On May 17, the detective show «Sugar» starring Colin Farrell, who also served as the project’s executive producer, ended its run on Apple TV+. In the review below, we will tell you what cinematic means the authors of this seemingly old-fashioned classic story hope to use to attract the viewer’s attention.
Genre neo-noir, detective
Author Mark Protosevich
Directors Fernando Meirelles, Adam Arkin
Starring Colin Farrell, Kirby Howell-Baptiste, Amy Ryan, Dennis Bucicaris, Nate Corddry, Alex Hernandez, James Cromwell
Premiere Apple TV+
Year of issue 2024
Website IMDb
Having dealt with the cases in Tokyo, private investigator and incorrigible cinephile John Sugar takes on his next job in Los Angeles. It is there that Olivia, the granddaughter of the famous film producer Jonathan Siegel, whose films Sugar has watched many times, has disappeared. Everyone around him assures him that the girl will return soon, because she has had similar stories happen to her before due to the use of illegal drugs. But the further the protagonist delves into this investigation, the more he realizes that something really happened to Olivia.
The show’s creators don’t limit themselves to noir classics; for example, in one episode, Colin Farrell’s character, a reader of magazines such as Cahiers Du Cinema or American Cinematographer, retells a scene from «The Thing» by Carpenter. In short, there’s plenty of room for an experienced moviegoer’s eye to unfold.
In general, the series offers a pleasant vibe of sunny California and a very likeable protagonist — a walking goodness who does not shy away from lending a helping hand to a homeless person and admits to rejecting violence. So if you carry a weapon, it should be the one used by Glenn Ford himself in «The Big Heat». And if you drive on dusty Los Angeles roads, it’s only in an elegant vintage «Corvette».
The development of events in «Sugar» is rather leisurely, but the running time of the episodes is comfortable and rarely exceeds a fleeting half an hour. Thanks to the magic of editing, the aforementioned inserts of old films fit perfectly into the narrative, and the authors also manage to play with false audience expectations at times.
At the same time, the cinematographers César Charloé and Richard Rutkowski will not skimp on the variety of angles and plans: one moment we see Colin Farrell’s face in full view, and the next it seems like an insignificant detail against the background of a large swimming pool. And the voiceover of the main character will constantly sound, and Dutch angles will be flashing, of course. Oh yes, the show definitely has its style.
However, showrunner Mark Protasevich and directors Adam Arkin and Fernando Meirelles (the latter gained fame for «City of God» and is now working on a story about «Sin City») do not set out to blindly follow the noir aesthetic. The sunny Los Angeles — is not the only thing that distances the show from the gloomy «black movies». There is no place for luxurious rock beauties here at all — in 2024, they may become a badge of honor. And in the attractive apartments of the rich, it’s hard to see the atmosphere of the hot spots that are a necessary attribute of any «Sin City».
In all this celebration of form and cinematic quotation, the story itself and its detective intrigue are sometimes lost. If the plot is really exciting at the initial stages, then closer to the equator it begins to get bogged down in dubious arcs, which makes it harder and harder to keep the viewer’s attention.
Out of the blue, the notorious twist that occurs at the end of the sixth episode and will be mentioned in all reviews around the world comes out of the blue. It is preceded by a visual metaphor with a mirror image that takes place at the beginning of the episode and hints that someone has a dual nature. The problem is that this twist looks as strange as possible, adds another genre that is not very appropriate here, and exists purely for the sake of surprise, without significantly affecting the main storyline.
The big part of the show’s charm rests on Colin Farrell’s courageous shoulders — his Sugar is such a charming character that it’s absolutely impossible not to root for him. It is thanks to John Sugar, a private detective and incorrigible cinephile, that the other meaningful side of the story is clearly visible, reminding us once again that good always wins.