Injustice

Anthony Horowitz (Foyle's War) wrote this dark, complex five-part DIRECTV-aired miniseries that combines courtroom drama and police procedural. James Purefoy stars as William Travers, a highly regarded barrister who's left London for the more sedate climes of Suffolk after winning a murder trial that nevertheless left him haunted by the specter of a young boy. While his wife, Jane (Dervla Kirwan), attempts to teach literature to a group of unruly teens in a reform school, Travers avoids high-profile cases in favor of less emotionally wrenching work until an old college friend is accused of killing his secretary and Travers feels it necessary to take up the defense. Meanwhile, surly police inspector Mark Wenborn (Charlie Creed-Miles) investigates the murder of an itinerant farm worker whose past included a connection with Travers. Plot threads and themes abound in Injustice, including the hostility between rule-bending cops and lawyers trying to disclose their misdeeds, moral issues raised by violent environmental radicalism and corporate greed that can sacrifice lives for profit, the ethics of investigative journalism, the vagaries of the juvenile detention system, spousal abuse, and vigilante justice. But Horowitz dexterously blends them all into a heady if bleak brew that remains gripping right up to the doubly ironic finale. DVD extras include a photo gallery. Highly recommended. (F. Swietek)