‘Disclaimer’ Season 1 Review — A Viselike Grip of Suspense And Thrills

Wait, the great Alfonso Cuarón (Children of Men, Gravity, Roma) is writing and directing Disclaimer, a miniseries for Apple TV+? No questions asked, sign me up. I would follow Cuarón down the depths of cinematic hell if he wanted to remake “franchise” fare like Look Who’s Talking, Police Academy, or Mannequin. No other filmmaker, no matter the setting, can evoke sorrowful rumination so stunningly.

The adaptation of Renée Knight’s Disclaimer is a stunning psychological thriller. The series is filled with award-worthy performances, particularly from the great Cate Blanchett and the riveting Kevin Kline, that holds you in its viselike grip. There is something visceral about watching our past tear apart our future, taking the audience—and this reviewer—through the suspenseful anguish of its story.

The story follows Catherine Ravenscroft (Blanchett), a renowned journalist with a dogged determination to uncover the truth. She is married to a loving husband, Robert (a surprisingly effective Sacha Baron Cohen), who comes across as a spineless yuppie, succumbing to her controlling nature at every one of Catherine’s whims. However, he is a doting father to their son.

That son would be Nicholas (The Power of the Dog‘s Kodi Smit-McPhee), a young man seemingly caught in an aimless tailspin. He refuses to tolerate his mother’s attempts to control the direction of his life. Nicholas lives in a dingy apartment that smells of air freshener and drugs as if Febreze had just released its own marijuana-scented brand. Catherine is hard on him, while Robert is too lenient.

However, their entire world is about to implode when Catherine receives a book that triggers long-dormant anxiety. The gift is from a retiring teacher, Stephen Brigstocke (Kevin Kline), a seemingly gentle man harboring pent-up revenge yet oddly meticulous when buying a new vacuum (trust me, it’s a thing). The picture on the cover sends Catherine into a tailspin as something from her past begins to haunt her future.

Whatever you think of Alfonso Cuarón‘s adaptation, many will complain about a slow pace and a narrative all over the map. However, the result is a maestro who takes you on a journey that tears you apart and brings you together with an undeniable paradigm shift. Can Disclaimer offer some pulpy sensationalism? Sure. Will scenes make the viewer uneasy? You bet! At the very least, it causes a visceral reaction that intrigues the viewer.

The key here is we have a series that, to succeed, would need the steady hand that Cuarón offers. It also helps you have two iconic performances. One is from Blanchett, who is chillingly good here as a woman and undercuts her values to protect her name. The other is Kline. An extraordinary performer for decades, just as good in comedy (A Fish Called Wanda, In & Out) and drama (The Ice Storm).

It is an award-worthy performance by the iconic actor. His transformative performance showcases Kline’s ability to fully immerse himself in and reinvent a character entirely different from where he began. And that is the brilliance of Disclaimer. The series’s characters take the viewer on a journey, not of self-discovery but about stripping away the masks and facades we put on ourselves.

The new series, Disclaimer, will stream on Apple TV+ starting on October 11th with a two-episode premiere, with a new episode weekly until November 25th.