The winners of the 2022 Oscars only held one real surprise. It came in the unassuming shape of CODA, which fought off the combined might of Jane Campion's The Power Of The Dog and Spielberg's West Side Story to win Best Picture.
But one title was noticeable by its absence among the nominations, unusually uniting critics and audiences in sheer disbelief. Rebecca Hall’s directorial debut, Passing, had been tipped for several nods and was seen as a likely winner in at least one category. Yet it was shut out. But the much-snubbed film is ready and waiting for the appreciation it deserves on Netflix right now.
Based on Nella Larsen's novel of the same name, it's an agonising 1920s story of the pursuit of what seems to be happiness and the pain of racism. Irene (Tessa Thompson) is married to a doctor and lives a comfortable life in Harlem, but, although she's African American, she can "pass" as white. Shopping in all the best stores and taking tea in top hotels are realities for her, and one afternoon, while sheltering from the summer heat, she meets somebody from her past.
She and Clare (Ruth Negga) were at school together and, with her blonde hair and expertly applied makeup, her old friend is equally accepted by white society — but she's taken it one step further. Unlike her friend, whose husband is also African American, Clare is married to a wealthy white man who is completely unaware of her background and brutally vocal about his hatred for black people.
As the two women renew their friendship, the stark contrast in their circumstances causes tensions and, ultimately, threatens both their lives.
Shot in elegant, sensual black and white, Hall’s film had a multitude of strengths, including a meticulous attention to period detail, all of which resulted in nominations from a number of awards bodies and a 91% score on Rotten Tomatoes. It was the acting that really captured hearts and minds, with Thompson constantly torn between the truth of her life and the truth of her friend’s. Negga, already an Oscar nominee for Loving in 2017, was an exquisite combination of delicacy and sheer guts in a performance that earned her SAG, Golden Globe and BAFTA nominations. It was no surprise that she was regarded as a shoo-in for an Oscar nod. That she didn't is still baffling to the point of criminal.
With a tiny frame and delicate features that belie the power of both her acting and characters, Negga was an established name in the theatre before moving to the big and small screen, and she's since displayed an enviable range encompassing comedy to dark drama and everything in between. Most recently, she starred in one of Apple TV Plus's biggest hits of last year, playing Jake Gyllenhaal's loyal but conflicted wife in Presumed Innocent, based on the 1990 thriller of the same name.
What the streamer had originally been described as a "limited series" proved so popular that its return was announced before season one's finale had aired.
The show had massive appeal, earning it 79% on Rotten Tomatoes. With an impressive cast that included Peter Sarsgaard, Renate Reinsve and Bill Camp alongside Negga and Gyllenhaal, it wasn't a straight-down-the-line adaptation of the original Harrison Ford starrer. New characters were brought in, Negga was given a more complex storyline as the wife, Gyllenhaal’s lawyer was not only in the dock but also defended himself, and the ending was a curveball that nobody saw coming.
But once the second season had been confirmed, it was clear that something different was on the way. Sarsgaard made it clear he was "not interested in sequels" and news followed that Gyllenhaal would only be returning as an executive producer, so everything pointed to an anthology format, as well as a new lead. Step forward Rachel Brosnahan (soon to be seen as the new Superman's Lois Lane), who will also executive produce, although there’s no word at the moment on the rest of the cast.
Presumed Innocent’s first season was based on the book of the same name by Scott Turow but, with no clear blueprint in his body of work as to how a second season would pan out, its next outing will be based upon another book entirely. Jo Murray’s legal thriller, Dissection Of A Murder, is set for publication in the spring of next year and is reportedly the basis for season two. It centres on lawyer Leila Reynolds, who is defending in her first murder case while her own husband is the prosecutor but, with a release date for the book around nine months away, fans of the first season may have a long wait ahead.
And it could be a nervous one. Replacing Gyllenhaal and moving to an anthology format is risky. We only have to look at True Detective to see how it can nearly sabotage a show and, even though it’s redeemed itself with seasons three and four, it was touch and go for a while. But the casting of Brosnahan, with her impressive track record on the big and small screen, is cause for early optimism. The omens, so far, are good …..
Passing is on Netflix in the US and the UK. All episodes of Presumed Innocent are available on Apple TV Plus in the US and the UK.
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