Under the Banner of Heaven Episode 1 review: An exploration of faith through crime?

The two-episode show, Under the Banner of Heaven, has released on Hulu. The first episode of the mini-series is titled When God was Love.

The premise of the show is rather complicated and one could argue that it tries to handle too much, but there is no doubt that the subject matter has been aptly explored. We see Andrew Garfield's Detective Pyre navigate his way through faith, religious establishments and horrific crimes as a staunch believer in Mormonism himself. Garfield has done justice to the character, and is wonderful to watch on screen.

The series follows the story of Detective Jeb Pyre (Andrew Garfield) and Detective Bill Taba (Gill Birmingham) as they investigate the murder of Brenda Lafferty (Daisy Edgar-Jones) and her infant child in a suburb of Salt Lake Valley. A crime thriller based on a real-life event, the show also explores faith, religion and history.

Read on for a detailed review of Under the Banner of Heaven Episode 1.

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Under the Banner of Heaven Episode 1 review: Too much detail drowning the mystery?

From the very beginning, Under the Banner of Heaven does not linger on the sidelines trying to hide its intentions. It begins with the story of the devout detective, a welcome deviation from crime thrillers all around the world, and soon dives into the investigation of the brutal and sinister murder.

The first episode is expository, and focuses heavily on exploring the history of Mormonism in general, and the the Lafferty family in reference to Mormonism. One problem, however, is the overburdening of the storyline with characters.

Within the first half-hour, the story already feels lost under the weight of the various segmented plots, making it difficult for viewers to keep track of what is going on. However, it all begins to come together fairly soon and one gets used to the information flow.

The episode gives us plenty of details about the LDS church and Mormonism. It can be rather overwhelming at times, especially when we see Detective Pyre being swayed by his religious beliefs. If you do have a fascination for history or religion, the exploration may be interesting to you. Having said that, it lacks the urgency of a truly gripping plot.

The horrific crime on which the show is based will most likely be covered in detail in the next episode. The show is not lackadaisical in its approach to the mystery. Instead, it is slowly building up the world and providing us ample historical context so we can assess the murder from different perspectives. The setup is brilliant and there is a compelling story underneath. The off-beat characters in the unsual setting of a Mormon town make for a very interesting watch.

Under the Banner of Heaven was skillfully crafted with excellent acting from the lead cast, thoughtful cinematography, and a comprehensive script. Despite the few problems, the show has the potential to be a great true crime drama.

Under the Banner of Heaven is now streaming on Hulu.