CLEVELAND, Ohio – A murder has taken place in an affluent community of Monterey, California. We don’t who got killed. We don’t know why.
REVIEW Big Little Lies
What: The premiere of a seven-episode dark comedy based on the novel by Liane Moriarty.
When: 9 p.m. Sunday, Feb. 19.
Where: HBO
But we know someone has gone room temperature in Monterey, because the seven-part HBO series “Big Little Lies” opens with witnesses giving testimony to the police.
“So, like, we’re seriously using the word . . . murder,” says one of those being interviewed.
Actually, “Big Little Lies” is, like, using the word murder in an uneven attempt to be seriously funny. Based on the best-selling novel of the same name by Liane Moriarty, this is a dark comedy setting its satirical sights on the rich and famous and fatuous and status-conscious residents of a neighborhood fueled by gossip, jealousy and suspicion.
Sounds like fun? Well, premiering at 9 p.m. Sunday, Feb. 19, “Big Little Lies” is big fun in a soapy, snippy kind of way. And it boasts a big-name cast, led by Reese Witherspoon and Nicole Kidman.
But this humorous take on homicide from writer-executive producer David E. Kelley also has its share of little problems. The biggest of the little problems is that the mystery is by far the least interesting and most aggravating aspect of the series.
Once Kelley teases us with the revelation of a murder, most of the narrative slips into a giant flashback leading to who got killed and why. It’s a gimmick that quickly wears out its welcome, as the endless parade of witnesses turns from delightful to wincingly annoying. Before long, you no longer care who got murdered and why.
And yet, “Big Little Lies” is a giddy ride reminiscent of the early seasons of ABC’s “Desperate Housewives.” That’s because the ambitious HBO production works beautifully as exceedingly wicked, exceedingly adult satire.
Here, Kelley’s writing is spot-on. Here, you are in grand company with a winning cast making the most of each nasty glance or caustically catty comment.
There is a dangerous undercurrent running throughout this story where, as one character says, “Everyone wants to prove who’s the richest.” Oddly enough, though, the murder isn’t what gives the series its dangerous edge (or even a sense of intrigue).
No, the danger is lurking in every phony display of affection from neighbors who would willingly slip the knife into an unsuspecting back (metaphorically and, perhaps, literally). Underneath all that civility and put-on pleasantness, says one witness, “They’re vicious.”
So many terrible people. So much fun.
When single-mom newcomer Jane Chapman (Shailene Woodley) remarks on how nice everyone seems, high-energy Madeline Martha Mackenzie (Witherspoon) tells her: “It’s Monterey. We pound people with nice.”
Then Madeline’s best friend, Celeste Wright (Kidman), adds two ominous and prophetic words: “To death.”
So what about that murder? Oh, yeah, the murder. “It all goes back to the incident on orientation day,” we are told.
On the first day of school, Jane, the outsider, is drawn into the Madeline-Celeste circle. There are circles. There are sides. And Madeline’s butter-wouldn’t-melt nemesis is Renata (Laura Dern).
A small incident spirals out of control, putting us on the trail to that Monterey murder. Along the way, Witherspoon is stealing scene after scene as Madeline, who has taken grudge-holding to an art form.
We’re a long way from the Monterey that was a favorite setting for Nobel Prize-winning writer John Steinbeck’s stories. We’re also a long way from the setting of Moriarty’s book, which was set in the seaside Australian town of Pirriwee.
And, for that matter, we’re a long way from Kelley’s reign as TV’s powerhouse writer-producer.
There was a time when it seemed as though Kelley couldn’t miss. That time was the remarkable 20-year run that started in 1986. He turned out hit after hit: “L.A. Law,” “Picket Fences,” “Chicago Hope,” “The Practice,” “Ally McBeal,” “Boston Public,” “Boston Legal.” The last 10 years, however, have seen more misses than hits. Remember “The Wedding Bells,” “Harry’s Law” and “Monday Mornings”?
If not a triumphant return to form, “Big Little Lies” is the best new Kelley series in quite a while. It contains all of his considerable strengths (sharp and clever dialogue) and some his weaknesses (precious and labored moments).
It is nothing less than fun, if never much more than that. But that’s more than enough to keep you engaged and keep you watching.
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