A faithful-to-the-book adaptation like "5 Days at Memorial" follows reality very closely and takes an extremely nuanced look at the events at Memorial Hospital in New Orleans during and immediately after Hurricane Katrina. While the "shades of grey" approach is commendable in certain aspects (it is never preachy or polarizing), TV series rely on conflict--and that is where "Memorial" stumbles noticeably.
For a very basic overview, this 8-episode miniseries focuses on the doctors and patients feeling the effects of Katrina during that fateful 5-day span. Ostensibly, Dr. Anna Pou (Vera Farmiga) is given the most airtime, as she struggles with morality-leaden decisions with no electricity, intense heat, flooding, and governmental orders that ultimately lead to more chaos rather than less. Fellow doctors King (Cornelius Smith Jr.) and Baltz (Robert Pine) are also showcased, while lead emergency commander Susan Mulderick (Cherry Jones) realizes there is no plan in place for what the hospital is facing.
As the series shifts into its final 2-3 episodes, investigators Butch Schafer (Michael Gaston) & Virginia Rider (Molly Hager) take center stage in trying to determine whether homicide was committed at Memorial and legal action is necessary.
It is abundantly clear that showrunners Carlton Cuse & John Ridley want to tell an even-keel story here. The events are grounded in real-life scenarios & timelines, while the overriding theme of the whole piece is essentially "were the deaths at Memorial criminal homicide or a result of the horrific conditions?". They really build up both sides of those arguments in equal measure.
The problem, of course, is that every time a dramatic moment is needed--when the camera pans in and the music intensifies--it is almost certainly a scene in which someone is blaming someone else. So, viewers are left with a show that takes no firm position but then (understandably) has to service dramatic material from something. I found this to be rather jarring and difficult to reconcile.
Fortunately, the acting here is solid enough--and the overall production crisp enough--to make it a compelling watch even if it is thematically frustrating. Especially entertaining is a Louisiana-accented Gaston absolutely stealing the show down the stretch run of episodes.
In short, I think "Five Days at Memorial" suffers from what I call a "Sully problem". Remember that Tom Hanks movie about the real-life Sullenberger who landed the plane in the Hudson River? I don't think there were too many people who wanted Sully behind bars for negligence, but that was the angle the film had to take to create drama. A similar situation plays out here: the first 3-4 episodes are actually so good at portraying the deteriorating, confusing, squalid conditions at Memorial that it is difficult for viewers to ever really turn on the doctors in any way.
For a very basic overview, this 8-episode miniseries focuses on the doctors and patients feeling the effects of Katrina during that fateful 5-day span. Ostensibly, Dr. Anna Pou (Vera Farmiga) is given the most airtime, as she struggles with morality-leaden decisions with no electricity, intense heat, flooding, and governmental orders that ultimately lead to more chaos rather than less. Fellow doctors King (Cornelius Smith Jr.) and Baltz (Robert Pine) are also showcased, while lead emergency commander Susan Mulderick (Cherry Jones) realizes there is no plan in place for what the hospital is facing.
As the series shifts into its final 2-3 episodes, investigators Butch Schafer (Michael Gaston) & Virginia Rider (Molly Hager) take center stage in trying to determine whether homicide was committed at Memorial and legal action is necessary.
It is abundantly clear that showrunners Carlton Cuse & John Ridley want to tell an even-keel story here. The events are grounded in real-life scenarios & timelines, while the overriding theme of the whole piece is essentially "were the deaths at Memorial criminal homicide or a result of the horrific conditions?". They really build up both sides of those arguments in equal measure.
The problem, of course, is that every time a dramatic moment is needed--when the camera pans in and the music intensifies--it is almost certainly a scene in which someone is blaming someone else. So, viewers are left with a show that takes no firm position but then (understandably) has to service dramatic material from something. I found this to be rather jarring and difficult to reconcile.
Fortunately, the acting here is solid enough--and the overall production crisp enough--to make it a compelling watch even if it is thematically frustrating. Especially entertaining is a Louisiana-accented Gaston absolutely stealing the show down the stretch run of episodes.
In short, I think "Five Days at Memorial" suffers from what I call a "Sully problem". Remember that Tom Hanks movie about the real-life Sullenberger who landed the plane in the Hudson River? I don't think there were too many people who wanted Sully behind bars for negligence, but that was the angle the film had to take to create drama. A similar situation plays out here: the first 3-4 episodes are actually so good at portraying the deteriorating, confusing, squalid conditions at Memorial that it is difficult for viewers to ever really turn on the doctors in any way.