If ever there was a show I wanted to like, it would be Life On Mars. This English import and precursor to the Harvey Keitel-starring American version offers a gritty British crime drama with a twist. The twist is that a police procedural is combined with science fiction to produce a program about a detective chief inspector who, as a result of a traffic accident, awakes in 1973 as a detective inspector.
The pivotal point is a question: Has he gone mad, is he in a coma, or has he actually time traveled back to 1973? Since no one in any state of mind would want to revisit 1973, viewers can rest assured that the inspector is not daydreaming.
Accompanied by decent '70s music (I’d forgotten there was any), the stories take us to a variety of crime scenes and the inevitable confrontation between protagonist Sam Tyler (John Simm), who wants to apply 21st century forensic techniques, and the 1970s crew of inspectors who are pretty much convinced he’s barmy. Here is the main problem with the series—the inevitable confrontation. Each week he does something modern, the others do something in keeping with the time period, they all clash and eventually display a grudging respect for the other camp’s methods. Then, in the following episode, it starts all over again.
Sets and costumes remarkably catch the flavor of the period, and writers have done well with the dialogue. At times, it is easy to forget that this show was not made in 1973. Just as technology has changed, so have social attitudes, and the 1973 cops are overtly racist and sexist, as well as brutal. Most of the suspects they terrorize turn out to be innocent, so their behavior seems all the more heinous. Discomfort is often the viewer’s reaction to the antics of these vintage police officers.
Article comments
1 - Debra
It sucks when a show makes you think, doesn't it?
2 - Roxy
Good one Debra.
I think the blogger really missed the point of the show. Shame.
3 - the real bob
There's a difference between not getting the point and not enjoying it. Shows that make you think are so much better than brain candy, BUT it depends a lot on WHAT they make you think. "Life on Mars" enjoyed a huge fan base; it didn't work for me.Reviews are subjective opinions, not universal thought.
4 - doug m
Odd that reviewer didn't discuss the series resolution, but if she gave up by episode four, that would explain it
5 - John Wilson
I actually enjoyed the US version more.