HBO’s Underseen 6-Part Crime Masterpiece Is One of the Decade’s Best Thrillers

Steven Soderbergh is one of the most prolific filmmakers of the modern era, known for directing a wide variety of movies, including Ocean’s Twelve, Contagion, Magic Mike, and Black Bag. Soderbergh has also brought his impressive skills to the small screen, directing Clive Owen‘s medical thriller, The Knick, and Sharon Stone‘s immersive, twisty murder-mystery HBO series, Mosaic.

One of the most unusual projects of Soderbergh’s career is the HBO miniseries Full Circle, which stars Timothy Olyphant, Claire Danes, Dennis Quaid, Zazie Beetz, and even comedian Jim Gaffigan. On its surface, it looked like just another straightforward kidnapping thriller. However, Soderbergh has always had an interest in examining processes and systems, and Full Circle is a tightly wound thriller that examines how an entire infrastructure could fail.

What Is Timothy Olyphant and Claire Danes’ HBO Miniseries About?

Co-created with Soderbergh’s frequent collaborator Ed Solomon, Full Circle is a New York-set drama about the wealthy power couple Derek (Olyphant) and Sam (Danes), whose son Jared (Ethan Stoddard) feels uncomfortable about the privilege that he’s been gifted with. Jared’s parents have worked to maintain the empire of Sam’s father, the celebrity “Chef Jeff” (Dennis Quaid), which has also made them vulnerable to threats from rivals. Jared is targeted by a kidnapping scheme organized by the enigmatic orchestrator Mrs. Mahabir (CCH Pounder), but a botched abduction leads to a complex series of revelations. The kidnapping itself is just the tip of the iceberg in Full Circle; as the characters rush to solve the problem, secrets from their past are unveiled and threaten to change the fabric of their reality.

Steven Soderbergh’s HBO Miniseries ‘Full Circle’ Is a Twisty Mystery Thriller

Image via HBO Max

The brilliance of Full Circle is that Soderbergh refuses to treat any character as a clear-cut hero or villain, as there is a degree of vulnerability within them all. Full Circle asks an ethical question that is reminiscent of the classic Akira Kurosawa film High and Low, as the tension kicks off when the kidnappers accidentally capture Jared’s friend, Nicky (Lucian Zanes), whom he had met through an online chatroom. While it would seem like the most honorable thing for Derek and Sam to do would be to still pay the ransom to save another innocent life, they are more frugal about the decisions they make once they realize that their actual son isn’t in danger. This doesn’t just speak to the class divisions that protect someone like Jared, but reveals the exploitative nature of the kidnappers. Even though they realize that they have the wrong target, they are still going to threaten him because they have initiated a conversation with people who have more power than they do.

Related

This Clive Owen Drama Is Also One of the Most Accurate Medical Shows

The research makes this series’ world feel all the more immersive.

Full Circle features some highly realistic, uncomfortable moments of dysfunctional family drama, but it’s also an excellent procedural that examines the perspectives of the investigators assigned to solve the case. Perhaps the best performance in the show is from Zazie Beetz as Harmony Melody, an investigator who is on the rocks with her boss Manny Broward (Jim Gaffigan) because of her exacting and obsessive nature. Soderbergh goes to great lengths to point out the flaws in the criminal justice system, which is a main reason why Melody is such a compelling hero.

While most of the investigators see it as their job to appease the rich benefactors that support the police department, Melody wants to get to the truth as to why Jared was targeted and what secrets his family might be holding. Beetz is obviously a force of charisma, but she gets to take on a much more serious role than she was granted in Atlanta. Even though Gaffigan is one of the best stand-up comedians in the world right now, he perfectly slips into the role of a disheveled, indifferent employer who seems ignorant of the frustration he causes for Melody. Given Soderbergh’s unique eye for casting, it is also fun to see appearances by venerable characters like Happy Anderson and William Sadler, who make the most of their small roles.

‘Full Circle’ Questions Its Ambiguous Ethics Effectively

Full Circle feels like a spiritual successor to classic New York-set crime dramas like Mean Streets, Dog Day Afternoon, and King of New York, as the city itself feels like a character. Soderbergh can visually examine how diverse the experiences are in the city, with characters like Jared, Melody, and Mahabir living close to one another, yet having completely different experiences based on their privilege and background. The show is also willing to address a more complex depiction of criminality, as the kidnappers Aked (Jharrel Jerome), Louis (Gerald Jones), and Xavier (Sheyi Cole) often have no idea what they are doing. Revealing that each character is fallible introduces a new layer of irony to Full Circle, infusing it with the sort of dark comedy that Soderbergh is often best known for. The use of slight humor in intense moments allows the viewers to connect more deeply with the story. The tense show is so realistic that audiences can’t help but question what they would do in a similar situation.

As the title may suggest, Full Circle examines the futile conception of progress, as the regimented nature of today’s infrastructure means that there is little room for mobility. Even if the idea at its core is a rather cynical one, Full Circle asks compelling questions about the responsibilities that someone has to their community, their family, and their personal dignity. Olyphant and Danes are two stars best known for playing defiant heroes in Justified and Homeland, respectively, so it is interesting to see them as a flawed married couple who are forced to question the fundamentals of their relationship. Full Circle may feel like a cathartic experience for those who have faced issues similar to any of the characters, but it also offers insights into the type of eyeball-catching, inflammatory news stories that readers often don’t delve deeper into. While the series was technically released directly to “Max” as an original production, the excellent performances, clever writing, and thematic undercurrent ensure that it rises to the quality threshold necessary for an HBO show.

Release Date

2023 – 2023-00-00

Network

HBO, Max

Showrunner

Ed Soloman

Directors

Steven Soderbergh

Writers

Ed Soloman

• 
  

•