In this age of uncertainties, at least one thing can still be counted upon: Netflix’s dedication to adapting author Harlan Coben’s hugely popular mystery thrillers.
The latest, I Will Find You, comes hot on the heels of the James Nesbitt-fronted Run Away. This time though, there’s been a shakeup. Instead of a random northern town in the UK (is it Manchester? Is it Leeds? It’s hard to tell!), we’re back in the US. It’s still quintessentially Coben though, which means a mountain of plot holes, an unnecessarily vague, grandiose title and a rollicking eight episodes that are entirely possible to enjoy, provided your brain is switched off well in advance.
There’s also an impressively starry cast, who are surely not in this for the stellar script. Sam Worthington has finally taken off the Avatar mo-cap suit to play David Burroughs. He starts the series by telling us, in super-serious voiceover, that he’s in prison because he apparently bludgeoned his infant son Matthew to death… while he was sleepwalking.
Yes, it doesn’t make sense, but it’s about to make even less sense. Five years into his sentence, his ex-sister-in-law Rachel (Britt Lower, bringing some much-needed zap to the whole thing) turns up with a photograph of somebody that looks an awful lot like an older version of Matthew. Conveniently, he’s got an identifiable birthmark on his face which makes it easy to spot him. But wait, didn’t Matthew die as a baby? Turns out, maybe not. Apparently it has something to do with a shady cartel with the financial clout to buy their way into almost every public office going.
Soon enough, David is on the run with Rachel, trying to stay one step ahead of the law whilst also shouting, “Where is my son!” at anybody who comes within earshot. Milo Ventimiglia is along for the ride too as Rachel’s ex-boyfriend and faithful confidant. It’s an entirely thankless role that requires him to look conflicted (or at least, mildly perturbed) one hundred percent of the time. Character development? Um, what’s that?
If Harlan Coben is not for you, then this series will not change your mind. The supposed big reveals are entirely predictable. David’s entire storyline revolves around people deciding to trust him – implausibly quickly, given that he’s been convicted for filicide – and believe his ramblings about Matthew being alive enough to put their necks on the line for his mission. Sam Worthington’s stiff face and inability to emote doesn’t help matters; every minute Britt Lower is not on screen, the series suffers.
Fortunately, the end result is so hammy and over the top that it just about hangs together. If the plot doesn’t make sense, the series rattles along at such a pace that it’s easy to skip over the holes.
Old men look unsettled while baddies rock up wearing black and white, before making ominous phone calls in the backs of cars. People make terrible, limp quips (“you should put this on AirBnB,” Rachel comments from her jail cell), and a lot of guns are waved around. Who knew that the FBI was so bad at hunting down escaped convicts? It’s all entirely silly, but that’s the whole point. Tune in, switch off: that’s the Harlan Coben way. Only another six months to go until the next one.
‘I Will Find You’ is out now on Netflix