‘Under The Bridge’ Limited Series Review – Even Justice Discriminates

For a long time, “Under the Bridge” has been one of my favorite Red Hot Chili Pepper songs, my young adult/late teen angst in a nutshell. So as I discover the new Hulu series Under the Bridge that has nothing to do with my favorite teen rock band, I secretly hope that teen angst and morbidity are part of its intricate world. It doesn’t disappoint.

Under The Bridge is a miniseries adapted from the non-fiction book of the same name by Rebecca Godfrey. It stars Lily Gladstone, fresh off her 2023 award season glam, as well as Riley Keough, who, in the series at least, bears a striking resemblance to Eva Green, making me wish she would have bigger roles as a troubled punk/goth adult in a neo-noir crime thriller in the future.

This TV show has all the elements of a small-town mystery thriller. Compelling characters with complicated relationships, a mystery at the heart of events, morally ambiguous situations, and grieving parents whose heartbreak means nothing amidst the bigger scheme of events. A missing girl in Victoria, Canada, and the kaleidoscopic array of teens around her. 

Gladstone plays police officer Cam Bentland, and in her role, she delivers another spellbinding performance through her subtle, intrinsic, internalized acting technique. Gladstone is no fan of the theatrics performance-wise, and she proves to the world over and over how she can take the reins of her tools as an actor to deliver a guttural performance without making an effort. As showcased in Killers of the Flower Moon and Certain Women, Gladstone proves what’s not being said is even more important than her lines of dialogue. She works as the antidote to Keough, who is more there for the looks than the acting chops. Keough has that cool, otherworldly vibe about her that works perfectly as Becca.

Everything in the relationship between Becca and Cam is complicated. From their visible body language anytime they are in the same scene together, to locking their eyes longingly, sometimes even with bittersweet regret or rage bubbling under the surface. The sexual tension is subdued but fiery, giving way to the grim nature of the events, but in every scene they’re together, viewers are invited to the intensity of the relationship. The series leaves everyone wanting more but never gives them what they crave, even when the dynamic between Cam and Becca intensifies.

The series is not concerned with condemning or painting any of its characters as saints. It is concerned with showing class and race differences. How cruelty is double-edged, conscious, and aware of where people come from, look like, and how powerful their families are. It deviates from a well-paved path where everybody walks with a clear conscience. Reena Virk was a Canadian-Indian girl, who struggled with acceptance and body dysmorphia. Her death came in a moment of senseless, brutal violence, that seemed later on to be paraded and celebrated by some of the parties involved.

Who cares about teenage girl rage? Who cares about those forgotten girls as they are grimly brutalized and exposed? And who will be there to stop them from meeting a similar fate to Reena’s? Again, Under the Bridge doesn’t hand viewers the conclusions on a silver plate, but waits for the gradual deconstruction of what everyone considers safe, sacred, and kind.

Stellar performances from Aiyana Goodfellow who plays Dusty, Reena’s friend and follower to the queen bee Josephine, and Archie Panjabi, who plays Reena’s mother, not only shape the narrative but solidify the message that the miniseries wants to deliver: even justice discriminates.

Under The Bridge is currently available to stream on Hulu. New episodes debut every Wednesday. 

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s2MC8vZe6mI]