Mr. Mercedes
Based on a Stephen King novel, this slow-burn thriller maps out in gritty, yet often poetic detail the frustrations and difficulty of identifying and capturing that modern phenomenon – the psychopathic serial killer.
not for the faint of heart
The central character is retired detective Bill Hodges who is still haunted by the one big case he never solved. We see what this was in a gruesome prologue at the start. Not for the faint of heart, a young man drives a stolen Mercedes at a queue of jobseekers outside a jobs fair killing sixteen including a child. The psychopath responsible was dubbed ‘Mr Mercedes’ by the media at the time and eluded capture.
Not so much a ‘whodunit’ as a ‘how will they get him’, we know from early on that Mr Mercedes is Brady Hartsfield, a young computer repairman working for a local electronics store and still living with his mother in a relationship that pushes the boundaries of unhealthy. Hartsfield is played by Harry Treadaway with wide-eyed insouciance that veers between brooding malevolence and butter-wouldn’t-melt innocence.
Harry Treadaway brings a wide-eyed insouciance to the role of Brady Hartsfield
Brendon Gleeson is the detective, Hodges, and starts by displaying the classic clichés of a retired TV cop, drinking too much, letting himself go and on the verge of ill-health and still obsessed with his failure to apprehend ‘Mr Mercedes’, much to the chagrin of his former partner. However, everything changes when Mr Mercedes comes back into his life via his computer. It seems that Hartsfield is almost peeved not to have been caught and thus be denied his fifteen minutes of fame, so hacks his way into Hodges computer to taunt the former detective back into his own sick game.
Brendan Gleeson as retired cop – Bill Hodges
What follows is a compelling, character-led drama that slips seamlessly between thriller, horror and family drama as we have the sense we are in the presence of very real people dealing with real life issues.
Mr Mercedes looks at the consequences of a tragedy from the points of view of everyone affected – including the perpetrator – and shows how hard catching random psychopaths really is. It also fits the real-life truism that serial killers are never suspected by the people in their lives…’he always kept himself to himself, but would never hurt a fly…’.
King seems to have fun obliquely referencing Hitchcock’s ‘Psycho’
As the ten-part series progresses, we develop real knowledge of and, in some cases, affection for the well-rounded characters. And, as the pace quickens, events take ever more shocking turns. King seems to have fun obliquely referencing Alfred Hitchcock’s ‘Psycho’, and one sequence in this story arc gives the lie to all those many scenes you’ve seen in a million movies and TV shows where someone closes the eyes of a dead body. When someone attempts it in this series, the eyes just pop open again. It’s a real ‘did I just see that?!!’ moment.
Brady Hartsfield has an unhealthy relationship with his mother played Kelly Lynch
Brendon Gleeson is in top form as the grizzled detective, Bill Hodges, and the symbolism in the opening credits (his giant tortoise and penchant for vinyl records, even the theme song ‘It’s not too late’) tell us that this is someone steeped in the old ways who will plod along until he gets his man. His Irish heritage is explained early on so that he can use his natural Irish brogue rather than dilute his charm with a fake American accent.
There is much to admire in this series and a follow-up has already been commissioned.
this review also appears on imdb.com
