MonsterPerfect Good idea lost in the noise

Supelice Dreadfully Boring

Phillipa Strong acting helps the film overcome an uncertain premise and create characters that hold our attention absolutely.

Dana An old-fashioned movie made with new-fashioned finesse.

MikeMagi There's a great idea for a TV series here -- a police squad that specializes in identity theft. But based on the two episodes I watched, it's been mishandled. Both centered on psychos who swiped identities and committed murder for reasons that were at best murky (and at worst ludicrous.) And in both episodes, extended chase scenes filled the gaps in threadbare scenarios. The cast isn't bad. And perhaps subsequent stories will suggest...surprise!!!...that not all identity thieves are homicidal wackos. They might even deal with the frightening and fascinating way in which lives can be stolen -- along with cash, credit ratings and reputations. But from what I've seen so far, I'm not hopeful.

Zimmerman Stein Shallow and predictable. Perfect for an American TV equivalent. The writing is obvious and sensational. The core cast's acting is abominable. The foil, Keeley Hawes is employed as a prop. Her presence is insufferably stilted. The show is a sound effects bonanza. John Lunn's music is dated, generic, and aggressively overused. The most enjoyable moments of the series are in episode five, thanks only to Clive Russell. The director, the writer, and the creator helped to make many episodes of the inspirational 'Waking the Dead', notably the final story, 'Waterloo'. But all the richness of that great show is lost to 'Identity'. This is the police procedural fallen victim to the lowest common denominator and, probably, decision by committee.

Corky1984 ITV long ago descended into a dumbed-down channel which flogged endless low-quality popstar wannabe/reality TV shows, but now and then it still comes up with a decent drama. Identity is a good series, with a strong cast and some interesting story lines. Focusing on the endeavours of the Identity Unit, which looks into identity fraud/theft etc, the show injects a bit of freshness into the well-trodden police procedural genre. The beautiful Keeley Hawes (of Ashes to Ashes fame) heads the Identity Unit, but Aiden Gillen's John Bloom is the series' key player. As a former undercover officer, he still has a foot in both worlds and is still romantically involved with a crime baron's sister. The show follows a continuous arc as he is drawn ever deeper back into his old 'undercover' world, whilst trying to reintegrate into the Identity squad. Some inventive plots keep you interested, whilst the rivalries amongst the Identity team occasionally spill over. Series 1 ended with Bloom's two worlds colliding and more or less resolved that story strand, but I'd like to see a second series made because the characters still have plenty of mileage left in them.

farmertrouser No middle ground on this one - it's either incredibly dull (lots of office scenes in the style of spooks and 24 with the computer experts all staring excitedly at PC screens) or incredibly interesting but completely and frustratingly unbelievable. It would also appear that if Keeley Hawes is involved, the plot line will generally involve her wafting about an office, looking ultra-sophisticated, clutching a file/paper/clipboard and not generally doing a great deal, other than eyeing up a single colleague for future romantic storyline to keep us interested. I've managed to watch two episodes before giving up as I couldn't see where the plot could go(and yes I know there's the other storyline about John and his previous life with the dodgy gangsters that's going to come back to bite him, but given that John's character's not developed enough for me to care about his future, what's the point?) Surely no one would continue to employ someone that is THAT unreliable?? In the real world he'd have lost his job at the end of episode one having stabbed father of villain in the leg (in order to obtain vital information from evil villainous daughter - yes honestly)Am really disappointed. Particularly given the cast list. Bring back Luther.