Sleeper Cell

Originally broadcast in late 2005, Showtime's 10-hour miniseries Sleeper Cell owes more to familiar Hollywood plotlines than to the precise realities of radical extremism, with authenticity frequently taking a backseat to well-crafted suspense. But while it may not be absolutely realistic, the series packs an emotional punch. Newly-released prisoner Darwyn Al-Sayeed (Michael Ealy, from Barbershop and Their Eyes Were Watching God) is actually an undercover FBI agent and practicing Muslim, recruited to infiltrate a sleeper cell of Islamic radical extremists led by Farik (played by Israeli-born actor Oded Fehr, from The Mummy and The Mummy Returns), the mastermind of a jihadist plot to detonate a chemical bomb in a crowded Los Angeles sports arena. While clandestinely reporting to his FBI handler (James LeGros), Darwyn is forced into dangerous circumstances that continuously threaten to blow his cover. His ill-advised romance with a single mother (Melissa Sagemiller) poses a further threat to the integrity of his investigation, which ultimately involves everyone from local LAPD detectives to the senior staff of the White House. As the terrorist plot unfolds, Darwyn struggles to reconcile his undercover activities (which connect him to murder, obstruction of justice, conspiracy, etc.) with his passionate devotion to Islam as a peaceful religion. Enlisting a number of Islamic consultants, writers, and directors, series creators Ethan Reiff and Cyrus Voris admirably balance an understandable fear of terrorism with a very sympathetic and positive depiction of the law-abiding Muslim majority. DVD extras include two episode commentaries, deleted scenes (with commentary), and a pair of behind-the-scenes featurettes. Recommended. (J. Shannon)