23 hours to go (24)

Member Name: pablodiablo

Product:	24
Date:	08/03/02 (170 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: stylish, well acted , original concept

Disadvantages: not sure about the real time aspect

24 is a new programme from the U.S ( supposedly going down a storm ). It stars Kiefer Sutherland ( lost boys ) as Jack Bauer(?) a kind of anti terrorist/FBI agent. The interesting thing about this show is that it takes place in only one day ( thus 24 ) with each episode accounting for one hour and happening in real time. In the first episode Jack has just moved back in with his estranged wife and his teenage daughter when he gets a phone call from the office telling him to attend an urgent briefing. Meanwhile his daughter has snuck out to go with her friend to meet some guys. So jack goes to the briefing and we meet the team of agents that he works with, there is the usual mix of people who are good on computers, agents who seem to be hiding something and an agent who jack was having an affair with.

They are told that there will be an attempt to kill a presidential elect in the next 24 hours and jack is told privately by his boss that he thinks it is an inside job. Then we find out some interesting background, Jack had carried out investigations against corrupt co-workers and is not really trusted but with only 24 hours on the clock he must infiltrate his own agency and is told to DUM DUM DUUUUM... Trust no one.

There is a lot more that happens in this episode including a airliner being blown up by what we think is the potential assassin and Jacks daughter getting more than she expected from the guys she meets.

Before i start going on about what i thought of the show, one thing puzzles me. It's 45 minutes long, but it is supposed to be in real time. The time that passes in this episode is supposed to be between 12 and 1a.m. I don't know if this episode was cut but if ach show isn't an hour long then the point of actions being in real time is wasted.

Apart from that the show looks good. It is shot in a stylish way, looking ,like most U.S dramas do, like a film in it's style. To show more than one thing happening
at once a split screen is used and at the beginning of each scene a clock shows the time ticking. Like most U.S dramas of this type of subject matter a little prior knowledge is needed as a few terms used can go over some peoples heads ( including mine ). The show is well paced but doesn't try to explain every detail. I am really looking forward to the next show as i think this could be a really great series following from The Sopranos and West Wing in really teaching britain how to do drama.

Summary: