An infamous case with a prominent star in the center of it. This was not O.J.’s first time in the limelight, but it would be one of the defining moments in his career. The TV series “The People v. O.J. Simpson” followed one of the most controversial cases of the 21st century and brought new dialogue to a familiar event.
FX introduced the theme of police brutality against African Americans in this old narrative. Throughout the entire series, audience members and characters have asked the same question, “If O.J. wasn’t black, would the police have hounded him like that?” The answer was searched throughout the entire show, which depicted not only the inherent racism in American culture, but also the downside to fame.
The series was not black and white. There were never moments of definitive guilt, just as there were no incidents of innocence. O.J. Simpson is presented as a man, neither a killer nor a saint, whose worst angles are brought to light in front of the world’s eyes.
The set came off as overdone at certain times. For example, when detectives arrived at Nicole Brown Simpson’s house, there were countless candles and lamps alight. Even though it was to demonstrate a steamy romantic scene, does one woman need 30 candles and 5 lamps in one room? And when the officers went into the bedrooms and shined flashlights at the children, none of them stirred. This was not the first time in this series that people demonstrated supernatural powers of sleep. When Rob Kardashian (played by David Schwimmer) went into O.J.’s room, O.J.’s girlfriend (who was right next to him on the bed) was able to sleep through the entire conversation.
Cuba Gooding Jr. brought a realistic edge to O.J. Simpson. Oftentimes, fans and viewers forget that the people behind the characters are human, too. Throughout the case, O.J. was held to unrealistic standards and expected to keep his calm in every scenario. Yet, this was not only physically but also emotionally draining. Gooding showed the moments at when O.J. was weakest, from his suicide notes to his trial, in a realistic and touching way.
This series would be especially fun for those who were alive during the case. There were many cameos from Kris Kardashian to Larry King. There were also a lot of allusions to actual events that happened during the case and cameos of real locations in Los Angeles.
This series just ended and is available to the general public for free on FX.
[star rating=”4.5″]
