DUBAI: Another week, another Netflix murder-mystery. And yes, its star Kyle Turner (a suitably stony-faced Eric Bana) is a maverick cop (OK, not a cop, but a National Park Service Investigative Services Branch special agent) with an alcohol problem and limited interpersonal skills grudgingly working with rookie park ranger Naya Vasquez (Lily Santiago, giving what should be a breakout performance) to solve a murder. A murder that turns out to have links to past events that Turner would rather didn’t come to light. So far, so pretty-sure-I’ve-seen-this-all-before.
But “Untamed” has plenty under its trope-y façade to deserve your attention. First off, there’s the astonishingly beautiful scenery — a constant joy throughout. The show is set in California’s Yosemite National Park, but was shot in British Columbia, Canada (with some shots of Yosemite included). As in several of the best Nordic thrillers, the landscape is as central to the show as any of its characters — as one of the latter points out, it’s easy to forget that civilization and laws exist in the midst of all that wilderness.
Secondly, the cast — almost without exception — are pitch-perfect. Bana avoids the pitfalls of a role that could’ve easily turned into a surly-tough-guy-by-numbers performance, imbuing Turner with an empathy and insightfulness that draws you in. Santiago, similarly, eschews the temptation to make Vasquez a goofy, one-dimensional sidekick, sparking off Bana’s flintiness impressively and showing plenty of steeliness of her own. Sam Neill is typically solid as chief park ranger Paul Souter, Turner’s friend and mentor and Vasquez’s boss. Rosemarie DeWitt is excellent as Turner’s ex-wife Jill Bodwin, a teacher-turned-realtor struggling with the same grief responsible for Turner’s drinking issues. Their marriage may be over, but there’s clearly still an unbreakable bond between them.
And third, the plot twists actually work. Or, at least, some of them do; certainly more than most in the genre. Turner — though clearly a gifted detective — allows his hunches to lead him (and the audience) down a few blind alleys before the whole truth comes out. And creators Mark L. Smith and Elle Smith (Mark’s daughter) make sure there are consequences to his errors, giving his choices a feeling of jeopardy often lacking in crime dramas.
“Untamed” isn’t quite must-see television, but it is an accomplished, confident and engaging thriller that will keep you hooked throughout its six episodes.
