The promotional material for “Before” describes the Apple TV+ thriller as “atmospheric,” which is a euphemistic way of saying that the 10-episode season is a lot of vampires for very little payoff. Even with half-hour episodes, several of which come in at under 25 minutes, this drama still manages to drag, endlessly repeating the same setups and visual themes to buy time until an unsatisfying conclusion. In a serial format like television, an atmosphere lacking momentum is a recipe for a stagnant quagmire.
At the very least, you can admire “Before” for prioritizing its bleak, muddy atmosphere over even its central performance, the element that so many other limited series are built around in the hopes that star power will capture our divided attention. Created by Sarah Thorp (“Damien”), “Before” stars Billy Crystal as Eli Adler, a child psychologist reeling from the death of his wife Lynn (Judith Light) after a long battle with cancer. But despite Crystal’s involvement as executive producer, the comedy legend’s first regular role since 2015 – remember ‘The Comedians’? – is a frustrating waste of its sardonic charm.
Eli’s grief is interrupted by the arrival of Noah (Jacobi Jupe), a troubled 8-year-old who seems drawn to Eli even before he is officially in the older man’s care. Noah’s condition has some creepy features: he draws a farmhouse that’s a copy of a photo Lynn left behind, and “Before” situates us in his hallucinations, with writhing tentacles and rising water reminiscent of the bathtub in which Lynn died. founded by pilot-helmer Adam Bernstein, is initially effective at creating an eerie, unsettling mood, as in Eli’s harrowing nightmares about splashing in an empty pool.
Yet Crystal’s actual performance is completely devoid of the wry cynicism that defines his screen presence. “Before” isn’t exactly an example of a comedian getting serious himself in an over-corrective attempt at prestige; Eli is initially portrayed as a skeptic in denial, both about potentially paranormal aspects of Noah’s condition and about his own lingering emotions. This much-needed contrast emerges in brief flashes. (When Eli is told that “the water energy is very powerful” in the room where Lynn spent her last moments, he responds, “Well, it’s a bathroom.”) But this side of Eli is quickly put on the back burner favor of taking off. hysteria and endless exchanges with Noah, each following an identical script. Noah, urged by Eli to remember his mysterious past, enters a wordless state of fear; Eli, becoming increasingly irritated, demands that a nonverbal student tell him what is going on.
Repetition of all kinds plagues “Before,” starting with the cast. Jupe is doing well for such a young artist, but he has to hammer the same beats over and over again: Noah is hallucinating. Noah trembles with fear. Noah panics and disturbs the adults around him. As Noah’s foster mother Denise, the great Rosie Perez maintains a single note of tearful, screaming panic. In a fiercely competitive battle, Light is perhaps most underrated of all as the textbook Dead Wife, haunting Eli’s existence as an oft-silent avatar of guilt. Ava Lalezarzadeh rounds out a roster of underdeveloped supporting women as Cleo, Eli’s exposition-delivery device of a Gen Z assistant.
As Eli spends more time with Noah, he too begins to see and hear things that aren’t there. Chief among these is the irregular rhythm of dripping water, a sound associated with torture for good reason. As the running time of “Before” begins to outpace the meaningful developments in the central mystery, the audience begins to identify a little too closely with Eli’s pain. By the end, most of the tension “Before” can muster is gone, which is why the show decided to pace its revelations the way it does — sporadically and without buildup to put them in any context.
There are few clues as to what plagued Noah. During an early outburst, he starts speaking Dutch, a curiosity that Eli half-heartedly explores before being forgotten for most of the series. Eli abruptly concludes that Noah’s plight may have something to do with Lynn’s deceased ex-boyfriend, a character never mentioned until he suddenly plays an important role in the story. The plot’s final destination is so completely divorced from the hours before that it feels like it’s been beamed in from an entirely different show.
Many miniseries (most recently “Disclaimer,” another Apple project) stretch out the plot of an feature to suit their chosen medium. That’s not quite the case with ‘Before’, which is a bit more confusing and therefore disappointing. The show could easily show Eli more as a Dana Scully type who raises an eyebrow at the supernatural, or his strained relationship with adult daughter Barbara (Maria Dizzia). But it would rather spin its wheels, leading to a conclusion that sheds minimal light on Eli’s character. ‘Before’ can create an atmosphere, but it’s not clear what to do, well, after.
The first two episodes of “Before” are now available to stream on Apple TV+, with the remaining episodes airing weekly on Fridays.