The Tourist

"The Tourist" has a very "Fargo" feel to it, set in the vast open fields of Australia which makes it the more fascinating. Starting out with action and a mystery, this short series has enough eclectic elements to keep you captivated. First, there is a mysterious guy, followed by a very sympathetic "cop," delightfully played by Danielle Macdonald. This actress is the biggest revelation here. Danielle portrays the character with so much heart that every scene with her character Helen just shines. More quirky characters are introduced, notably the American cowboy played by an Icelandic actor, the detective, and the cop trainee. The plot does get convoluted but loose ends are still tightened up so you don't lose your grip. The cinematography, camera work, and editing do justice to the sweeping Australian Outback beauty. Best of all, there is some snide dark humor that's quite enjoyable from characters that you least expect to be funny in real life.

I found that The Tourist is even more entertaining than people were saying it was. The Tourists follows an unnamed man (Jaime Dornan) who loses his memory after a car accident. We literally know nothing about him or the story. He wakes up in a hospital with no memory of who he was or what he did. All he has is a note to go to a diner at a specific time but as soon as he leaves the hospital there are people trying to kill him. From there he needs to find out who he is and what he did for people to want to kill him before it's too late. Jaime Dornan looks like he's on the verge of becoming a pretty big star. There are only two seasons at only six episodes apiece so it's an easy binge.

A man (Jamie Dornan) is run off the road by a tanker truck in the Australian outback. He wakes up in the hospital with full blown amnesia. He doesn't even know his name. New cop Helen Chambers (Danielle Macdonald) doggedly investigates.

Jamie Dornan may be the big name of this series, but it's Danielle Macdonald that I find more compelling. She has a great sweetness to her acting. She's basically the cop in Fargo except not pregnant. This show does try to do some comedy mostly through characters like Ethan. It is not my favorite aspect of the show. This lasted two seasons with specific stories for each.

I've noticed that The Tourist has been on Netflix's Top 10 since it came out earlier this year. The first season originally came out in the U. K. in 2022 where it was the most watched show of the year there too. I finally got around to watching it and have to say I really enjoyed it. It does start a little slow in the first episode so you might feel like giving up but don't, stick with it because it's worth it. It really picks up about midway through the second episode. All the actors give really good performances, especially Jamie Dornan. They really pull you into their world to the point where you really start to care about their characters and what happens to them. I really couldn't wait to find out more and more about Dornan's identity.

This looked good and once Ólafur Darri Ólafsson entered the scene, I remembered that I'd seen this before. Add in Danielle Macdonald (the trainee constable) and Damon Herriman, you know it's going to be one hell of a good show!

The scenery is, at times spectacular. And others, down and gritty. Kinda like the story itself.

The story is filled with twists and turns as you learn a bit more about who - and what - the tourist really is, so don't take a break without putting it on pause.

I'm glad Netflix put this on "rerun". I've actually run out of things to view and this is refreshing and actually smart. What a change from the usual stuff that's out there now.

Give it a whirl - and you'll be up at 4 AM too if you binge it too late in the day.