When the Vietnam war ended in 1974 it took some years before we had truly critical films about the war. Platoon was released in 1986.
The trouble with the Iraq invasion of 2003 is that the aftermath is still being felt. Once the American troops eventually left, parts of the country was then occupied by ISIS.
With no standstill, it is difficult for a drama to deal how ordinary Iraqi people were affected by it.
Baghdad Central is based on a noir novel. It starts with life before the invasion in March 2003. But the bulk of it is set in November 2003.
Muhsin Kadr al-Khafaji (Waleed Zuaiter) is an ex policeman whose life is devastated. His wife is dead and his daughter Sawsan who was attending college is missing.
Muhsin has been tortured for being mistaken for a Saddam Hussein apparatchik. Now with the help of ex British policeman Frank Temple (Bertie Carvel) he can become a policeman again by rebuilding the Iraqi police force. He can also get access to the Green Zone, all useful to find the whereabouts of his daughter and care for his ill younger daughter.
I thought the first episode was well filmed. Moroccan locations were used for Baghdad. I sense the series wants to emulate Edge of Darkness, still the gold standard for this type of noirish conspiracy thrillers. The clue is Temple being the Darius Jedburgh kind of character who adds humour.
The first episode was rather fuzzy. The show wants to hold its cards to its chest. Temple might be critical of the US military and wants to genuine help the Iraqis. It is just too early to tell.
The trouble with the Iraq invasion of 2003 is that the aftermath is still being felt. Once the American troops eventually left, parts of the country was then occupied by ISIS.
With no standstill, it is difficult for a drama to deal how ordinary Iraqi people were affected by it.
Baghdad Central is based on a noir novel. It starts with life before the invasion in March 2003. But the bulk of it is set in November 2003.
Muhsin Kadr al-Khafaji (Waleed Zuaiter) is an ex policeman whose life is devastated. His wife is dead and his daughter Sawsan who was attending college is missing.
Muhsin has been tortured for being mistaken for a Saddam Hussein apparatchik. Now with the help of ex British policeman Frank Temple (Bertie Carvel) he can become a policeman again by rebuilding the Iraqi police force. He can also get access to the Green Zone, all useful to find the whereabouts of his daughter and care for his ill younger daughter.
I thought the first episode was well filmed. Moroccan locations were used for Baghdad. I sense the series wants to emulate Edge of Darkness, still the gold standard for this type of noirish conspiracy thrillers. The clue is Temple being the Darius Jedburgh kind of character who adds humour.
The first episode was rather fuzzy. The show wants to hold its cards to its chest. Temple might be critical of the US military and wants to genuine help the Iraqis. It is just too early to tell.
