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THE LOST ROOM |
Joe Miller - Peter Krause Anna Miller - Elle Fanning Karl Kreutzfeld - Kevin Pollack Jennifer Bloom - Julianna Margulies Martin Ruber - Dennis Christopher Wally Jabrowski - Peter Jacobson Howard Montague - Roger Bart Harold Strizki - Ewen Bremner 
OTHER MINI SERIES Mists of Avalon Jules Verne's Mysterious Island Jason and the Argonauts Sword of Xanten Tin Man 
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Episode 1A detective investigating a double murder with mysterious circumstances comes into possession of a key that can open any door. That's a motive worth killing for, but beyond the doors opened is a motel room from which he can return through any door in the world that he chooses. Anything left in the room disappears without trace when the door is next opened. Dark forces kidnap his daughter and she ends up lost inside the room. Joe's only hope of getting her back is to steal another object from the room, currently in the possession of a wealthy collector. Meanwhile, his colleagues have started to suspect him of abducting his own child and worse. There are so few truly original shows in the world that when one comes along we should all fall to our knees and rejoice. THE LOST ROOM is not just such an original idea, but so original as to be astonishing, and compelling. The mystery of the motel room and what happened there is one that is likely to haunt the audience after the episode is over. It is so....otherworldly, that you can't help but get drawn into it and the obssession that the various characters within the show have with the objects is not just believable, it is understandable. What are these objects, and what their significance? A bus ticket that can transport people across the world might sound kind of handy until you realise that it takes them only to a stretch of empty road outside of a nondescript town. Of what use is a wristwatch that will boil an egg enclosed by its bracelet, but nothing else? A pen that fries you from the inside out is pretty dangerous, though. Admit it, just hearing the list has you intrigued. It's that kind of idea. And the motel room itself, what is that all about? Always the same, always sunset through the window, always exactly as it was the time before. Ideas that this is the place that God died are raised in the show and chill the bone, but fire the imagination. Watch this and you will need to know the answer. What happened here, and how? The plot, coming from such a fantastic central conceit, plays out really well. The detective has a reason to be obssessed with the room as much as any of the collectors and his actions are dictated by that. The cast play their parts really well. Peter Krause makes for a very personable lead and is central to making concept work. His belief is our belief. Kevin Pollack does his usual sterling job as a shadowy, rich collector whilst Julianna Margulies is completely wasted as an object hunter who appears in the latter stages. THE LOST ROOM will grip you from opening to final moment and you will come back because you will need to know what this is all about. There is no choice. You are as lost as the room. TopEpsiode 2On the run for the abduction of his daughter and the murder of his partner, Joe has no choice but to dig deeper into the shadowy world of the objects and the collectors. There must be a combination of objects that will bring his daughter back. He hears tell of the Prime object, the one that rules all the others, but nobody knows what or where it is. The ticket that flings people onto an empty road doesn't send them to the middle of nowhere, but to the centre of everything, the motel itself. Except that the motel never had 10 rooms and room nine is now haunted by a woman who might know how to get Joe's daughter back. In order ot free ehr from her own hell, he must get the help of his murderous ex-colleague Dr Ruber. Episode two of this mini-series just improves on the the first one. Things are taking shape. Nothing so crass and answers, you understand, but you can feel the sense of things just beyond your grasp. When it becomes clear that the motel is there and it is real it is with a very real sense of awe and trepidation that you approach it with Joe. It is hard to believe how good this series is. Julianna Margulies gets a bit more to do this time around, Kevin Pollack's character's motives become a little clearer before he disappears altogether and Ewan Bremner is a welcome, completely unhinged, new character possessed of (and by) a comb that can stop time. The plight of the motel owners will break your heart and when the episode ends there can be no doubt that the final one will be a thing of beauty. You might not be a collector, but the objects have you now, completely. TopEpisode 3The target has changed to the man so dramatically revealed at the end of Part Two. Known as the occupant, it is theorised that he is the prime object or that he was perhaps responsible for their creation. Joe, hopes that he can locate the man, bring him to the motel and get his daughter back. Meanwhile, Karl Kreutzfeld's motives are further revealed and a new experiment on Room 9 of the motel is planned, one that might spell the end of everything. This being the final episode, twists unravel, truths are revealed and everyone shows their real face. That said, the pace starts off leisurely enough before picking up to the crescendo that leaves us with one final twist in the plot and Joe with a decision to make. There is always a price with the objects. The question becomes is he willing to pay that price? New objects introduced include a pair of scissors that make things revolve, a clock that destroys brass and a glass eye that can destroy or repair all flesh. Let's get one thing straight, The Lost Room has been the best piece of science fiction so far in 2007 and that (in a year that saw the return of Sarah Jane Smith in a new show) is saying something. This final episode brings proceedings to a close with a conclusion that ties up enough ends to be satisfying whilst leaving enough dangling for the inevitable sequel. Please don't do an 'object of the week' type series and ruin it. Another mini-series as good as this one would do very nicely. THE LOST ROOM is fiercely original, irresistibly clever and has gone straight to the top of our 'must buy as soon as it comes out on DVD' list. Top |
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