Home » Why You Should Watch… Believe

Why You Should Watch… Believe

Capture2The past year has certainly been good to Alfonso Cuarón. Riding high on the success of his Oscar-winning movie Gravity, Cuarón is bringing his first full series to UK TV channel Watch on 27 March. Part science fiction and part adventure, with a little fantasy thrown in too, Believe is a project made from many successful parts – not only Cuarón, but also that little known name JJ Abrams who steps up as an Executive Producer. Believe appears to have all the right parts to be a resounding success, but only time will tell if the mid-season start will be a hindrance or a blessing in disguise. After numerous cancellations leaving questions unanswered, audiences are often wary of getting into a new show.

Is the world ready to get behind a new mysterious show? We take a look at the top reasons why you should have faith in Believe:

1. The beauty of Alfonso Cuarón’s direction.

If there’s one thing Cuarón knows about it’s creating a visual masterpiece – capturing a moment in a beautiful way and mesmerising an audience. It’s a special talent only the best directors have, and Believe starts with such a powerful shot that it drags you right into the action immediately. This is a show that isn’t going to mess around, and Cuarón makes a point of making us feel as close to the main character Bo Adams (Johnny Sequoyah) as possible. Sometimes you can feel completely detached from a show but here we’re right in the middle of it.

2. A heartwarming relationship.

With echos of Keifer Sutherland’s last show Touch, Believe has a strong adult/child bond at the forefront. Here the difference is the child can talk, and the adult happens to be someone escaped from prison. It’s a unique and quirky dynamic, but one that both Sequoyah and Jake McLaughlin pull off very well. There are realistic struggles, laughs and danger along the way, and both of them take it in their stride and maintain a believable friendship that carries the show. Sequoyah in particular impresses with her range, showing Bo as a vulnerable yet strong young girl who fights for survival every episode.

3. Sienna Guillory kicks some serious ass in the pilot.

We’ve all seen her in various strong female roles such as Helen of Troy and Jill Valentine in the Resident Evil movie franchise, and Guillory steps up again here as the main nemesis to Bo and her protector William (McLaughlin). Unfortunately Guillory pulled out after the pilot, but she gives Believe that extra fighting edge in the pilot to bring an element of danger to the story. There are many chase scenes, fights and high-octane set pieces in Believe as those around Bo struggle to protect her. It’s a shame Guillory’s character Moore doesn’t last for longer, but she’s a great way to kick-start the show.Capture1

4. Special Agent Dale Cooper (or Orson Hodge if you prefer) is a mystery wrapped in an enigma.

Oh, how we love to see Kyle MacLachlan in anything! Whether you know him from Twin Peaks, Desperate Housewives or something else, there’s no doubt that MacLachlan plays a suspicious and puzzling character like no other. When he turns up, you know something strange is going on. In Believe,  MacLachlan plays the part of Roman Skouras, ex-partner to Milton Winter (Delroy Lindo – The Chicago Code), who’s the main man in charge of protecting Bo. Of course, there’s a reason why they are ex-partners, and Skouras appears to fall on the bad side of the line, and only time will tell how far he’ll push to get his hands on the young girl with special powers.

5. There are questions, but not too many…

We all love a good mystery, but it’s easy to get sucked into a complex story that ends up having too many twists and turns. While Believe sets up some questions, it manages to juggle these with a weekly dose of action and adventure that keeps things interesting, and keeps the attention of the audience. You want to know answers, but they don’t feel like the be-all and end-all here. It’s an enjoyable show that just happens to leave a few things up in the air, and as long as it drip-feeds answers here and there, there’s no reason why it can’t carry on being interesting to its audience. There are lessons to be learnt on how far to push things from other shows like Lost, so let’s hope those behind Believe know when to pull the trigger.

Believe airs on Watch at 9pm on 27 March 2014. More info can be found HERE.

David Bedwell

Television addict from Lost to X-Files to Breaking Bad and beyond. General hoarder of DVDs and Blu-rays (2000+). Addicted to Twitter.

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