Thursday , March 28 2024
A great, yet failed, show from last fall makes it to DVD.

DVD Review: Kidnapped – The Complete Series

Are you down in the summer television doldrums? I'm not, but I imagine that there are many of you out there who are — there's nothing particularly interesting for you right now on television. You really just want to hunker down with some fantastically wonderful story, something with a good cast that's well conceived and well written.

Now, I'll admit, you did not listen to me in the fall when I repeatedly told you to watch this show, so I have no great hopes that you will now, but here it is: go out and get Kidnapped on DVD. It is only 13 episodes long, so it is not a huge commitment, and by the end of the third episode, you'll be hooked. Now, I do not just encourage you to go out and get it because you'll see just how wrong you were for not watching it, and how right I was for telling you to watch it, but rather because it is great television.

No joke, no lie, it is great television.

This tale of the kidnapping follows the abduction of Leopold Cain (Will Denton). Leo is the son of the incredibly wealthy Conrad (Timothy Hutton) and Ellie (Dana Delany) Cain, a family with more secrets than you can shake a stick at. In fact, they have so many problems that Leo actually has a bodyguard, Virgil (Mykelti Williamson), who was shot when Leo was abducted.

Brought into the investigation are the FBI, led by Latimer King (Delroy Lindo), and the private freelancer Knapp (Jeremy Sisto). Knapp has the ability to go places and do things King and the FBI cannot, while King has the might of the U.S. government and tons of manpower to be wielded at his discretion. They are a strong team, even if they do not always get along.

Hutton, as always, is incredibly charismatic on screen and though not often recognized for it, one of the best actors of his generation. It is a shame that his forays into the world of television have not lasted longer, because his weekly presence on screen would be a boon for the medium. The rest of the cast is strong in their roles, particularly Mykelti Williamson, even if his return to the job so soon after getting shot is less than believable. They always manage to add depth, nuance, and intrigue into even the smallest elements.

The story itself has twists and tricks and turns, red herrings, and more than one dead end. Everyone has a past and is overcoming their own demons, any one of which could destroy the investigation.

Was Leo’s kidnapping due to his mother’s affair? What about his father’s shadier business dealings? Or his father’s “friends” that he ditched when he had the opportunity to make something of himself? Maybe it has to do with the father’s affair? Maybe it was the older sister that did something to prompt this? How do Knapp’s demons and past history figure into it all?

The series provides more questions than you can shake a stick at, and while not all the questions are answered by the end, it is a fantastic journey to go on and just the sort of thing to take those summer television blues away.

You did not listen to me last fall when I said that this show should be watched, so you may not be listening now either, but I am telling you, this show should be owned. Check out Kidnapped on DVD, you won’t be disappointed (unless you end up hoping for a second season).

About Josh Lasser

Josh has deftly segued from a life of being pre-med to film school to television production to writing about the media in general. And by 'deftly' he means with agonizing second thoughts and the formation of an ulcer.

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