So often, us viewers unpack a mystery box TV show like this one, only to find it empty inside. Homecoming manages to add layers of meaning and complexity even as its secrets are revealed. It’s the carefully wrapped TV gift that keeps on giving.
Each episode of Homecoming is about a half-hour, leaving no room for placeholder sequences or needlessly distracting subplots. Every scene, every character, every development is a key component of a jigsaw puzzle that admittedly takes quite some time to develop into something we can truly see for what it is.
Viscerally penetrating thriller, outstanding in its subtlety, its anxiety-making atmospherics, and not least its heart--the contribution of a sterling cast headed by Julia Roberts in the role of therapist Heidi Bergman--inhabits a world beyond political themes. ... Mr. Whigham’s performance as Carrasco is plain delectable. So is virtually all else about this series whose exceptional powers, including the power to terrify, derive from conversation not action.
It’s a strong showcase for Julia Roberts as an actress but a bolder move for her as executive producer. Homecoming is the opposite of a star vehicle (like, say, Amazon Prime’s recent “Jack Ryan”), focusing more on the story than characters. Nothing about it feels self-indulgent.
If you blink, you might miss a nuanced bit of dialogue or the camera focusing on something relevant to the plot. This is one of the most carefully crafted programs I’ve seen, with fantastic performances from Roberts and Stephan James (in a breakout role). Homecoming is addictive, appointment television and yet another feather in the cap for Amazon’s streaming service.
Whigham delivers one of the year’s best TV performances. ... Esmail has worked with the creators to reconceive their audio adventure as a visual delight, full of smart performances and lingering unease. For all its Hitchcock-y camera angles and Lost-y double-reverse plot twists, Homecoming is an all-too human freakout.
An irresistible mystery box drama that tells its story with carefully considered details and superb acting that grounds the whole piece in reality.
Homecoming is a visually dazzling thriller that plays on memory, the military industrial complex, conspiracy and unchecked government privilege to immediately set the hook as an intriguing, ambitious work of television.
Roberts helps set up Homecoming as a creepy, fun thriller and a gripping, human drama.
The story creates a certain suspense that hooks the viewer and motivates them to watch the following episodes. I watched the first 4 episodes, it's not a very lively series full of twists and turns, the pace of the narration is rather slow. The riddles scattered here and there push the viewer to wonder: what could have happened to the heroine (Julia Roberts) to cause her to have such amnesia? I also wonder what could have happened to the soldiers undergoing re-education, including one who disappeared without a trace, which worries his friend and fellow soldier. I say that the scenario lacks coherence and interest, all like the reactions of the characters. Julia Roberts' performance is disappointing. In fact, we don't understand much until episode 5. At the end of season 1, when we discover the whole plot, we say to ourselves: "All that for that?!" If you have time to waste watch this series!
(Mauro Lanari) "The Pelican Brief" (Pakula '93) transferred to MKULTRA area. Perhaps the tension rises only in the 6th episode, both for the twist that not surprisingly involves the verses of one or more pelicans, and for a soundtrack instrumental piece that echoes the magnificent "Main Theme" by David Shire in "The Conversation".
The show is immersive, cinematic and highly addictive, with vivid characters, sound design and **** cinematography. There are homage nods (or pop culture references, if you prefer) to All the President's Men, Columbo and much more. Those who give it ridiculously low scores are clueless and need to stick to Starsky and Hutch reruns.
Probably only for die hard fans of Mr. Robot. Kind of boring, a lot of interesting experimentation but Sam Esmail's writing feels like a presence that this show lacks. It's a bit anticlimactic but nothing terrible. It's fine.
Julia Roberts is so good as her always. Good acting skills and great plot i just like this shows and it's mistery.
First season way better than the second; superior writing, acting, and plot. Great cinematography in both seasons.
This show is like watching paint dry, but much less exciting. I forced myself to watch until episode 6, just because of Julia Robert's, but caught myself wishing for commercials or death on multiple occasions and turned it off. If you are an insomniac or you've been on a coke or meth bender and need to come down rapidly, this is the show for you. Bad dialogue, suspense for no reason and with no payoff. Middle of the road acting, and for some reason the last 8 minutes of every 25 minute episode is like a drawn out credits...fade to black....b-roll scene. How long do we need to see that large white bird? One of the worst shows I've seen in the last 10 years.
This Amazon series got off to a big start last season with Julia Roberts headlining. Her character was employed by an organization that works with vets to wipe their minds clean from the traumas of war. Roberts has departed, leaving Janelle Monáe as the big name. After waking up stranded in the middle of a lake, her journey leads to a more in-depth investigation of the crucial chemical and the dangers it triggers. The first season moved slowly, even with the gradual revelations, there was never much dramatic tension…just lots of dialogue. Ditto this time around. Although there's an undercurrent of potential tragedy, the lack of much conflict and profusion of talk keeps it from ever being more than a mildly interesting drama.
I love Julia Roberts, and she was very good, and I thought Stephan James, the actor who played Walter, was really wonderful as well. And it was nice seeing the transcendent Sissy Spacek, and Shameless's Jeremy Allen White, aka 'Lip'. But I thought this program was so, so boring, with a pay off that offered pennies on the dollar, if that. Generally, when I dislike something early on, my feelings don't change much, and I quit watching. I should have. Now, I'm not saying it didn't have amazing audio and visual style. I'm not saying the other actors didn't make the most of what they were given, particularly Marianne Jean-Baptiste and Shea Whigham. I am only saying that it had a plot and a way of rolling it all out that could make one give up Ambien forever. For me, it really felt like a waste of time. Most critics loved it, but I really think they need to find new jobs.
A sad waste of acting talent. The ending has no payoff. A trip to the Tampa Tribune office is one obvious thought. It’s a shame because they had a decent core idea, but the pace was so slow the writer was apparently too exhausted to craft an ending.
This is a prime example of what NOT to do in the golden age of TV. This could have been a solid thriller if presented in 90 minutes, but as a 5 hour TV show this is utterly illconceived, as it drags and drags, with nothing really happening until the plot is revealed after 4 hours. However, what really Tanja this ship are the diasterous stylists choices by the director, such as the absolutely horrendous, overbearingly psychedelic thriller soundtrack, and the drawn out entry and closing scenes. This show has no business stealing 5 hours of your life for the non-existent reward the viewer gets from it at the end.
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