Mosaic: Mosaic

March 27, 2018 11:02 AM - Season 1 (Full Season)

A whodunit based on the murder of popular children's book author and illustrator Olivia Lake.

Interview with director Steven Soderbergh (Vulture).
Interview with writer Ed Solomon (Collider).

couple of reviews (some contain spoilers):
Mosaic suggests a mammoth world that exists beyond Steven Soderbergh’s rigorously structured narrative (Chuck Bowen, Slant).
What Was Steven Soderbergh Doing With Mosaic? (Sophie Gilbert, The Atlantic).
Steven Soderbergh's mystery gamble almost pays off (Benjamin Lee, The Guardian).
Steven Soderbergh’s Murder Mystery Is a Delicious Delight (Adam Chitwood, Collider).
Mosaic isn't great on a smartphone or on HBO (Willa Paskin, Slate).

posted by sapagan (2 comments total)

I haven't seen this show, but in case anyone else was confused: Olivia Lake was not a real person.
posted by He Is Only The Imposter at 12:19 PM on March 27, 2018

Thanks for posting this. Looking through the reviews is making me want to re-watch the show. I am really surprised that Willa Paskin (writing in Slate) finds it lacking in emotional content. For me, the characters played by Stone and Hedlund were incredibly engaging, albeit sometimes frustrating. I think that is actually quite a feat, because when a story has that kind of puzzle-box structure, you keep being reminded that it's a fictional construct. It helps that the characters drink enough to be confused themselves about what is going on, so the viewer can feel they are sharing in that same confusion. But there again, this wouldn't be the first mystery (book or movie) to make use of that idea. An awful lot of it has to be the acting, I think. Everyone's pretty good, but Stone is stunning.
posted by BibiRose at 12:37 PM on March 27, 2018