The Spool / Reviews
Lady in the Lake dragged down by chaos, imbalance
AppleTV+'s Natalie Portman-starring period drama has lots on its mind without a great plan to share it all.
By: Tim Stevens
GenreCrime Drama Mystery
NetworkApple TV+
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For a show set in the mid-1960s, Lady in the Lake explores a basketful of issues relevant to today. From nearly 60 years in our past, it echoes modern “concerns” of all stripes. For example, characters range from dubious to outright hostile to the idea of Maddie (Natalie Portman) working as a journalist or Ferdie Platt (Y’lan Noel) becoming the first black detective in Baltimore. It doesn’t take much to see how that connects with today’s handwringing over DEI—bigotry dressed up to look like worries about the “most deserving person” getting the job. That the most deserving always seems to be a white man, in such concerned citizens’ opinions, is just a coincidence, no doubt.

Also spotlighted in Lady in the Lake are questions about women’s autonomy over their own bodies, grooming, legalized gambling, antisemitism, and politicians throwing over the people that got them elected for “respectability”. Homophobia, stranger danger, and the ramifications of untreated childhood trauma also receive small but prominent moments of attention.

Lady in the Lake (AppleTV+) Moses Ingram
Moses Ingram’s too good to get lost in this series’ chaos so often. (AppleTV+)

If that sounds like a lot for a television series to tackle in a single seven-episode season, well, it is. As a result, the show frequently —particularly the first two to three episodes—lapses into a sort of controlled but still frantic chaos. In its efforts, led by creator Alma Har’el, to wrap its arms around everything it wants to be about, the viewer can feel battered by incidents. The series’ occasional dalliances with hallucination and visual metaphor don’t help in this regard. They’re fascinating for certain. The sixth installment’s near episode-length exploration of Maddie’s psyche stands out as a season-high. However, they also sometimes make it overly difficult for the audience to find solid footing in the narrative. Lady in the Lake’s ambition is worthy of praise, but that doesn’t necessarily translate into good television.

It would also be a mistake to dismiss the show on this basis, though. The series often conjures up arresting images that break through the usual “streaming” house style we’ve all become inured to. Even when not creating noteworthy visual moments, Har’el and Lachlan Milne keep the camera moving, capturing a period-faithful Baltimore that never loses itself to the fetishization of its sets or props. For a show that dwells so much on death, it feels remarkably alive and energetic.

Lady in the Lake (AppleTV+) Natalie Portman x2
Lady in the Lake starring Natalie Portman and… NATALIE PORTMAN?! (AppleTV+)

With Portman in the cast—doing another wild accent, natch—one could well anticipate some excellent acting. And she certainly delivers. The quality of the cast doesn’t stop at the above-the-line star either. The aforementioned Noel is strong in a subdued performance that invites the viewers to watch his life flicker across his features. He doesn’t even nibble at the scenery, but there’s an openness to the work that makes one keep an eye out for him every time he shows up. Noah Jupe, as Maddie’s son Seth, and Mikey Madison, as her younger friend Judith, represent the teen and twenty-something performers well.

When scenery needs someone besides Portman to chew on it, the show has Pruitt Taylor Vince as a journalist and Wood Harris as local kingpin Shell Gordon to reliably deliver the goods. A personal favorite among the actors is Josiah Cross as one of Gordon’s footmen, Reggie. He crafts a performance that deepens as the show goes on, turning Reggie from a merely charismatic local boy to a figure of tragic, aching humanity.

Lady in the Lake (AppleTV+) Josiah Cross
Josiah Cross gets a good workout for those dramatic muscles. (AppleTV+)

Unfortunately, talking performances brings us back to another deep flaw in Lady in the Lake’s construction: the titular lady. Cleo Johnson (Moses Ingram) is a compelling figure with seemingly no path to righteous happiness. Her efforts to give her family a good life without corruption are stymied by the “respectable” people. If they give her a chance, what other people think or say? The alternate, living well and comfortable off illegal gains, is one her conscience can’t stand. She’s an integral part of her community, but it is a community rife with sad memories and pain for her. Meanwhile, the outside white world will let her model dresses in their department store windows but won’t let her forget where she lives.

She’s a great character and Ingram brings her to life well. Sadly, as is too often the case, she doesn’t get nearly the screentime or attention as Maddie. There are, of course, some issues of stardom in play here. Portman is by far the biggest name in the cast. Thus, of course, the creative team will want her on camera as much as possible. As a result, though, the series feels unbalanced in favor of the white protagonist. Too often, we hear about Cleo through the words of others or see her through Maddie’s perspective. Even as she narrates the series, the character feels distant and removed. The final two episodes address this issue some, but when all is said and done, the feeling lingers.

Ingram is just as worthy of the lens. Cleo is just as worthy of the lead. Still, what should be a two-hander ends up feeling like a white woman’s story that happens to involve, partially, telling the story of a remarkable black woman. That’s a problem, and one Lady in the Lake never solves. And that, more than its arguably overambitious themes and sometimes chaotic storytelling, hurts it most.

Lady in the Lake emerges on AppleTV+ beginning July 19.

Lady in the Lake Trailer:

GenreCrime Drama Mystery
NetworkApple TV+
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