‘The Crowded Room’ Episode 1 Review: Tom Holland’s gripping thriller masters the art of the slow burn
Spoilers ahead for ‘The Crowded Room’ Episode 1
Apple TV+ has finally released the first three episodes of the gruesome psychological thriller ‘The Crowded Room’. The captivating drama's lead actors are Tom Holland, best known for playing Spiderman, and Amanda Seyfried, famous for movies such as 'Mamma Mia!' and 'Mean Girls'. The storyline of the series' opening episode centers around a shooting in the middle of New York City in 1979 and the investigation that follows to reveal the dark secrets behind the shooting. The episode explores two different timelines.
The thrilling miniseries chronicles the investigation of Danny Sullivan (Tom Holland) who is the suspected shooter. Danny and Ariana (Sasha Lane) run to the middle of the city to scare a man. However, Danny stiffens and Ariana takes the gun from him and publicly shoots the man several times. Unfortunately, Danny is captured by the police, while Ariana runs away. Rya Goodwin (Amanda Seyfried) is an investigator who interviews Danny and attempts to figure out what really happened. Danny reveals unexpected events from his past which shaped his personality through the years. The episode shows us a glimpse of Danny’s teenage life and how he entered the crime world in the first place. Let’s dig a little deeper into his past to understand the whole story.
Danny Sullivan’s teenage years
The opening episode of ‘The Crowded Room’ explores the past events of Danny’s life and how they shaped him. Danny struggled to connect with his stepfather, Marlin but had a loving relationship with his mother Candy (Emmy Rossum). She proved herself to be a caring and supportive mother and made sure that Marlin, who was a cruel and violent person, doesn’t harm her son. The show also showed us Danny’s school life, which made it clear that he had some friends, particularly Johnny, who usually hung out with him. Danny and his friends ended up selling weed at school after they got busted by a drug dealer. He also met a girl, Anabelle, and to impress her, he told her that he has tons of weed and would like to hang out. This information reached the principal of the school, who then searched Danny’s locker. However, Johnny took care of the weed beforehand. The turning point in Danny’s life surfaced when Anabelle dumped him, and a rolled joint fell from his pocket as was coincidentally seen by the school’s principal. He furiously ran away from the school and when he got back home, a group of boys beat him. He was saved by Yitzhak. At the end of the episode, Danny moved to the 'ghost house', a boarding house Yitzhak had recently bought, where Danny first met Ariana.
Danny Sullivan’s interview with Rya Goodwin
While the protagonist, Danny Sullivan, is forced to encounter his traumatic past in the present and is forcibly dragged into the investigation when he wasn’t guilty of the murder, the first episode opens with a crime scene. In the middle of the city, Danny tries to scare a man with a gun. He then freezes and Ariana snatches the gun and starts shooting recklessly in public. After Ariana and their landlord Yitzhak go missing, the police capture Danny from his boarding home. An unlikely investigator, Rya Goodwin, undertakes the case and endeavors to solve it, untangling events that are complicated beyond her expectations. During the interrogation, Danny eventually starts opening up to her, explaining his teenage life, how his mood swings caused trouble at school and home, his relationship with his stepfather, and how he met Ariana and Yitzhak in the first place. Though Danny is being cooperative with Rya, she believes there’s a whole lot more to the story than what Danny is telling and stops at nothing to figure the case out.
A sensitive and amazing artist-turned-criminal is something that pulls the viewers into the mind-bending world of Danny. The slow burn of 10 hour-long episodes sometimes makes you want to skip scenes over, but once you focus on the plot, it’s worth the wait. The lengthy drama keeps its audience interested long enough by featuring themes of teenage life, virginity, and susceptibility to crime and is highly relatable for young audiences.
'The Crowded Room' Episode is streaming on Apple TV+.