Seven Seconds

We say, I say, again and again that we are in a Golden Age of Television. We say it and I say it because it is very true. Television shows, spurred on by streaming apps and audience expectation being raised higher and higher, have become as good and often better than anything that film can offer. The problem for shows and audiences alike however is that so many superb shows can get lost in the shuffle and even, as we saw so recently with Damnation and Dirk Gently, get cancelled long before they should be. Hopefully Seven Seconds does not fall into the latter category. Created, and largely written by Veena Sud, best known for her work on The Killing, (She's also from Toronto. I need to mention this because I too live in Toronto and because it is so nice to see a Canadian Woman, particularly one from so close to home, finding such success.) Seven Seconds is better than just good. It's great. Sud does a masterful job of writing and the shows itself is so layered with thought and imagery that I just had to go back and watch it again right away, something I have only done once, maybe twice before. On the surface Seven Seconds is a very intense and dark story about a young white cop who hits a black boy and then, along with three other cops who he barely knows on a narcotic squad that he has just joined, seeks to cover it up. On the surface Seven Seconds is a contemplation of race relations and the police. But it is so much more than just that. Seven Seconds is a deep and profound psychological and social study. It is a show that questions how well we really know each other, and how easily that we can assume that we know each other. It is a study of repentance and sorrow. It is a quest to see the humanity that underlies the surface in each and everyone of us. Yes, it's another cop show. And, taken on that level, it is a damned good cop show. Yes, it is a story about crime and punishment, or lack of thereof. Taken on just that level, it is a superb presentation of the impact of crime and on each every person that crime touches. Yes, it is dark and moody drama. Taken on just that level, Seven Seconds' superb writing and exquisite acting stands up with the best drama. Each and every actor is so perfect. Each and every bit of dialogue is so dead on. Each and every scene evokes and rips at your emotions so terribly and so beautifully. Seven Seconds is simply and utterly perfect at what it does in that very rare way that shows like Rectify or NYPD Blue have been able to be. Watch Seven Seconds. And then watch Seven Seconds again to see how well symbols are used to create depth, how layered and complex this show is underneath what seems like a pretty straight forward exterior. Because that is exactly what Seven Seconds really turns out to be about. What we see on the surface does not tell us what lies hidden beneath. But even on the surface Seven Seconds is a superb show. Don't let it get lost. Don't wait until it's been cancelled to find out how good this show is. Enjoy all your other favourite shows too. But, for your own sake, make sure you don't lose sight of Seven Seconds.

Seven Seconds centers on a Jersey City PD narcotics team, and their possible cover-up of the hit and run of a black teenage boy. The team is headed by Sgt. Mike DiAngelo (a chilling David Lyons), resilient and respected among his team, and officers within the department. Mike, who has no children of his own, takes young, and mostly naïve, officers under his wing and shows them the ropes with some tough-love and conditioning. Think Denzel Washington's character in Training Day and you'll get a really good idea of Mike DiAngelo's personality.

DiAngelo's newest recruit is the young, soon-to-be-a-daddy, Pete Joblonski, a cop transferred in from a "better part of the city", at DiAngelo's behest. The two share a loose familial bond; but that's enough for DiAngelo to vouch for Pete and to know that he can trust him to fall-in-line when needed. Narc veterans "Manny" Gary Wilcox (a convincing Patrick Murney) and Felix Osorio (a shining Raúl Castillo) round-out the four-man Special Investigations and Gang Unit of the JCPD. This team will do virtually anything for their leader...no, scratch that, will do anything at all for DiAngelo. He is a god in their eyes.

It's the early-morning hours after Valentines Day, and Pete is rushing to the hospital to meet his pregnant wife. The roads are slick, the snow is falling. Pete is distracted on the phone. Without a visible cue to the audience, Pete slams on the breaks and wipes out. He's fine, but what's under the car is not. Thankfully, we're spared from the gory view. All we see is a bicycle tire spinning, and a homemade paper seagull attached to the frame...the significance of which becomes quite compelling when we do learn the nature of the two.

The driver of the bicycle is a young, black teenager named Brenton; a suspected "banger" from Jersey City's most feared gang. DiAngelo, with the rest of his team in the backseat of his seized-from-a-drug-dealer sports car, arrive on scene to find Pete still behind the wheel of his slightly damaged SUV, and a blood trail leading to a ditch. It's one's moral duty to render aid to someone who is injured. This thought would cross anyone's mind when seeing someone critically hurt, but a cop....well, they're obligated to help.

DiAngelo follows the blood trail to a ditch where he finds Brenton's broken body, and a serious pool of blood. What does he do? What any selfish cop would do. Fearing an incredible backlash from the (mostly black) community over the recklessness of a white cop's actions against a black kid, DiAngelo orders Pete to leave the scene, and instructs the rest of the team to clean up the evidence. Forget about the kid in the ditch, "He's nothing."

The boy's parents, devoted and pious Latrice and Isiah Butler (the brilliant Regina King and the marvelous Russell Hornsby) also become victims - right from the get go. Victims of an anachronistic system where the black population are at a disadvantage starting from birth. Does anyone care about their rights? Does anyone care about Brenton? As the story plays out over the full 10-episodes, we discover the answers to those questions and get an intimate look at why "Cops don't go to jail", especially if the victim is black.

The series has many twists and turns, most will be of the "blind-sided" type. This isn't your typical, "I know what's coming next" kind of plot, even though the story may seem similar to you. For whatever reason, we have this insatiable appetite for police procedural TV, going back at least 60-years with "77 Sunset Strip" (1958 - 1964). Hawaii Five-0, Hill Street Blues, Miami Vice, Law and Order, LA Law, CSI, to name a few more. Certainly, there are a lot of shows on TV that "play the race card" and attack police for their bias. I admit I was a little skeptical of Seven Seconds at first because of that. Like those silly "coming of age" movies I'm so sick of watching, has this topic not been done enough? Are we not yet bored by dramatizations of white vs. black, race on race, BS shows? Why do we need to see another?

According to one website, of the last two-decades, ¼ of the top-40 shows on television are police-procedural. I've seen them all (shows like NYPD Blue, Law and Order, Homeland, The Wire) and there isn't a single show within the group of 10 that, at some point, didn't deal with race-relations and police bias. Most were fictional, some based on true events. The sad truth is, without real life stories, the writers would have nothing to write about, and we'd have a lot less TV to watch.

There is an element of truth to Seven Seconds. The series seems plausible, especially to those (black or white) who have had some dealings with the law. Mentions of the Ferguson, Missouri shooting come up, as do other similar real-life occurrences that have happened. We are reminded, again, of how archaic some things, some people are. Sadly.

This series is powerful, and moving, make no mistake. The characters are deep and complex. They have flaws and secrets. They are like you, me, and our neighbor. The production value is what you would expect from Netflix; no expense is spared to make everything as realistic as possible.

A favorite quote of mine is by Dante. It goes, "The darkest places in hell are reserved for those who maintain their neutrality in times of moral crisis."

That moral crisis is race relations within our own community, specifically with police. This has always been an issue during my lifetime (I'm middle-aged), as it was during my parents' and my grandparents'. Whether the place you call home is Jersey City, or Ferguson, or where I'm from, we have all seen parts of "Seven Seconds" play-out in real life. I know I have, in more ways than one. That's what makes this series hurt so much.

While it has got its plot inconveniences and some pacing problems, Seven Seconds is a crime drama that manages to be captivating, emotional, painful and thrilling all at the same time with great performances all around, while also making a bold statement on one of humanity's biggest modern day problems.

This is a great series, very well played, but I think Netflix owes the audience a second season.

This series grabbed my attention right from the start! A white cop happens to hit a black 15 year old kid with his car. The cop's boss and coworkers show up seconds after and tell him to leave the kid there...essentially ignoring/covering up a hit and run and allowing things to turn to a possible homicide. This is just the beginning of a sick, downward spiral. Unfortunately this doesn't have a happy go lucky, movie magic storyline or ending. Instead this movie portrays HARSH REALITY! The reality of giving power to a corrupt and unjust system. It really opens your eyes in so many ways. This movie made me feel so many different things...frustration, heartbroken, surprised, yet not surprised at all. I don't doubt for one second that this stuff really happens exactly the way it played out on screen. Actors were incredible!! A very high end, solid series that keeps you glued from start to finish!! Highly satisfied! Would've loved if they could've continued this series with different cases and new cast each season!