Much has been written about how the Prestige TV era often discards the episodic format of old to present seasons that play more like long movies with credit breaks every hour or so. Creator Neil Cross (“Luther”) clearly had this in mind while conceiving his take on “The Mosquito Coast.” Unfolding more like a 7-hour movie than a traditional season of television, this riff on the Paul Theroux novel, memorably adapted once in 1986 by Peter Weir (starring Harrison Ford, Helen Mirren, and River Phoenix), is a taut, gripping story of a family on the run that owes more to modern dramas like “Breaking Bad” and particularly “Ozark” than it does to its origins. Like those shows, “The Mosquito Coast” centers on an arguably selfish patriarch whose rash decisions lead his family into the webs of international drug cartels. Fans of the source may bristle at how far afield this production veers from it, but it’s a thrilling season of television that sets up a potentially even stronger one down the dusty road.
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The premiere, expertly directed by Rupert Wyatt (“Rise of the Planet of the Apes”), introduces the Fox family, led by an inventor named Allie (Justin Theroux, nephew of the author of the award-winning book). While the Ford version of Allie Fox was a man so disturbed by the consumerism of ‘80s America that he led his family into the heart of darkness, the 2021 version introduces viewers to a man already well off the grid in his own country. His wife, Margot (Melissa George), home schools their two children—Dina (Logan Polish) and Charlie (Gabriel Bateman), who are so sheltered that future episodes reveal they haven’t even heard of an Xbox or a Millennium Falcon.
The Foxes are this far out of civilization for a reason—Allie and Margot Fox are wanted by the U.S. Government. Why exactly they’re on the FBI’s radar is a secret held for the season’s run. Still, when it appears their cover has been blown, Allie grabs his family and flees to Mexico, learning the hard way that getting into Mexico when you’re a wanted man isn’t that easy. The Fox family runs afoul of a deadly cartel along the way, including a ruthless killer excellently rendered by Ian Hart and tries to stay two steps ahead of the G-men on their trail, played by Kimberly Elise and James Le Gros.
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While the narrative is clearly very different from the original, Theroux’s take on Allie Fox does share some common framework as Ford’s in the way he captures a man whose constant motion is fueled by selfishness. He’s the kind of guy who’s constantly framing what’s happening to his family as “an adventure,” soft-pedaling his control issues and pushing blame onto others. It’s a complex portrayal of the kind of guy who tells himself he’s doing what needs to be done for his family even as he puts them in more and more danger. There’s a great line in Episode 3 that’s about another character but also applies to Theroux’s riff on Allie: “You put a decent guy in a bad situation, a decent guy is gonna be a dangerous guy.” He’s the kind of dreamer who can’t even see his own hypocrisy, but Theroux grounds him instead of resorting to naivete. Allie blasts the greed of America but rarely considers anyone other than his family—in a great character beat, the Foxes come upon a sacred place where locals haven’t touched the supplies remaining on dead bodies, and Allie doesn’t really think twice about taking what he needs. A character named Chuy (a truly great turn from Scotty Tovar) confronts him with this truth when he tells him that he is the perfect embodiment of America he hates.
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Having said that, it’s arguable that this “Mosquito Coast” misses some opportunities for broader criticism of America’s place in the world and the increasing tribalism within it. However, that could come in future seasons. Surprisingly, it discards much of the religious commentary embedded in the source material, often playing more like a straightforward thriller than something with greater thematic aspirations. It’s more of a specific survival drama, but, again, this stretch very much feels like a prologue, and some of the original themes could work their way into future seasons.
With the momentum of these seven episodes, character can sometimes get a bit waylaid. Theroux finds the perfect low-key-but-dangerous register, but everyone else feels a bit underwritten, particularly George, who has a great table-turning moment in episode four but mostly has to respond to the intensity of what’s happening around her instead of carving out a character. There are also times, particularly in episode five, where the kids feel a bit inconsistently written, pushed by the plot instead of fully believable. And the show has a habit sometimes of underlining its themes through dialogue and circumstance, such as when the kids see some caged birds in Episode 6 and Dina comments about how being raised in captivity means they don’t know how to avoid predators. She’s talking about you, Charlie.
“The Mosquito Coast” is stronger in its unpredictable plotting than its dialogue, and its momentum is remarkable. It really never sags for its seven episodes, taking Allie and his family to unexpected places on their journey South, introducing viewers to new characters like Chuy and Hart’s assassin in a way that keeps refreshing the tension of the overall piece. And it’s shot and directed beautifully. Yes, the washed-out dusty palette of Mexico is a bit overplayed, but the tense moments—and there are many—are grippingly framed and edited. Wyatt sets a visual tone in the first two episodes that future directors and cinematographers match, adding to that sense that this is a 7-hour film.
Again, it feels like fans of the work of Vince Gilligan, and “Ozark” will take to this the most, although “The Mosquito Coast” is arguably stronger in its first season than that Netflix drama was in its freshman outing. If fans of the source material can get past the complete narrative overhaul, they may find that the original Theroux, who also executive produced here, still has something to say about American ego, the kind that creates a man who can tell himself over and over again that he’s doing the right thing even as the bodies pile up around him. [A-]
“The Mosquito Coast” premieres on Apple TV+ on April 30 (with two episodes and a weekly premiere schedule to follow).