How great was that opening scene, guys? Fausto and his henchman Hector filming a video wherein Fausto threatens the life of Romina Cerisola should have been tense and disturbing, but against all odds, The Bridge actually managed to wring some comedy out of the situation. Don’t get me wrong, Fausto is becoming more and more unhinged and unpredictable, and I fully believe that he would kill Romina if pushed to do so, but for a show as grim as The Bridge can often be, these moments of levity are greatly appreciated, especially when they’re so unexpected.
“Beholder” moved at a very fast clip, but never felt rushed or scattered. I credit a lot of this to director John Dahl, who in addition to directing the great indie film Rounders has also helmed several episodes of Hannibal. The color palette of Hannibal seems to have carried over to Dahl’s work here; the browns, blacks, and greys are all muted and desaturated, and the primary colors explode obscenely in the background because of it. Is it too late to petition showrunner Elwood Reid to make Dahl The Bridge‘s chief director?
I’m almost 200 words into this review, and haven’t mentioned the plot of this fast-moving episode. I love that this show allows me to do that, to luxuriate in the world it’s built. Linder and Eva, for instance, now exist solely on the periphery of this show, but in their few lovely scenes together they manage to fill in the blanks of the world. This is what’s happening when Frye and Adriana are investigating CIA chicanery and Sonya is interrogating Eleanor Nacht and Marco is looking for Fausto. (One thing I didn’t like: Eva convinces Linder to shave his beard. Ladies, I don’t care how pretty you are, if you tell me to shave my beard, I’m gonna tell you to fuck yourself. And don’t do what Eva did and say “I want to see your face.” This is my face, goddamnit. What was I talking about again?)
So, a quick recap: Marco is working with La Marina to arrest Fausto. Sonya finds Eleanor’s ledger – which looks like John Doe’s journal from Seven – and Frye and Adriana have stolen a bunch of files from the late Joe McKenzie’s garage. Those are “Beholder”‘s main two plot points, glossing over the fact that McKenzie played D&D, which is awesome. Also, at the end of the episode Eleanor is released…into the custody of Agent Buckley, who seems to enjoy a very professional relationship with the woman. Last week we learned that Fausto was a CIA puppet this whole time, but tonight we say how deep that connection truly goes.
Which brings me to my next point, which is sadly negative. I think that The Bridge has really stumbled this season in making the DEA and CIA such a big part of the plot. Those two agencies – moreso the CIA – so easily lend themselves to mammoth conspiracies that introducing them as a narrative device is a risky proposition that constantly threatens the show with a shark-jumping moment. This same thing happened in Sons of Anarchy‘s fourth season. Luckily, The Bridge doesn’t involve Buckley or the CIA too much, otherwise the plot would totally go off the rails.
But that is, as I’m so fond of saying, a minor quibble. “Beholder” was a great episode – expertly shot, acted, and directed. It moved the narrative forward and also afforded time for more human, realistic touches. The best scene of the night might have been Fausto crashing that quinceanera and dancing with the celebrant. Something about The Bridge, especially episodes like this, so perfectly balances the sublime with the absurd with the grotesque.
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