The Morning Journal (Lorain, OH)
No defending ‘Jacob’
It’s hard not to find high-profile Apple drama series guilty before getting whole case
Producing compelling television is hard. Let us present for the jury Exhibit A: Apple TV+. Since its debut in November, Apple’s streaming service hasn’t exactly made huge waves in the TV landscape. Yes, flagship drama “The Morning Show” has its moments, anthology series “Little America” has been well-received and half-hour comedy “Mythic Quest” is mostly a blast. But you don’t hear people going on and on about an Apple TV+ show. Disappointingly, that probably isn’t about to change with “Defending Jacob.” An adaptation of the well-regarded 2012 novel of the same name by William Landay, the eightepisode limited series is directed by Morten Tyldum, best known for helming the excellent, Academy Award-nominated 2014 historical drama “The Imitation Game.” Probably of more interest to most, “Defending Jacob” stars Chris Evans, who, starting with 2011’s “Captain America: The First Avenger,” has portrayed the iconic superhero in more than 10 films set within the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Frustratingly, though, Evans — or at least the character he portrays, Andy Barber — is one of the most-irritating aspects of “Defending Jacob.”
A father fighting to keep his teenage son out of prison after the boy is suspected of killing a classmate, Andy is smug to the point of being contemptible. Given that, before his son becomes a target of the investigation, he worked as an assistant district attorney himself, you’d think he’d manage to be a little less hostile to the people in law enforcement. His top priority would be his son’s wellbeing, without question, but a little perspective from him would be nice. “Defending Jacob” begins with Andy testifying before a grand jury — he is, of course, a complete jerk to his inquisitor, ADA Neal Logiudice, a former interoffice rival — sometime well after the ordeal surrounding his son. Mainly, though, the story unfolds in flashback, beginning when things were still normal for Andy, wife Laurie (Michelle Dockery) and the series’ titular teen, portrayed by Jaeden Martell. The show is set in an affluent part of suburban Boston, which we’re never allowed to forget thanks to Andy’s heavy accent. (Evans, who’s originally from the area, doesn’t quite hit the level he did in the recent great “Smaht Pahk” commercial for Hyundai, but he comes close.) It’s distracting because almost no other character speaks like this, correct as it may be to do so. The town is, of course, rocked when the body of a fatally stabbed teen is found in the woods of a public park. Jacob walks through that area on his way to school every morning and becomes a suspect in part when it’s learned he apparently encountered the body but left it for someone else to report, Jacob claiming he was scared. That Jacob and the victim did not have a good relationship and that Jacob not long ago had brought a knife to show off at school contribute to him becoming the main suspect. As the mystery develops and the case progresses, we should be swept up in the drama. However, based on a viewing of the first five episodes — the series debuted with the first three episodes on April 24, with subsequent Fridays bringing one new episode until the run is complete — eight hour-long installments feels like more than this story needed. Adapted by writer Mark Bomback (“The Divergent Series: Insurgent,” “War for the Planet for the Apes,”), this TV version of “Defending Jacob” drags and drags. Crafting an eight-hour story is different from making a two-hour movie, but it’s nonetheless surprising Tyldum isn’t able to give the show more punch considering he made the work of British cryptanalyst Alan Turing seem absolutely thrilling at times in the aforementioned “Imitation Game.” Along with the lack of momentum, “Defending Jacob” is hurt by a stable of forgettable characters. While he’s little like his father, Jacob is drippy and dopey. Given the writing overall, you can’t pin this all on Martell (“The Book of Henry,” “It”), but he doesn’t bring much to the affair. At least Laurie feels like a real person, thanks in part to Dockery, best known for portraying Lady Mary Crawley on “Downton Abbey” and seen more recently in “The Gentlemen.” Like her husband, Laurie wants nothing more than for her son to be cleared and for her family’s life to return to normal, but she manages to behave like something other than a monster. J.K. Simmons shows up halfway through “Defending Jacob,” as Andy’s estranged-and-imprisoned father. An Oscar winner for his performance in 2014’s
“Whiplash,” Simmons is a terrific actor and may enliven the series to a degree, but in this week’s episode, the fifth, the returns are minimal. Plus, his character’s connection to the case doesn’t feel worth the time increasingly spent on it. Well, with any luck, Bomback, Tyldum and Evans are saving the best for the series’ final dramatic stretch. For now, “Defending Jacob” feels like a huge miss for Apple TV+. If Apple wants to generate the same type of water-cooler talk (remember water-cooler talk?) as the Netflixes and HBOs of the world, it will have to do better.