‘Anatomy of a Scandal’ Is Everything We Expect From David E. Kelly — Review
Anatomy of a Scandal is a six-episode miniseries already streaming on Netflix.
It is the latest high-society drama created by David E. Kelly, and features a well-positioned woman that finds out her husband is not exactly who she thought he was. Following up his successful shows Big Little Lies and The Undoing, Kelly pretty much reused the entire plot of his previous series, just changing some scenarios and key plot points. For instance, instead of murder, this time around the husband is accused of rape, and instead of being a highly-respected New York oncologist, he is a beloved political figure from the UK, very close to the Prime Minister.
It should be noted, though, that even though Kelly is a co-creator of the series, it was S.J. Clarkson who directed all of the episodes. Melissa James Gibson also co-created the series and co-wrote it with Kelly. And while so far this may seem like a criticism, it’s just a warning. I devoured this series, as I did with The Undoing and Big Little Lies, and I absolutely recommend it. Like a teenager speeding through every romance YA novel they can find, I will eat up any TV project from Kelly, because even though the plots do feel recycled, the execution is outstanding every time.
Anatomy of a Scandal is an adaptation of Sarah Vaughan’s novel of the same name, and stars Sienna Miller as the wife of James Whitehouse, played by Rupert Friend. Miller’s character, Sophie, finds out her husband has been having an affair with a co-worker. After finding the courage to forgive him, the plot twists into a national scandal when the husband is accused of raping said co-worker after the two had ended the affair. The co-worker, Olivia Lytton, is played wonderfully by Naomi Scott (2019’s Aladdin), with Michelle Dockery (Downton Abbey) playing Kate Woodcroft, the prosecutor of the case.
The series contains some of the most impressive camerawork and directing I’ve seen on TV in a long time, and after watching it, I couldn’t be more excited for Sony’s Madame Web, which Clarkson will be directing next. The camera will often rotate following the characters’ emotions in each moment, easing the audience into their feeling of unbalance and having their world upside down. The editing is also sublime, and it is often used to travel between different points in time, combined with some excellent directing. When testifying, for instance, a character will be thrown back to the moment they are describing, in the literal sense. The surroundings will disappear, and the actor is suddenly in the middle of the flashback, trapped inside the tragic memory.
The production and costume design are absolutely impeccable, and no doubt helped Miller and Friend get into their roles. Both are excellent across the board, and my only regret is that we don’t get to see them in many projects these days. Sure, Friend is in the upcoming Obi-Wan Kenobi (albeit hidden under layers and layers of makeup), but Miller hasn’t headlined a project in a while, which is a shame, given her acting chops. The other downside of the show is that, after watching it, it made me despise lawyers even more than abusive men, especially after watching Friend’s on-screen defender, played by Josette Simon.
The bottom line is, if you enjoyed The Undoing, you will probably enjoy this too. Even if you were disappointed by the ending of that series, you might enjoy this one, because it’s not about solving a murder anymore. Whether or not he did what he’s accused of is quite clear from the beginning to the audience, and yet the story holds enough surprises to justify a six-episode arc. If you didn’t watch The Undoing or Big Little Lies, then I definitely recommend Anatomy of a Scandal.
David E. Kelly did it once again, and I cannot wait for Love and Death, which hopefully will come out later this year. As the marketing campaign for Doctor Strange 2 continues, I really hope an outlet asks Elizabeth Olsen at some point about it. Stay tuned for more news on that.
Miguel Fernández is a Spanish student that has movies as his second passion in life. His favorite movie of all time is The Lord of the Rings, but he is also a huge Star Wars fan. However, fantasy movies are not his only cup of tea, as authors like Scorsese, Fincher, Kubrick or Hitchcock have been an obsession for him since he started to understand the language of filmmaking. He is that guy who will watch a black and white movie, just because it is in black and white.
