Sugarwood

Jason Bateman is your go to guy as your every-man for comedies. He has been doing it as a kid in series such as Valerie/The Hogan Family.

In the opening episode of Ozark he directs, produces as well as being the star in this dark crime thriller.

He plays Marty Byrde a financial adviser for a small firm in Chicago with his partner, Bruce (Josh Randall). The firm is far from legitimate, they are laundering money for a Mexican cartel.

The episode hits it stride with a bloody massacre as gangster Del (Esai Morales) suspects the firm is skimming money and Bruce owes up to it. It later transpires that Del did not know for sure, he just suspected.

While others are killed, Marty pleads for his life with an idea that he can launder more money, up to half a billion dollars in 5 years if he relocates to Lake Ozark in Missouri.

Marty's last minute thinking might have saved his life, he tries to liquidate his assets including withdrawing everything from his bank. However Marty's wife Wendy (Laura Linney) double crosses him by trying to flee with everything with her lover. That porn film Marty kept watching turns out to be his wife with her lover.

Again it is Del who has also found out what Wendy has been up to and dealt with her lover by having him thrown off from a high rise block.

Marty heads to the Ozark with a plan and an uncertain future. Del will not hesitate to shoot him and his family and he cannot trust his wife.

I am not convinced that Bateman has the chops for a dark dramatic turn. It clearly is darkly lit but at least the opening episode was not a slow burner, it really did go out with a bang thanks to Morales conniving gangster.

The biggest problem is you really have no one to care enough about in this episode to root for. Marty and Bruce fleeced a well to do ordinary couple in the opening scenes who came in for some financial advice.

A really bold, highlighted pilot episode I've seen in a while, this episode doesn't hold any punches when showcasing the good and flaws sides of the characters. A bit tense, the plot setup paces really quick, a major plot point is reveal and sets the track for the rest of the season. The show is a gritty crime drama that I'd like to compare to Breaking Bad especially the integration of suburban family crisis in the central plot. The cast is pitch-perfect, the technical elements are of top-calibre, right from the first frame of this show, I knew I won't be watching the typical Netflix show but rather a sophisticated, well-made series. My only downside with the episode is that has a pacing issue and tries a bit hard to shock the audience, other than I think this show going to be a blast.

I have been putting off this show for some time. After watching this episode, I wish I watched it sooner. This episode was filled with intense moments and great performances. The episode also had some great ideas that future episodes can expand upon.

I've never commented on a specific episode of a series, but I just saw the first of Ozark and I'm in awe. Jason Batman's directing work is magnificent. We'll talk about his performance when I get my pulse back. Wow!

Martin 'Marty' Byrde, a hardworking and successful financial advisor, is dragged into a situation beyond his control when his business partner cheats a threatful client within the business. Marty must now relocate himself and his family, and victoriously grow a personal saving of millions of dollars to those he loves safe.

Ozark sometimes has its calming and mysterious moments, but the series seems to be blanketed by a darker and sinister tone; Marty is a good man, a family man, but this is blanketed by his decaying marriage and struggle to communicate with his family. His wife, Wendy, is a good mother but is struggling to regrow her marriage with Marty as much as he is struggling. Marty's business partner, Bruce, is a successful married man, but he has as many dark secrets like everyone else in the business. Secrets everywhere.

Jason Bateman does a very good job of displaying himself as an understanding financial client - Marty Byrde. Jason's dramatic performance as a level-headed, verbally convincing financial client is realistic, personal, possibly debatable, but certainly believable. Laura Linney is also performing exceptionally, and we can only be faithful that her character will grow throughout the series and show us that she is capable at throwing her inner character emotions to the series' audience.

The cinematography and placements of items and actors are received very well. There wasn't a scene where I felt like I was being smothered by overly in-your-face details and characters. Each scene is mysterious yet simple at the exact same time, and we have Bill Dubuque and Mark Williams to thank for that.

Everything in each scene has been chosen delicately. When it comes to a series like this, an audience will rely on the scenes matching the shapes, tones, and themes of each scene. When the characters are discussing their next business actions, the scenes are constantly considered and given the look and feel of where one would be to discuss said business. The writing isn't lazy, so there is hope for the future of this series.

The editing can be unexpected in some instances, but I'd be lying if I said that the editing was amazing. No, the editing is clean and simple - nothing that would require us to rewind a scene and grasp precise details. The lighting and positioning of each camera, however, adds to the visual sensations of each scene and gives us a precise intended tone.

The dialogue is realistic, which has helped Marty become a very intriguing character quickly. What I love most about the dialogue, however, isn't the fact that it's realistic, but the fact that, depending on who the character is, they will stay loyal to their backgrounds and upbringings. Not one character 'felt out of place' and made me think "I don't think they know what to do with this character."

This was a decent enough first episode - entertaining. I'm hoping to feel further intrigued by the snappy writing and use of, for now, underdeveloped characters and what situations they will find themselves in. Hopefully, Bill Dubuque and Mark Williams will be able to keep this series curving in a quirky direction.