TV review: 'Murder at the End of the World' a compelling mystery with relevant twist
LOS ANGELES, Nov. 6 (UPI) -- A Murder at the End of the World, premiering Nov. 14 on Hulu, is an addictive mystery with something to say about modern technology. Creators Brit Marling and Zal Batmanglij have a warning about reliance on AI, but layer it within engrossing characters and plot twists.
Darby Hart (Emma Corrin) has been a hacker since she was a teenager, and accompanied her policeman father to scenes of crimes that she helped solve. Tech mogul Andy Ronson (Clive Owen) invites Darby to one of his retreats at a secret, secluded location.
Darby decides to go because she wants to meet Andy's wife, legendary hacker Lee Anderson (Marling).
The guest list also includes Darby's ex, Bill (Harris Dickinson), astronaut Sian Cruz (Alice Braga), smart city developer Lu Mei (Joan Chen), filmmaker Martin Mitchell (Jermaine Fowler), roboticist Oliver (Ryan J. Haddad) and many others in the technology, business and arts worlds.
The premiere episode has to introduce a lot of characters and the world they're visiting. The visitors also are the first guests at Andy's new hotel in Iceland, equipped with artificial intelligence software named Ray (Edoardo Ballerini).
On the plane and at the dinner table, characters establish themselves memorably. They also get into social discussions. Andy and his guests discuss other issues like excessive wealth, technology, the climate and relationships, all of which will come into play.
The series is off and running by the end of the first episode. One of the guests does die and Darby follows her suspicion that it was a murder.
She uses her computer skills to create distractions and look for clues, and she can hack Andy's system. She uses Ray to talk through the crime scene and toggle his programming to reveal clues.
And yet, the clues are good, old-fashioned, real-world tells. A set of red boot laces Darby saw leads to a process of elimination as both Darby and the audience wait to find out who wears the laces, but it's not as simple as "the killer wore red laces."
Darby enlists other allies as they earn her trust. In each episode, she essentially pairs off with a different guest.
All of the characters are smart people, so each combination leads to an engaging tete-a-tete.
Andy's purpose in the retreat was to elicit feedback on technology he is developing in secret. He welcomes opposing viewpoints, and reveals provocative initiatives that could be devices the viewers are home have to consider in the near future.
The discussions between characters with vested interests in technology and money lead to a poignant indictment of capitalism. The mystery is ultimately a vehicle to explore what these people contribute to society, and whether all of them are pursuing a net good.
The episodes, directed by Marling and Batmanglij, set the investigation in a striking venue, too. The remote compound is handsome, nestled at the bottom of a beautiful, icy valley surrounded by mountains.
This is a standalone limited series, but Darby is definitely a character who could go on to solve more mysteries. Her skills and intellect make her a useful person to have around, and her ability to see through the rich and well-equipped makes her an endearing protagonist.
Fred Topel, who attended film school at Ithaca College, is a UPI entertainment writer based in Los Angeles. He has been a professional film critic since 1999, a Rotten Tomatoes critic since 2001, and a member of the Television Critics Association since 2012 and the Critics Choice Association since 2023. Read more of his work in Entertainment.
