More like the short road to REM sleep!

 

Based on the Robert Flanagan novel, the story follows Dorrigo Evans in his twenties in 1943 during his time as a battlefield medic, and in 1989, as his older self (played by Ciarán Hinds) reflecting on his time in the war as a prisoner. The real prison, in his eyes, is the mental prison he gets stuck in after beginning an affair with his uncle's wife when he initially returns from war. 

 

You can tell they had a hard time trying to set the story up in the first episode. Jumping plot non-linearly is expected, but the edit feels aimless. If you can’t figure out how to make it flow, just tell the narrative straight. I promise it will not make you less artsy! It felt like we were thrown so many out-of-context clues in such a short amount of time that we would need later, but are not guaranteed to remember everything. 

 

This five episode mini series is a perfect example of the ongoing issue I have with today’s television formatting. It may not be your standard traditional TV show with an old-school Pilot episode, but the mini series didn't even put enough effort into grabbing our attention in the first 20%. 

 

What’s sad is that I love Jacob Elordi and was really looking forward to seeing him in a role like this. I can’t say what the rest of the four episodes hold, but this introduction didn’t do a great job of calling me back. If you're bored and you like Elordi ~ and miss seeing him in the television world (RIP Euphoria) ~ then this is the best you're going to get.