True Detective (Season 3, 2019)

 ☆ ☆ ☆ ½

True Detective (Season 3, 2019) – N. Pizzolatto

Watching the third season of True Detective has left me with an uneasy feeling.  Of course, any drama/thriller about abducted children is bound to do that -- and also raise questions about whether there is entertainment value to be found in such a horror.  Worse, the show seems to lean toward suggesting that there could be pedophile rings that include members of the rich and powerful in society, a conspiracy theory that has attracted attention with the rise of QAnon and similar groups that thrive on sowing discord and confusion. No need to add more fuel to that dumpster fire, please.  Points about the way that the rich can get a free pass are well taken however (especially as compared to the fates of those who are poor or stigmatised). The plot finds Wayne Hays (Mahershala Ali), a Vietnam vet turned police detective, stuck in a rut, reliving the same (child abduction) case over and over, beginning in 1980, then again in 1990 when the case is re-opened, and finally in 2015, when suffering from Alzheimer’s disease, he is interviewed about the case by, yes, a conspiracy theorist.  The bouts of dementia mean that Hays is partly living in the past in his memories, which viewers get to see, such that it is never entirely clear how objective our information is (although some scenes that do not involve Hays are included, so who knows?).  The cast is rounded out by his partner (Stephen Dorff), with whom there is conflict and camaraderie, and his wife (Carmen Ejogo), who writes a book about the case, raising concerns about conflicts of interest.  The writers slowly dole out the clues and character developments across the 8 episodes, often showing us consequences before we see their cause – but at the end of the day, the big reveal is somewhat less than it could have been and we are left with a fantasy finale that can’t possibly be true.  The strong acting carries the day but I left feeling rather dissatisfied…and uneasy.