Crime

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

(BritBox, Prime)

Dougray Scott as DI Ray Lennox blew my socks off in BBC’s Crime, based on Irvine Welsh's novel of the same name. DI Ray is a detective with demons, and we come to understand why when his character exposes the danger of moral ambiguity.

Welsh’s adaptation feels authentic being grounded in Scotland’s history of crime and societal turmoil. Scott’s embodiment of Lennox is captivating, perfectly portraying how his past experiences influence his current actions, raising the shows central question: “Is redemption available for everyone?”

The show lives in the gray of Scotland’s weather, never setting both feet in either the black or white of wrong and right. In equal dissonance, the cinematography’s use of close ups and distant shots echos difficulties of the intrapersonal and the solitary, the clash of strength and vulnerability. All of which we see (and feel) on Scott's face, as if Crime were silent movie and his face the blank white screen.

We live in an ocean of crime stories, TV series, podcasts, movies and books. Crime is a welcome beachfront, achingly beautiful yet deceptively brutal, a great but short (only two seasons) binge-worthy crime series.