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‘The People v. O.J. Simpson’ review

OJ Simpson (Cuba Gooding Jr.) tries on the iconic gloves. (Courtesy of Fox 21 Television Studios)

Owen Johnson
Connector Staff

“The People v. O.J. Simpson: American Crime Story” is one of the best examples on television of an already dramatic event being squeezed for every last drip of drama it can muster.

This ten-episode first season of the anthology series “American Crime Stories” chronicles the events of the O.J. Simpson murder case, spanning from the discovery of Simpson’s ex-wife and her friend brutally murdered to his eventual ruling of not guilty.

For the most part, the show sticks true to the events that transpired with the case and the main players involved. There are a few instances of changed material, the most blatant being one of the original prosecutors collapsing in the courtroom and Simpson’s friend and house guest “Kato” Kaelin (Billy Magnussen) being portrayed unfavorably as if he were a source of comic relief.

The show focuses a lot on being as close to the real event as possible. Even subtle details like what the people were wearing during a specific day of the trial was looked at and utilized to fully exhibit the O.J. Simpson murder trial in as vivid and realistic detail as possible. It does so to the point that it relays lesser-known information about the case to the mass media.

The show doesn’t shy away from portraying events that seem too ludicrous to be true, but actually occurred during the trial. This dedication to the truth, ironically, makes the show come off as being more concerned about unneeded fluff than of the actual events. While the seemingly overly dramatic aspects do come off as a little strange, the show runners realize that and do everything in their power to keep it from going off the rails.

The only constant example of over dramatization in the show comes from the actors. A lot of them, especially Cuba Gooding Jr. as O.J. Simpson, go overboard with their performances and ham up every scene they’re in. Courtney B. Vance as Johnnie Cochran is also a little over-the-top, but it works better with him due to Cochran’s grandiose performance in the case.

Speaking of the actors, the acting is mostly mediocre, with a few good and bad performances sprinkled in. Vance, Kenneth Choi (Lance Ito), and Bruce Greenwood (Gil Garcetti) are the only three who give good performances whenever they’re on screen. Sarah Paulson (Marcia Clark) and Sterling K. Brown (Christopher Darden) tend to be mediocre, but occasionally rise to have a good moment. The three biggest names and stars of the show are, ironically, giving the worst performances. Cuba Gooding Jr. is over-acting and comes off like a petulant child, David Schwimmer (Robert Kardashian) whines and is generally unlikeable, and John Travolta (Robert Shapiro) doesn’t seem to have any idea what he’s doing.

“The People v. O.J. Simpson” is a decent and interesting look into what many call the crime of the century. Its dedication to the truth and to the details of the event is praiseworthy, but it tends to be a little over-dramatic and hammed up at certain points.

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