The book is always better
Main Cast: Nicole Kidman, Live Schreiber
Creator: Jenna Lamia
I’m going to save us all some time here and just admit that The Perfect Couple is far from the perfect mini-series. Really far. But let’s not dismiss it out of hand just yet.
The Perfect Couple stars Nicole Kidman and Live Schreiber as Greer and Tag Winbury. They are rich, as pretentious as their names, and throwing an elaborate wedding for their son Benji (Billy Howle). His fiancée Amelia (Eve Hewson) is not from this world and arrives at their Nantucket mansion with no small trepidation.
Long story short, there’s a murder and everyone is a suspect. We learn all about these ridiculous (and generally repugnant) people as the police investigate the crime.
That’s it. The series is a murder mystery on a tiny little withering twig of the family tree that is Agatha Christie plot rip-offs. The characters are detestable, the house is both opulent and ugly, the performances are stiff and erratic, and even Nantucket looks bad.
But I wanted to see who did it. For all its many, many flaws, The Perfect Couple hooked me. I believe the key is that it is outlandishly soapy. This is the kind of plot where you expect an evil twin and at least one coma.
The characters are so duplicitous and have so many secrets that it’s perversely fun to watch it all unravel. There are a couple of innocent bystanders, but they are largely spared extended interactions with the ghastly main characters. So it’s all about figuring out which of these unlikable people to dislike even more. The actors are undeniably talented, but they don’t gel here, never forming an ensemble.
There is a truly bright spot to be found here and it comes from a delightfully unexpected place. Donna Lynn Champlin plays detective Nikki Henry, a no-nonsense cop assigned to investigate this feckless bunch of over-privileged, entitled twits. Her exasperation feels like a wink and a nod to the audience—she knows these people are ridiculous just as we do. She also supplies an occasional witty quip to break up the melodramatics.
Also, the opening credits are kind of fun.
This is not a resounding recommendation. It’s not really a recommendation at all. It’s more an acknowledgement that my soap-opera trained brain did, in fact, want to know whodunit. That accomplishment gets it a grudging 3-star rating.
If you decide on a viewing of The Perfect Couple, be prepared. You will most likely hate these characters and wish them ill. It’s not you, it’s them. Don’t feel bad if you fall into this rabbit hole and can’t get out. It’s a six episode distraction from the real world and you can forget all about it the minute it’s finished.
And you, like I, will know exactly who did it.
The series is based on the book of the same name by Elin Hildebrand, which I suspect is far more enjoyable than it’s small screen adaptation. If I could do it all over again, I would most definitely read the book. You can pick up the paperback for less than $10 on Amazon.
Sue reads a lot, writes a lot, edits a lot, and loves a good craft. She was deemed “too picky” to proofread her children’s school papers and wears this as a badge of honor. She is also proud of her aggressively average knitting skills She is the Editorial Director at Silver Beacon Marketing and an aspiring Crazy Cat Lady.
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