by Roy Earle
How does the DVD stand up?
When the son of multi-billionaire Conrad Cain (Timothy Hutton) and his wife (Dana Delany) is kidnapped after a bloody shoot-out in downtown Manhattan, the parents hire unorthodox kidnapping retrieval specialist Knapp (Jeremy Sisto) to get the teenager back.
However, Knapp and the FBI agents assigned to the case soon realize that this is no ordinary kidnapping. The well-insulated group of kidnappers are apparently not interested in a monetary ransom, but are rather seeking some sort of retribution for long forgotten sins committed by members of the Cain family
CRITIQUE
The bad news is that the network canceled Kidnapped after the first five episodes.
The good news is that the network canceled Kidnapped after the first five episodes.
I started watching this riveting series last fall and was very disappointed when the network cancelled it. To their credit, the network “suits” allowed the series producers to complete the initial order of thirteen episodes, which gave them the opportunity to wrap-up their story. The remaining eight episodes were never broadcast, but could be seen via the Internet…if one wanted to take the trouble to do that.
[I didn’t, preferring to wait for this inevitable DVD
On the plus side, by limiting the series to thirteen exciting episodes, the producers were able to deliver a tighter, better-constructed story in which each episode, rather than going off on a tangent, moved the primary plotline significantly forward to a satisfying conclusion. Yes, there are a few loose ends, but does every question really have to be answered? Does every bad guy have to be caught? I’m not going to discuss the plot of Kidnapped in any detail, primarily because almost every episode has a surprising story twist or two, and I don’t want to be a spoiler.
The bottom line is that Kidnapped is a well-written, fast-moving, strongly acted series with multi-dimensional, flawed characters that we come to care about. No expense seems to have been spared for this show, shot on multiple locations with a large cast.
Among the not previously mentioned key players are Delroy Lindo as King, an FBI agent about to retire, who devotes himself to solving this final case, even though it puts his own family in jeopardy. Also Mykelti Williamson as Virgil, the kidnapped boy’s bodyguard, badly wounded during the kidnapping, who gets out of his hospital bed and goes undercover, determined to rescue the young Cain (Will Denton).
Aside from low ratings, the high cost to produce each episode was, in all likelihood, a major factor in its cancellation. So, why didn’t the public take to the series? My guess is that there were just too many shows on the air that had continuing stories (e.g. Lost, “24,” Prison Break, etc.), and viewers weren’t willing to commit their time to another such show whereby, if you missed an episode or two, you’d be totally lost.
If you enjoy shows like “24,” Prison Break or The Shield, then this series is definitely for you.
FINAL THOUGHT
This is an excellent, intelligently scripted action series that can certainly be enjoyed for multiple viewings. Indeed, one should really watch the show more than once in order to catch all of the subtle clues that are dropped along the way.
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