A&E’s “The Returned” is a bit of a puzzling creature. Adapted from the critically acclaimed French series “Les revenants” (all 8 episodes of which are available on Netflix) “The Returned” is nearly an exact replica of the original series. Let’s call it like it is, though: this adaptation exists solely because Americans don’t like to read subtitles. It’s a harsh truth, but a truth nonetheless. I binged the entire original series (which is having a second season premiere later this year) a few weeks ago and I can say that this version does a fairly good job of adapting it. There are only a few minor differences (the score being the main one) but other than that pretty much all of the narrative threads remain intact. Also, the French series was 8 hour-long episodes with no commercials and this version will be 10 hour-long episodes with commercials. Rather than spend my weekly reviews comparing the two versions, I will try my best to refrain from even mentioning the original and treat this version as its own beast (even though it’s not). Also, I will not reveal spoilers from the French version. Let’s recap, shall we?
I’ve debated on how to write the recap, so I think I’ll just group it according to each member of the returned themselves to make it easier, since there are a lot of characters introduced in this pilot.
Camille
Most of the episode is spent with Camille (India Ennenga) and her family, which is appropriate considering the episode is named after her. We open on a school bus driving along a hillside road four years ago, where Camille is listening to music. The bus driver slams on the brakes and the bus drives off a cliff. Cut to the present day, and Camille (whom the episode is named after) crawls over the edge of the cliff and starts walking towards her home. Meanwhile, Peter (Jeremy Sisto) is hosting a group therapy meeting for parents of the children lost in the bus crash that opened the episode. Jack (Mark Pellegrino) is standing in the background and makes rude remarks when the memorial to the children is revealed to be quite hideous. Camille’s mother, Claire (Tandi Wright) walks in on Camille eating a sandwich in the kitchen, thinking it is Camille’s now older twin sister Lena. Lena is at a bar getting drunk with her friends. It turns out her father is upstairs above the bar having sex with Kris (Chelah Horsdal) the female bartender. Claire calls Jack to come home (it becomes evident they have separated since Camille’s death) and she re-introduces him to his daughter, who has no recollection of dying. Peter shows up (he is now seeing Claire) and after being informed about Camille, he tries to talk to her.
Jack hightails it out of there to rush back to the bar and have more sex with Kris. It seems as though she had convinced Jack that she could communicate with his dead daughter (but only while he was inside her). He quickly learns that she was lying and he grows violent, so she runs out of the bar. While walking through a tunnel, Kris is attacked by an unknown assailant and stabbed multiple times.
In the climax of the episode, Lena sneaks into her bedroom and Camille hears her. Camille goes to her sister’s room and both girls are understandable shocked to see their sister. Lena because Camille is supposed to be dead and Camille because her twin sister is now four years older than her. The episode then flashes back to the morning of the crash, where it is revealed that Lena faked being sick the day of the crash so she didn’t have to go and then invited her boyfriend over to have sex. While this was happening, Camille somehow felt Lena have sex telepathically.
Victor
A nurse named Julie (Sandrine Holt from Resident Evil: Apocalypse) is driving home from the grocery store and sees a young boy (Dylan Kingwell) looking all creepy while waiting on the bus stop. After she gets home, she sees him standing outside the door to her apartment building. Naturally, she brings him inside and her nosy neighbor (THE “SHE DOESN’T EVEN GO HERE” GIRL FROM MEAN GIRLS!!!) asks the boys name. Julie improvises and says his name is Victor. After threatening to call the cops (which she half-heartedly does before giving up) if he doesn’t tell her his name,he eventually just tells her that his real name is Victor (uh-huh…). That’s pretty much all we see of Victor until the final shot of the episode, where it is revealed that Victor was standing in the middle of the road and is the reason the bus swerved off the cliff.
Simon
We don’t see much of Simon (Mat Vairo) in this episode and, as a consequence, we don’t see much of Mary Elizabeth Winstead’s Rowan either (which will be remedied in next week’s episode since it’s named after her). Simon walks into the bar Lena is drinking at and asks for Rowan, whom he thinks works at the bar. Kris says that she’s never heard of her but Lena tells Simon that she knows where Rowan lives. After taking him there, he sees Rowan trying on a veil. After violently knocking on the door, Rowan has a breakdown and yells at him to go away. After finally leaving Rowan is comforted by her daughter, and then Sheriff Tommy (Kevin Alejandro of Arrow and True Blood), whom I believe is her fiancé, shows up to comfort her some more. That’s all for Rowan and Simon for now!
Helen
I only know this character’s name because she’s played by the amazing Michelle Forbes (True Blood, Battlestar Gallactica) and I looked it up on IMDB. We don’t see much of her either in this episode, except that she walks back to what is supposedly her house with her husband who is now an old man. Upon seeing her, the old man panics and later commits suicide by jumping off the dam.
I liked this as a pilot, though I’m curious to know if I liked it more because I know where it is (supposedly) going since I watched the original series. Carlton Cuse wrote the pilot (and serves as executive producer), and this seems to suit him more than “Bates Motel” does (he created that show too), at least when you think about his “Lost” background.
The acting is great all around. I’m a little bummed we didn’t get to spend more time with certain characters (Rowan and Helen), but I’m sure that will be fixed as more episodes air. The standouts are Tandi Wright and India Ennenga, but that’s mostly because they are given the most screen time. I am definitely looking forward to future episodes so we will be able to get to know the other characters.
The filming style is alright for the most part. But that’s the problem with it: it’s just alright. Nothing about it is particularly creative and none of it is that creepy (though maybe I’m a bit desensitized as a horror fan. Save for one bloody shot near the end of the episode, this pilot is filmed like any other network show, and that could work against it in the future if that doesn’t change. Again, trying not to compare it to the source material, but it’s kind of difficult.
There really isn’t a lot to critique about “The Returned” without delving into comparisons with the source material. Hopefully it starts to deviate a bit so it can create its own identity, rather than live in the shadow of “Les revenants.” Ultimately, I am intrigued by “The Returned.” It’s neither as captivating nor as haunting as its French counterpart, but the performances make it worth the watch. I’m not sure if it will be worth it down the road, but you could do a lot worse on a Monday night (i.e., watch “The Following”).
Random Notes
- Much like my “Bates Motel” reviews, these will be half recap and half review. Because of that, they will be a little wordy. The first half of each review will be the recap and the second half will be the review. I’ll split up each of them with an image so if you only want to read one section it’ll be easy to find.
- I probably should have noted in the beginning of the review that the returned have not aged since they’ve died, which is why Helen’s husband is so shocked to see her.
- My favorite moment of the episode was when Claire nonchalantly told Peter “Camille has come back.” It wasn’t even a big moment, but it was so deadpan that I loved it. And Jeremy Sisto’s reaction was priceless.
- While this version isn’t as visually appealing as the French version, I did think the shot of Kris’ blood trickling down the sidewalk was pretty cool.
- Based on the “This Season On ‘The Returned'” teaser at the end, it does look like the series will start to deviate a bit from the French show, which I am very excited about. Actually, I just looked this up as I’m writing this: Carloton Cuse says the show will begin to deviate from the French series midway through the season (so around episode five) and end up in a very different place. YAY!
- If you have watched the French version, please don’t post any possible spoilers in the comments below.
- If you haven’t watched the French version, I’m curious to know your thoughts on this pilot. Did you like it? Or did you find it to be a bit boring? Or did you hate it? Let me know in the comments!
- Thanks for reading everyone! I look forward to our next 9 Mondays together. Here’s a teaser for what’s coming next week: