Review: Ozark Season One Is No Breaking Bad
- Aug 7, 2017
- 2 min read
But it's still pretty good. Partially directed and headlined by Jason Bateman, Ozark is something of a mixed bag. While it's certainly trying to recapture the immense success of Breaking Bad, it often falls short of its lofty goals.
Marty Byrde (Bateman) launders money for one of the largest of the Mexican cartels. When his partner is found stealing from there employers, and is promptly killed, Marty must formulate a plan. Bargaining for his life he offers a proposal. He and his family will travel from Chicago to The Lake of the Ozarks where he will continue to clean the cartel's money. But, as with any drug and money business, things very quickly fall apart as Marty tries to juggle his family, his job and the law.
Bateman is acting out of his usual zones here, stepping from comedy into drama, and he absolutely nails it. He's far and away the best part of the show and it's praise well earned. While his character doesn't have the arc, or the writing, of Walter White, he makes it works. His directing is solid as well, with the four episodes he has control over being the standouts of the season. Most of the rest of the cast is decent as well, with the exception of Byrde's son, Jonah (Skylar Gaertner), who is very strange, doesn't really do anything and is just kind of annoying, and Roy Petty (Jason Butler Harner), another pointless character who brings very little to the plot except for some of its strangest scenes.
Unfortunately each episode tries to cram in numerous "twists", none of which are earned nor good, way too many characters and very little in the way of development. While it isn't enough to ruin the show, it does get a little formulaic after a few episodes.
If you have a Netflix subscription, there's no reason not to watch Ozark. It's perfectly serviceable and while it likely won't leave much of an impression, there's far worse things to check out.
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