Dulneth.P

9/10

Wow! Just wow! This is probably my second favourite crime show besides season 1 of true detective. There's a bunch of things True Detective does better but Black Bird absolutely stomps TD in terms of storytelling. The show is beautifully shot from the opening shot to the final closing shot, a lot of heart poured into each technical aspect. At it's core Black Bird is a show about loss and redemption. Based on the true harrowing stories about Larry Hall, our main character is Jimmy Keene who is a drug dealer sent to get a confession out of Larry Hall for the crimes he committed. Through a series of beautifully crafted timelines, a harrowing series of crimes. The actors each give 120%, absolutely mesmerizing performances by Taron and Paul, and Ray Liotta too. The show is pretty simple...yet it's so complex, I dont have quiet the vocabulary to express my fullest emotions about this show, so I'll try my best, please excuse me for my bad English. First of all, Larry Hall is a terrible person, every crime he committed disgusts me, but you see the show does such a good job at not just spoon-feeding the audience on how bad Lary is, instead they give us...the audience a simple backstory to him too, his difficulties and for a moment you can do nothing but even feel a tiny bit of compassion to this monster. I mean his whole life, almost nothing has gone his own way, he wasn't born with the best circumstances, his parents wasn't really caring for him. The only person he could talk to or feel safe was with Gary his twin brother and later on Jimmy. Maybe...just maybe, Lary could've been a sweet caring guy, he just needed a little bit of attention, you can see that clear as day when he is conversing with Jimmy, he just needed someone to talk to. I'm not trynna say what Lary did was right or anything please don't get me wrong he got what he deserved in the end but just imagine how precious human life is and yet how so fragile we are. At the final few minutes, I ended up shedding a tear or two for both these characters, such a beautiful show.

ltjoy1241

9/10

**A MUST NOT MISS SHOW - - -** A local cop, who cares about his job and yearns for closure in a murder case, if not for the family, for himself. A well-educated FBI agent who's eager to permenantly snare a shit-bag serial killer by unconventional means. And a pompous, swaggering drug dealer who desperately wants a second chance and will do anything to get it. This has got to be the 'sleeper' of the year! I had not heard/seen much about this in the way of advertising but saw this on Trakt. So glad I did. This true story was entertaining and chilling at the same time. Never really saw gory bloody or horrible murder scenes - but you knew they were there or happened. Well written for the screen and very well played out. Wished it had been more episodes. Dennis Lehane was the creator of this show. He also wrote the novel 'Gone Baby Gone' - which was made into a movie. Mr. Lehane's writing style is edge-of-your-seat and that is always entertaining and thought-provoking. Taron Egerton did a great job portraying exactly what a spoiled, egotistical, drug lord, cop's kid would act like. The only other thing I can remember him as, is Elton John. Paul Walter Hauser - whom I cannot remember seeing in anything - did a fantastic (almost too fantastic) job of a psychopath serial killer. I will be looking for other things he's been involved in. Sepideh Moafi, Greg Kinnear, and Ray Liotta were also great in their roles as supporting cast members. Greg Kinnear is never a let down in any role he does. Sepideh Moafi easily pulled off her role. I can see her carrying a TV series someday or at least, a limited release series. And Ray Liotta, one of the best! May he rest in peace. Mr. Liotta's role was perfect for him as a retired cop who's love for his son was also what probably gave his son the spoiled, egotistical attitude that enabled him to easily slip into the life of being a drug lord.

ObjectivityGate

0/10

[Minor Spoilers] So, I watched the entire show today. I have to say it was one of those stories you just couldn't leave lying. I had to finish it. To put it briefly, it was an incredibly solid true crime Tv Show. Highly reminiscent of True Detective and Mindhunters. Right up there in the same caliber. I don't think it was better than Mindhunters, but I do think it was better than True Detective S1. So that is where I stand. Now this show was great. It lacked some details about the main character I would have liked, they never really explored him. I never really felt like I got to know him. Even when he was telling the antagonist it didn't feel genuine, and I don't think it was supposed too anyway. He was lying very often to garner the thing he needed from the antagonist. Perhaps the highlight of the show would be the character of Larry Hall, played surrealistically by Paul Walter Hauser. Who said he was incredibly happy to be able to work with Ray Liotta, who passed during the filming of this show. Paul's acting elevated to an entirely new level. He continues playing the soft-spoken innocent guy mostly, until he can't help but show his true dark side. It's uncanny how well Hauser did. Definitely reminds me of Mindhunters and Ed Kemper's actor. There is a sense of being played with by the antagonist throughout the show that makes you feel like the main character, being toyed with almost. I suppose the rest of the show wasn't really too standout. It was shot well. Especially the episode before the finale. The director really nailed the tension in that beginning scene with the therapist. I suppose the show stands out as 4 stars to me because I couldn't drop it all day. I suppose I should change the rating to 3.5 to better reflect that its certainly above average but perhaps not in Zodiac (fincher) territory. If it's a question about these filmmakers talents? It has been answered. Solid, Solid show. It felt a little rushed at the end in that last episode but ok. Really recommend it. My particular bent for this type of story is that the Antagonist really makes me wonder why God creates serial killers. There is a line in a Koan poem by a Zen monk, that I was reminded of while watching it. Thich Naht Hanh wrote it. "I am the pirate who is raping the child, but I am also the child being raped. Call me and know me by my true self."