Customer Reviews

Life: Season One

5 star:		(105)
4 star:		(9)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

Prison changes a man, and it certainly changed former LAPD police officer Charlie Crews. From 1995 to 2007 he served hard time for murders he didn't commit. When DNA evidence surfaces proving his innocence, Crews is released and reinstated in the force (he also lands some serious settlement money). Now Detective Crews finds himself working with a new partner even as he covertly seeks answers to what the hell happened.

LIFE looks to be a very promising cop detective show, and not because the mysteries themselves are dynamite stuff or anything. No, the viewing addiction lies in watching the lead actor work his craft. Britisher Damian Lewis is simply fabulous as the wounded, brooding protagonist, trying to piece his life back together. It's fun watching Crews apply his askewed perspective on his cases. I'm normally not a fan of folks who sling zen about, but Lewis makes it such a quirky and integral part of his character. And if it's a loose cannon with an agenda slinging that zen, all the better. After all, zen helped Crews survive the penitentiary. I also like the little touches which remind us that Crews is still coping with his new found freedom, whether it's his habit of munching on fresh fruit (they never have fresh fruit in prison) or his preference for light and open air or the fact that he still doesn't have furniture in his home.

Lewis's supporting cast is so-so. I do enjoy Sarah Shahi, who's a former Dallas Cowboy cheerleader. She plays the no-nonsense Dani Reese, Crews' new partner and not ecstatic about it. It's true that her character tends to fall in the generic character-saddled-with-demons category, so, yeah, nothing new from that angle. But I think she has very good chemistry with Damian Lewis, and I just love her bemused or irritated reactions to Crews' barrage of philosophical quirk. Two other actors who nicely play off Lewis are sexy Brooke Langton as Crews' smitten attorney and Adam Arkin as Crews' former inmate and current best friend and financial adviser.

I like the show's use of interview clips. They reveal certain insights and usher several sub-plots into the light. We learn, for instance, that Crews' former partner didn't stand up for him and that Crews' beautiful wife had divorced him while he was serving out his time. We even get a teeny whiff of the conspiracy surrounding Crews' frame-up. More layers and foreshadowings, thanks to these interview clips.

SPOILERS now.

With the steady influx of crime drama on TV, I wasn't planning on tuning in to this show. Then the pilot changed my mind. Other standout episodes? "Powerless" is the powerful sixth episode, focusing on Dani as she pursues a rapist who'd been haunting her AA meetings. "Farthingale" (episode 8) is a fun one, an intriguing mystery which begins with a man having been half blown off by an exploding stove. Then there's the intense two-part, season closing story arc (episodes 10 & 11: "Dig A Hole" & "Fill It Up") as Crews finally tracks down the man who committed the murders for which he was incarcerated. In "Dig A Hole" we also get to see a showdown of sorts between Crews' new and former partners.

SPOILERS end.

I can't stress enough how good Damian Lewis is on this show. I remember him from HBO's great wartime mini-series, Band of Brothers, and he made big noise back then, too, and was even nominated for a Golden Globe (although he didn't win). Damian Lewis, with his complex performance here, elevates LIFE from a humdrum procedural into a riveting police drama. And since NBC has already indicated that this wonderful drama series will be picked up for a second season, well, LIFE is good.

The show started off a little shaky, seeming not to know what its balance between procedural and character drama should be. But, considering the characters have all been fantastic from the start, the more recent turn in that direction is very smart. Damian Lewis has always been a talented actor, but this is one of his most riveting performances ever. I've never seen a character like Charlie Crews, and now I'm dying to see more of him. As he gets deeper into the conspiracy to frame him, all the little layers are getting pulled back. I sincerely hope NBC realizes what a gem they have here and starts giving it better promotions.

I LOVE this show, it was the best new series of the season, and I fell in love with everything it is. It looks at first like another cop drama with a twist, but that description couldn't be more further from the truth.

LIFE is great, funny, light, intelligent, serious, dark, it's got it all, the writing is awesome, so many terrific lines/one-liner that are just brilliant, directing, acting, music selection, it's a masterpiece of art!

BUT : I have not and will not buy the DVDs, and I recommend against it, because NBC screw things up and IT IS NOT THE ORIGINAL MUSIC !!!

The replaced the music everywhere by some other songs, and it's far from being anywhere near as good as it originally was!!

[...]

No way I buy DVDs like that, that's not the show I watched, love, and want to watch over & over again, not like that. NBC, you just lost a customer.

This show is excellant...from the quirky yet deep character of Charlie Crews...to the storyline which leaves you wondering what twists and turns the plot will take...add a little humor, and your set for a great drama...Can't wait for season 2 in October!!!

This show's strength is in the cast, led by Damian Lewis. He plays his quirky character Charlie Crews with orginality and hilarity. As his partner, Sarah Shahi's Dani Reese is a great foil to Crews and their scenes together can be at once serious and intense, and then laugh-out-loud comical.

The two detectives are relectant partners (mostly on Dani's part), but as the series goes on they become grudging friends, finding that they work better with each other than without. Each episode focuses on two things: a case they must solve, and det. Crews's efforts to figure out who set him up for murder. He is a very rich man as a result of being unfairly incarcerated, but right from the beginning we can see that he has some demons to face. Dani also has her share of personal problems, and while we don't know everything that has brought her to her current emotionally distraught state, the show does reveal bits and pieces of her backstory. Crews makes some headway into his own case, but you'll have watch the show to see what it is.

Crews is such a cool character, and gives "Life" a flair that is often missing from other crime shows. The cases are serious, but det. Crews's...peculiar...personality make this show engaging and a delight to watch. "Life" gets my vote as the most underrated show on the air right now. I can't recommend it enough.

Life is the best new television series that I've seen in years. The stories are well-written and beautifully-filmed and the characters are engaging. Damian Lewis is mesmerizing as Charlie Crews and the chemistry among all the cast members is terrific. The language is funny and smart and the music is great. I'm thrilled that NBC has renewed this wonderful series and I am looking forward to the season one DVD in September and new programs in October, 2008.

Like most mystery fans, I love to be challenged by a good story that makes me dig beneath the surface and come up with new insight about multi-dimensional characters I'm willing to spend time with. Such stories are rare, especially on TV, but "Life" proves it can be done. Damian Lewis stars as LAPD Detective Charlie Crews. The first episode, Merit Badge, begins with his first day back on the police force after serving 12 years in maximum security prison, a cop framed for a crime he didn't commit. What does that do to a good man? Sarah Shahi costars as another rich character with a flawed background, his no-nonsense new partner, Dani Reese. She doesn't know if she can trust him or not - is he now a cop or a con?

Prison life was brutal for Crews, but discovering a book on Zen saved his life and his sanity. Now he uses Zen techniques and principles to deal with his anger and to solve crimes. He's not Zen, he's Zenish! Mostly he drives his partner crazy. One thing this show excels at is rocketing from light-hearted fun to heart-pounding action in seconds.

The 11 episodes of Season One are done in police procedural style, but that's not all this show is about. "Life" is also about struggling to return to a normal life after suffering tragedy. The crimes the two detectives investigate illuminate the life of Charlie Crews. He's so glad to be alive, to be free, and to have fresh fruit! Once you've seen all 11 episodes, you can go back and re-watch and catch many clues you missed the first time through. Themes and imagery repeat in subtle ways. It's all connected!

Is "Life" a modern-day retelling of "The Count of Monte Cristo" by Alexandre Dumas? Events in the life of Charlie Crews do have similarities to events in the life of Edmond Dantes. Both were falsely imprisoned as young men, lost their families as a result, and came out extremely wealthy. But whereas Dantes is cold, relentless, and emotionless in his drive for retribution and revenge on those who wronged him, Charlie Crews is more conflicted. We see that Crews is capable of violence, but he demonstrates great warmth and compassion for others he sees as victims of oppression.

No wonder Richard Keller of TV Squad called Life

"One of best written and acted shows in this abbreviated season."

So even though we had a short season, Rand Ravich (the creator/writer/producer) and all the others who made this excellent show succeeded brilliantly. The Season One finale, Fill It Up, builds to a satisfying pay-off for our attention during the previous ten episodes. That said, new questions raised mean I can't wait for Season Two, which starts in October on NBC.

Life is a wonderful show ... one of my all-time favorites. But do yourself a favor and catch the episodes on TV if you can. The DVD release uses a different, and vastly inferior, soundtrack. There were some powerfully appropriate songs attached to key scenes, and the show loses something without them. (The online episodes use the same second-rate soundtracks as the DVDs.) I won't say I regret the $20 I spent on Season One, but I'd gladly spend twice as much if only they'd included the original music. Bad call, NBC ... bad call.

Life has THE most refined script of any show I've seen. The writing is pure genius! Every detail of every episode feels like a "must know" part of the story. To quote Damian, "It's all connected."

Every episode has its own ingenius plot, while all along each episode is building up to the season's master plot. Simply amazing; they achieved perfection with this one. I can't wait for season 2!

Another Damien Lewis triumph. I've been impressed with this guy since he did the two mini-series The Forsyth Saga and Band of Brothers. Band of Brothers was a stand-out performance since he was a Brit playing an American officer of the 101st Airborne. Nicely done by him and he is a coming actor. Just needs the right launch pad. Life is a good choice. It has a great hook and the right quirkyness to make it really interesting and not like the usual drivel on American telly . . . the rest of the cast is good as well and with the continued good writing this show has a chance to succeed where most shows fail if they don't have CSI or Law and Order as part of their title. So, if you want to watch something different and not the usual display of bullets entering a human body and puncturing various organs close-up this is a good one. Life is good.