Hit & stun
KING, ASHITEY MAKE IMPACT ON NETFLIX’S ‘SEVEN SECONDS’
If you miss ABC's brilliant and wrenching “American Crime,” Netflix's “Seven Seconds” will go far to fill the void.
Like “American Crime,” “Seven Seconds” — also an anthology series — stars two-time Emmy winner Regina King.
She is the best thing about this series, and her work is another validation of her as one of the finest actresses working in television. No matter the part, she radiates authenticity. Here, she is Latrice Butler, a dedicated teacher whose life is roiled when her teenage son Brenton is the victim of a ghastly hit-and-run in Jersey City. (The snowcovered scene of the accident is so stained with blood, it's as if the earth itself had been wounded.) The driver is a distracted white cop, Peter Jablonski (Beau Knapp, “Shots Fired”), who had been desperately trying to reach his pregnant wife on his cell phone.
For reasons that aren't apparent at first, Peter's colleagues — led by Mike Diangelo (David Lyons, “Revolution”) — refuse to let him come clean and go so far as to try to frame another driver for the accident.
“Me and you, we're a dying breed, and we take care of our own,” Diangelo tells Peter. Diangelo's attempts to railroad an innocent man are so blatant, they even penetrate the perpetual fog swirling around assistant district attorney KJ Harper (a superb Clare-Hope Ashitey, “Shots Fired”).
She can't get through a day without drinking herself blotto and is thisclose to losing her job, but something about the cops' insistence on wrapping up the case stirs her commitment to justice and sends her on a quest for the truth.
She is aided by chatty detective Joe “Fish” Rinaldi (Michael Mosley, “Ozark”) who reveals, among other things, that he has a soft spot for old dogs. (It plays better than it sounds, trust me.)
“Seven Seconds,” like “American Crime,” is about more than just an isolated transgression. It tries to address the racial divide in this country, but its tale of crooked cops starts predictably. Yet as the 10 episodes unfold, everyone — including the injured teen — proves to be more than what they seem.
Series creator, executive producer and writer Veena Sud (“The Killing”) takes her time with the story's pace. The second episode is dedicated to its director, Jonathan Demme (“Silence of the Lambs”), who died last April.
For all the story's shortcomings, you'll come back for the acting.
When Latrice enters her son's hospital room for the first time and sees her stricken son hooked up to a ventilator, she falters as if she herself has been physically assaulted. (And King looks like a lock to pick up her third Emmy.) Long after the closing credits, “Seven Seconds” lingers.