignored, but this too often happens in real life and made it hard to watch.
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Oct 17, 2006 11:28 PM
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This is the second week in a row that I figured out who-done-it within 10 minutes of the show. But, I love the characters, the acting and the process. The new boss is growing on me. He had a couple of funny lines. I remember the one where he said "Down Boy", to the person who figured out the Ponzi scheme.
Unfortunately, I was the kid growing up who was ignored. I was angry and mad at the world because I felt unloved. I finally came out of my funk, but made alot of mistakes along the line. I know its human nature to have a favorite child/grandchild, but don't make it so obvious. It really does hurt to be ignored.
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Oct 18, 2006 7:54 AM
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I also knew who-done-it right off the bat,and knew as soon as Goren went to find the movie it was going to be Strangers on a Train...I have never seen the movie but know the concept,didn't CSI do an episode like that to.Over all I thought it was A great episode,It has moved in 2nd for my favorite Law&Orders.
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Oct 18, 2006 11:14 AM
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An intersting ep, IMHO. Well acted. I think my favorite moments were when the Gardners two lovers both showed up with lawyers for him. . . LOL. Silly, and maybe even stupid, but it made me smile.
The last shot with Goren (and Eames) looking at the young grandson who was being ignored almost made me cry. It seemed Goren really felt for and related to that poor boy. And I loved Goren's line to the Father/Grandfahter reminding him that he'd lost TWO sons.
Jenn
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Oct 18, 2006 12:17 PM
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Better than the episodes from lasst year, but not stellar. It did seem a little too easy to figure out.
Still, I like the look and feel of the show now. It moves better, it looks better, and the actors seem to be doing better. I still can't quite figure out what my problem is with Eric Bogosian. It just seems like he's reading lines, trying to have the proper inflection and emphasis, as you would read a book report for your class in high school. It doesn't seem natural. Still, while he's not Deakins, he's OK.
Funny, I don't even miss the fact that there is no DA on the show.
PS: Dearest Vincent, please put down those donuts. Your weight is getting the better of you.
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Oct 18, 2006 1:04 PM
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WOW! L&0 CI looks great this year. I think I'm enjoying this season more than any others. The look and feel this season is great. To confession, I was getting tired of this show, but now I am rehooked
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Oct 18, 2006 5:39 PM
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CI keeps getting better & better. love both pairs of detectives, the new girl is good. what I don't like is the weird shaky slow-mo camera crap they're doing now. too distracting.
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Oct 18, 2006 10:18 PM
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CI keeps getting better & better. love both pairs of detectives, the new girl is good. what I don't like is the weird shaky slow-mo camera crap they're doing now. too distracting.
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Oct 18, 2006 10:20 PM
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Thank you so much for the Law & Order CI Commentary blog! It drives me nuts that this show is so over-looked and under-rated. I watch the other two Law & Order shows frequently, but I always lose interest once the show moves to the "Order" part. With CI it keeps your interest from start to finish. I'm so glad that CI's ratings have improved with it's new night and even if I have the crime solved early on, I never lose iterest in watching Goran and Enes and think rotating with Lagan and his partners has worked out quite well. This is a great show, but it seems viewers either love or hate Vincent's Goran. Rent the movie "Whole Wide World" sometime, and watch Vincent and Renee Zellwenger knock your socks off. What a great character actor and thanks to CI a leading man, too.
Oh, I loved Bedfeelows and didn't figure it out till the 3rd act.
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Oct 19, 2006 12:15 AM
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Your commentary cracked me up. ("...getting deader")
Good show. I figured out it was Ponzi wife a little more than halfway through, but enjoyed getting there with the detectives.
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Oct 19, 2006 12:15 PM
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The only thing that bums me about this show (and the original law and order) is how "ripped from the headlines" it is. I had just read an article about this case in New York magazine about 2 months ago, so I totally knew who did it.
But I have to say that even despite that, this season of CI has been great. Logan's new partner has made those scenes bearable, and I like the dynamic between Goren and the new captain. And THANK GOD for Eames' great storyline in the beginning of the show. She's a terrific actress and deserves more screen time (any one who saw her death scene on Oz would agree).
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Oct 19, 2006 1:52 PM
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The camerawork and the elimination of the "Chung-Chung" is incredibly annoying. And the stories pale beside those of seasons past (particularly Season Two and Four).
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Oct 23, 2006 10:48 PM
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some of THE BEST EVER acting on TV----and certainly one of the most disturbing storylines---was on Homicide when Vincent D'O played a guy trapped between the platform and a subway car, with everyone knowing he had an hour (the ep was in real-time) to live. andre brauer (also fabulous actor) stayed with him, while the others went in search of his wife above ground.
a completely horrific, disturbing story. the final scene is heart-breaking.it freaks me out to this day.
totally worth finding and watching!
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Oct 24, 2006 3:29 PM
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