The Task–Stay Focused: “Monk” meets “Slow Horses”
In the opening scene of The Task, a lost soul named Robbie (Tom Pelphrey of “Ozark”), leads two equally incompetent friends Cliff (Raul Castillo) and Peaches (Owen Teague), on a mission to rob drug houses. Not exactly “Breaking Bad” but the target is a ruthless drug cartel, aptly named the Dark Hearts. What could go wrong?
Robbie is broken, both from his younger brother’s murder and his wife running off, leaving him with two young kids.
Enter Tom Brandis (Mark Ruffalo), a widower with an estranged biological daughter and two adopted young adults: a son in prison and a teenage daughter, Emily (Silvia Diconicio) who is torn between supporting her brother and her father. Tom, an ex-priest, would be a combination of a Slow Horse reject with the personality of private investigator Monk. The main difference: he has a family.
Tom’s boss (a perfectly cast Martha Plimpton) is perhaps the only one in the FBI that considers Tom worthy. With a trio of young agents: the timid Lizzie (Alison Oliver), swaggering Grasso (Fabien Frankel), and analytical Aleah (Thuso Mbedu), they begin to hunt down the men who are stealing from drug king pin, Perry (Jamie McShane), and his fellow thugs, the Dark Hearts. Perry, in a turf war against Robbie, Cliff, and Peaches, does not flinch at carrying out his own form of vigilante justice.
The drug caper and murder spree lead to more violence and death, with four innocent young adults in the cross-hairs. As a hapless male loser whose opportunities to succeed shrivel at every turn, Robbie makes increasingly bad decisions in a futile attempt to save his family. And Tom can’t forgive himself or his adopted son. The damage from unhealed wounds seems insurmountable for both of these single fathers. Broken families are hard to mend.
Where The Task succeeds is in its focus on the interactions between a highly moral and compassionate man (Tom), a deeply flawed and remorseful minor criminal (Robbie) and a truly cruel psychopath (Perry). All three warp and transmute each other’s lives.
The one noticeable flaw in The Task is that a few characters–particularly the acolyte FBI agents recruited by Tom,–do not have enough backstory to be well-defined. Especially the character of FBI agent Grasso needed more development. A few twists involving Grasso in the second half of The Task seem designed more for surprise, than robust storytelling.
Ruffalo is amazing in his subtlety. His character’s grief almost breaks him while his brilliance at understanding others blindsides his own ability to be self-aware. Pelfrey, as a scarred man trying to redeem himself for past sins, is a wonder: good intentions misdirected. And McShane plays menace with icy, silent glares that would freeze anyone in his presence.
Outstanding supporting cast and superb writing. Only a few gaps in character development or overly long scenes (like romantic flirtation and club dalliances) distract from The Task’s being even more captivating.
Availability: Netflix
Note: Both The Task and “Mare of Easttown” were created by Brad Ingelsby.