The Staircase

I didn't care for Michael Peterson at all during the actual documentary and didn't care for him in the HBO version but I think Colin Firth's portrayal of him is uncanny! I don't see how any woman could have been attracted to him. I do feel sorry for the people in his life, being so exposed the way they are, particularly given that they weren't given much of a choice to be in the original documentary. It's fairly evident to me that all MP really cared about was/is himself and perhaps he wasn't aware of how the media attention/social media would impact those he allegedly cares about. To me, there was way too much blood for a fall and I tend to think of him as a guilty man.

This seems to be made in a way where the story just seems to drag on and on...

This could easily have been consolidated into a 4 or 5 episode series instead of the 8 episodes - the producers have stretched the story to the point where the viewer starts losing interest.

Also the way the timeline keeps switching between historical and present without giving the viewer much indication that we are going back in time can be confusing at times.

This could have been written so much better to reflect the true story this series is supposed to be based on. One could also argue that the creators also took a little too much artistic licence in telling the story.

Either way, it's not a complete waste of time, but the creation of this series was poorly executed in my opinion.

Watched four episodes and am done. Too slow and just boring. I really love Toni Collette and Colin Firth, but it's all over the place. I'm just sick of the entire family. I watched the docu-drama on Netflix years ago. Bad situation. He probably did it.

After three episodes, this is shaping up to be a fabulous story, it is true, yet ambiguous enough to carry tension and suspense. The cast is magnificent with strong headliners and a depth unusually strong for TV.

The pacing is good, though the heavy use of short and long scene non-linearity is haphazardly delineated, with occasional timestamps, but no stylistic changes making frequent rewinding necessary. Cinematography is generally well done, but there are some sporadic gimmicky techniques which detract by being more showy than necessary.

Colin Firth has brilliant range as novelist Michael Peterson, the husband in the frame for his wife, Kathleen's, probable murder. Not surprisingly there are fine performances too numerous to mention from a cast of this stature.

A persuasive story very well told, episode four cannot drop quickly enough!

Intrigued by this story as it is based on real characters and thus far after watching 4 episodes have resisted the temptation of googling the real Michael Peterson. Since it is the mystery that is keeping me watching as well as the eye candy that is the former Mr Darcy. In all seriousness - I rate all of the actors that are in this mini series, 4 stars are deducted for the telling of the story through a timeline that is not in chronological order. Which would be fine - if it was made clear which year we were watching, it is sometimes but not always and that's why it is confusing. Put it this way one can't take one's eye away from the screen for too long in case in that second we jump to another year. And I'm not clear if the end of episode 4 is what really happened or what the jury believed happened. It's also taken about 3 episodes to reveal who are the parents of the various children in this blended family. My 6 is perhaps a little generous - its based on the optimism a cracking story will unfold. Yet to find out who Sophie is.