Unconventional psychologist Gerry "Fitz" Fitzgerald is one of the best police interrogators in the business, mostly because his own quirks and perversities help him get inside the criminal m... Read allUnconventional psychologist Gerry "Fitz" Fitzgerald is one of the best police interrogators in the business, mostly because his own quirks and perversities help him get inside the criminal mind.Unconventional psychologist Gerry "Fitz" Fitzgerald is one of the best police interrogators in the business, mostly because his own quirks and perversities help him get inside the criminal mind.
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This excruciating remake of the excellent British series is not worth wasting your time on.
The police in the original had skepticism coming out of their ears when it came to having a psychologist on the team, exactly as many real police officers would. The American version has them fawning after Fitz at every opportunity, which is not only unrealistic, it also set up little dramatic tension.
While the English version has quirky, interesting, believable characters, the American one has typical American pretty people. Particularly disappointing is the lack of characterisation of the police. The original has a range of people we came to know well: Penhaligon, the young officer trying to cope with an inept boss and pathetic "lad" culture. Beck, the old-fashioned copper whose unpleasant exterior barely covers his mental instability. Bilborough, a nice guy, but so soft he has to get Penhaligon to do the talking when visiting people with bad news. What do we get from the American version? A token black character whose name escapes me and a chicky-babe who looks like Pamela Anderson's cousin.
The actors who play Fitz and Penhaligon (renamed to something unmemorable) could easily be replaced by wooden blocks and no-one would have noticed the difference. There's no spark between them. You don't care about them and you aren't convinced by them. Same with the Fitz/Judith pairing - he says something soppy and she simpers "sentimentality becomes you, Fitz". The "real" Judith would have laughed or sneered.
I could go on, but it just isn't worth the bother. Take from me: if you don't want to see a great show trashed, avoid this load of drivel.
The police in the original had skepticism coming out of their ears when it came to having a psychologist on the team, exactly as many real police officers would. The American version has them fawning after Fitz at every opportunity, which is not only unrealistic, it also set up little dramatic tension.
While the English version has quirky, interesting, believable characters, the American one has typical American pretty people. Particularly disappointing is the lack of characterisation of the police. The original has a range of people we came to know well: Penhaligon, the young officer trying to cope with an inept boss and pathetic "lad" culture. Beck, the old-fashioned copper whose unpleasant exterior barely covers his mental instability. Bilborough, a nice guy, but so soft he has to get Penhaligon to do the talking when visiting people with bad news. What do we get from the American version? A token black character whose name escapes me and a chicky-babe who looks like Pamela Anderson's cousin.
The actors who play Fitz and Penhaligon (renamed to something unmemorable) could easily be replaced by wooden blocks and no-one would have noticed the difference. There's no spark between them. You don't care about them and you aren't convinced by them. Same with the Fitz/Judith pairing - he says something soppy and she simpers "sentimentality becomes you, Fitz". The "real" Judith would have laughed or sneered.
I could go on, but it just isn't worth the bother. Take from me: if you don't want to see a great show trashed, avoid this load of drivel.
Robert Pastorelli tried. The problem with this Americanized version of a great British series was the story lines didn't translate well. The story lines are so British. They would have been better off taking the characters and writing completely new scripts. It might have worked better if the series took place in New York. The LA area just didn't seem to fit with the dark feel of the show, all that sunshine just didn't work. I watched all of the episodes, waiting for an original storyline, never happened.
It was an admirable effort to bring a good show to American television. But poorly executed.
It was an admirable effort to bring a good show to American television. But poorly executed.
This is what you get when you try to redo an extremely good miniseries without the great actors of the original. Where the british Cracker has everything to watch each episode twice, the US version has everything to turn it off after five minutes. Maybe if one starts with this version it could be considered a good series, but knowing the original, it only hurts. That beg the question: why have they done it after all? Why not broadcast the original?
"Cracker" (1997), a shoddy knock-off of Jimmy McGovern's popular Brit series of the same name, is a waste of time. A simple minded, dumbed down commercial product, this TV flick fails on all levels. The characters all look like scale actors and were poorly cast. The screen play is uninspired rote. The premise is nebulous. The acting is marginal. The script is soap opera quality. The direction...well, I'm not sure there was any. Even the DVD was crap and not only had no CC's or subtitles but didn't even have a menu...just the two 45 minute episodes. Passable, forgettable junk. (C-)
Note - It's worth mentioning that I was spoiled by viewing the entire Brit "Cracker" series on DVD and consider it one of the best psychodramatic TV series ever made. Hence, my objectivity may be compromised.
Note - It's worth mentioning that I was spoiled by viewing the entire Brit "Cracker" series on DVD and consider it one of the best psychodramatic TV series ever made. Hence, my objectivity may be compromised.
Like others, I'm spoiled by watching the brilliant original. This movie is a near line-by-line re-creation of a Cracker episode. But it is done without the scene-setting and great asides from the original. Interstingly, they took some lines Fitz says to Judith at the end of the original and has him say them to Nina.
The sexual tension between Fitz and the Panhandle character is absent and awkwardly comes into play at the end.
Might be worth seeing for an early Makiska Hargatay police work. Or Josh Hartnell. Both don't show up in the IMDb credits.
Still, pretty much a waste of time if you've seen the original. The Fitz character lacks the believability of Robbie Coltrane.
The sexual tension between Fitz and the Panhandle character is absent and awkwardly comes into play at the end.
Might be worth seeing for an early Makiska Hargatay police work. Or Josh Hartnell. Both don't show up in the IMDb credits.
Still, pretty much a waste of time if you've seen the original. The Fitz character lacks the believability of Robbie Coltrane.
Did you know
- TriviaJames Gandolfini turned down the role of Fitz.
- ConnectionsRemake of Cracker (1993)
- How many seasons does Cracker: Mind Over Murder have?Powered by Alexa
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