FilmSlashTV: Up a ‘River’ without a paddle
The new ABC thriller "The River" goes upstream into the heart of darkness. (Courtesy ABC)
REVIEW BY BURL BURLINGAME / bburlingame@staradvertiser.com
Pop songwriters know that there are really only about five chord progressions that matter. It’s all in how you cobble it together and massage the heart of the subject matter. One of the most-fun things about “The River” is identifying those trends in popular culture that were tossed into the stew.
It’s very much a right-now project, although not desperately so. The mojo pretty much works on all levels, from a spooky gut-level scarefest up to an intriguing puzzle that has clues scattered, like crumbs. Left brain, right brain, heart and nerves, it all clicks together as a canny, compulsively watchable mystery. It’s the first post-”Lost” show that captures some of that immersive magic. (Forget “Alcatraz” — so far there’s no arc beyond creep-of-the-week to justify its high concept, and “Terra Nova” is way too episodic and family-comfy.)
Let’s just hope that the story arc of “The River” justifies its set-up.
The situation is that of a beloved television nature host (think, Steve Irwin, the “Crocodile Hunter”) whose family has been filmed all their lives (“The Truman Show”) has gone missing in an obscure corner of the globe (“Lost”). His TV producers bankroll a search and (potential) rescue, but only if every second of internecine drama can be committed to tape (“Big Brother,” “Real World,” “Jersey Shore,” and frankly, every reality show ever made) and the entire thing is handled as lost videotape being viewed in retrospect (“The Blair Witch Project,” “Paranormal Activity”).
It seems real, because the filming styles mirror what we know of sloppy or not-perfect footage (“84 Charlie MoPic,” the Zapruder and Rodney King footage), and the filmmakers know that what is NOT seen on the “found footage” is all the more frightening (“Cloverfield,” “Ghost Hunters”) because it’s OUR imagination that’s being goosed, thanks to the reaction shots of those caught on film. And we wind up watching the screen more intently than we usually do, seeking clues.
What’s in those dark shadows beyond the light? It’s a reaction as old as hearing monsters growl in the night beyond the glow of our campfires.
I credit (or blame) Ricky Gervais and Stephen Merchant. Their low-budget British sitcom “The Office” and its American spin-off had, as its central conceit, the notion that regular folks were being filmed by a documentary camera crew. This deconstruction of angle rapidly blossomed as a trending filmic style that completely erased the proscenium “fourth wall” between audience and subject.
Instead of a camera’s view of the proceedings, it became our own, and created a new visual and storytelling rhythm that was more intimate and inclusive. We’re not watching a scene, we’re in the scene, and when a character speaks, he speaks directly to us. Not an “audience.” No, that’s would be too formal, a performance.
“The River” touches all those buttons, and does so brilliantly, based on the first couple of episodes. It’s simple, but it’s not stupid, and the clues dropped are intriguing enough to analyze over. Which means you’re both on the edge of your seat, spooked, and also leaning back, thinking. Pretty good trick.
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Burl Burlingame is a features reporter at the Honolulu Star-Advertiser. Email him at bburlingame@staradvertiser.com and follow him on Twitter.
