‘The People VS OJ’ Premiere Review
'The People VS OJ' premiered last night on FX. I caught the first episode and I will likely keep watching because of the cast performances, even if the episode was a little slow.
The show starts off with footage from the LA riots, setting the scene of the racial tension going on in that time period. It's eerily similar to the Ferguson protests, and it's pretty disappointing to see that things haven't changed in our country in 20 some years.
The first episode starts with the discovery of the crime scene, targeting OJ as a potential suspect, introducing his law team, and ends with the white Bronco racing down the interstate.
What Worked:
The cast was phenomenal. At first it was a little tough for me to not see Cuba whenever he was in the scene. But after a little while I could get past that. David Schwimmer as Robert Kardashian is very good. He looks like he could be Kardashian's brother.
We see a little bit of Johnny Cochrane played by Coutrney B. Vance, and he is convincing in his role for the short amount of time in this first episode.
John Travolta is unlike any other character he's played in his role of Robert Shapiro. He's kind of creepy actually. Like a rich weirdo. But it works.
That brings us to Sarah Paulson who plays Marcia Clark. Not only do they look so similar that you would wonder if it really is Marcia Clark, Sarah Paulson does a great job portraying the tenacious lead prosecutor.
The timeline of the first episode is good, how it doesn't waste time getting into it. It also leaves you looking forward to the next episode.
What didn't work:
There were times when the show lost me. Not because I was confused but I did feel myself tuning out for brief periods of time. I"m not sure what exactly it was, but it felt a little flat. Perhaps we are so used to dramatic sensationalized tv crime dramas that the cut and dry feel of this show is something we need to adjust to.
It's not CSI, it's not NCIS, it's not Law & Order. It's a real story that follows the real plotline.
There are some differences between the American Crime Story and what truly happened according to some real life people involved in the case. And that bothers me a little. Why even bother telling the true story if it isn't exaclty 100% true.
Overall:
It is a good show worth watching, and I'll be tuning in for the next episode.