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6A — Monday, March 28, 2016
Arts
The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com

‘Missoula’ tackles 
victim blaming

By SOPHIA KAUFMAN

Daily Arts Writer

If 
you 
somehow 
missed 

“Missoula: Rape and the Justice 
System in a College Town” when 
it 
became 

a 
national 

bestseller 
around 
this 

time 
last 

year, the first 
paperback 
edition has now 
been 
released 

by 
Anchor 

Books. Urgency 
resonates with 
every 
page, 

making 
it 

impossible 
to 

put down.

The 
book 

represents the culmination of Jon 
Krakauer’s (“Under the Banner of 
Heaven”) painstaking research 
and re-crafting of several cases 
of sexual assault or rape in 
Missoula, Montana over four 
years. He zeroes in on the culture 
of athlete worship that schools 
with big sports teams have to deal 
with. Krakauer throws a harsh 
spotlight on what news pundits 
or other skeptics are actually 
conveying when they dismiss the 
problem of sexual assault and 
rape on college campuses as rape 
hysteria. When they argue that 
activists — namely, feminists — 
are manipulating assault cases 
for the sake of their agenda, they 
make it more and more difficult 
for victims of assault to be heard. 
It’s a dangerously effective form 
of silencing.

One of the main functions of 

“Missoula” is to demonstrate that 
the idea of women frequently 

“crying rape” — because they 
regret bad sex, to cover up 
cheating on a significant other, 
for revenge — is one of the most 
dangerous myths about sexual 
assault circulating throughout 
the country. The effects of these 
myths are found not only in the 
minds of people sitting on the 
jury, but in the mores of police 
precincts, in offices of district 
attorneys and even in the behavior 
of police or campus security 
officers 
who 
are 
sometimes 

the most immediately available 
people to whom rape survivors 
can turn.

Krakauer 
emphasizes 
that 

rape is the only crime for which 
the survivors or victims of the 
crime are on trial just as much 
as — if not more than — the 
defendants. He wryly points out 
that the oath to tell the truth only 
applies to witnesses. Others in the 
courtroom, like defense attorneys, 
prosecutors and judges, aren’t 
beholden to it. Even due process 
for defendants puts survivors in 
a precarious position from the 
start. The needs of the courtroom 
— 
presenting 
challenges 
to 

credibility, submitting witnesses 
to yes-or-no questioning rather 
than giving them opportunities 
to talk freely, confronting those 

who may be perpetrators — come 
before the needs of the victim.

Reading this book is like 

repeatedly being punched in the 
stomach. The details Krakauer 
includes sound like tasteless 
jokes. A coach equivocates on 
the definition of rape while 
testifying on behalf of an accused 
rapist, then mentions that he is a 
sexual education teacher. Police 
officers ask women if they have 
boyfriends when they report 
rapes (implying they cheated 
and now feel guilty). Prosecutors 
badger survivors on the stand, 
asking if they are sure they 
communicated a lack of consent 
well enough.

Yet despite how difficult it is to 

be faced with the testimony and 
primary documents Krakauer 
includes, nothing in “Missoula” 
feels 
overly 
sentimental, 

manipulative 
or 
exploitative. 

The 
pathos 
is 
organic; 
he 

evokes 
empathy 
without 

sensationalizing 
any 
of 
the 

stories he is telling. His inclusion 
of several studies and statistics 
never pulls focus from the social 
critiques he’s making; they only 
serve to accentuate the truth of 
his arguments, hitting a sobering 
conclusion towards the end:

“Rape 
is 
the 
most 

underreported 
crime 
in 
the 

nation. … When an individual is 
raped in this country, more than 
90 percent of the time the rapist 
gets away with the crime.”

One of Krakauer’s final points 

is that university processes for 
investigating 
and 
prosecuting 

sexual assaults have not been 
standardized across the nation. 
The lack of support is another 
reason that people may feel 
uncomfortable coming forward 
about being assaulted; they 
often literally have no idea what 
will happen. Krakauer finishes 
on a strong note: by speaking out 
and coming forward, survivors 
become part of a network that 
makes it easier for others to 
follow in their footsteps.

BOOK REVIEW

Missoula: 
Rape and 
the Justice 
Sytem in 
a College 
Town

Jon Krakauer 

Anchor Books

Jan. 12, 2016

‘Were None’ a new 
formal masterpiece

By DANIELLE YACOBSON

Daily Arts Writer

Ten little soldier boys went out 

to dine;

One choked his little self and 

then there were Nine.”

Ten 

strangers 
arrive 
on 

Soldier Island. 
They 
eat 

lobster soufflé, 
smoke 
cigars, 

exchange war 
stories 
and 

engage in an 
epic 
display 

of 
British 

snobbery. And 
then, just as the nursery rhyme 
that conveniently decorates the 
walls of their hosts’ mansion 
foreshadows, the strangers are 
poetically 
murdered. 
Based 

on the famous mystery novel, 
BBC’s miniseries “And Then 
There Were None” is one of the 
best literary screen adaptations 
of 
Agatha 
Christie’s 
work, 

beautifully 
capturing 
the 

nuances of her storytelling in a 
visual masterpiece that merits 
wild praise of its own.

Rarely is a work of visual 

media so powerfully enthralling 
that the present day, filled with 
all its glorious gadgets and 
distractions, disappears. Yet, 
the 1939 world of “And Then 
There Were None” masterfully 
takes 
precedence 
over 

real 
time. 
Simultaneously 

evoking conflicting emotions 
that 
millennials 
are 
rarely 

challenged to sort through, 
the three-part series is both 
tragically 
beautiful 
and 

hauntingly mesmerizing.

While 
BBC 
consistently 

produces 
breathtaking 

cinematic pieces, like “Downton 
Abbey” and “War and Peace,” 
their latest series surpasses 
even their own high standards. 
“And 
Then 
There 
Were 

None” employs a creativity in 
cinematography that introduces 
unexpected angles and lighting 
that sets itself apart from 

the 
network’s 
other 
series. 

Interspersed 
between 
BBC’s 

signature sweeping landscapes 
are shots that capture an image 
so intriguing and abstract that 
an early 20th century period 
drama becomes laced with an 
element of modernity. It’s shots 
like these, when the viewer 
finds himself gazing up from 
the ocean floor at a woman in 
a scarlet red bathing suit, the 
sunlight 
perfectly 
outlining 

her silhouette, that make “And 
Then There Were None” stand 
out as an artistic statement.

Adapting 
a 
renowned 

literary work runs the risk of 
sacrificing 
crucial 
nuances 

FILM REVIEW

BBC

Row, row, row your boat...

for plot. The complexity of 
Agatha Christie’s masterpiece, 
however, is preserved by the 
incredible 
performances 
of 

the cast members. Whether 
it be an overextended gaze or 
an 
off-putting 
smolder, 
the 

actors 
add 
personality 
and 

emotion to even the smallest 
moments. Each character is 
colored by a complex backstory, 
their secrets and lies slowly 
uncovered throughout the three 
installments.

Perfectly 
paced, 
the 

miniseries 
is 
captivating 

from 
beginning 
to 
end. 

Living through the camera, 
which takes on a personality 
of its own, the audience is 
simultaneously 
hunting 
and 

being hunted. Teetering on the 
line of horror, orchestral music 
climbing 
to 
uncomfortably 

eerie notes, “And Then There 
Were None” never allows for a 
moment of boredom. Each scene 
serves a purpose and no detail 
is accidentally unveiled. The 
thrilling momentum produces 
a surprise at every turn, but 
still allows time to capture 
longing looks and linger on 
the 
impeccable 
costuming 

and set design. You’re never 
comfortable, always on the edge 
of your seat, and constantly 
concocting crime theories.

And then, just when you 

think you’ve figured it all out, 
relishing in your astuteness and 
patting yourself on the back for 
outsmarting one of literature’s 
most brilliant murder mystery 
writers, the end leaves you 
completely dumbfounded.

“One little soldier boy left all 

alone;

He went and hanged himself,
And then there were None.”

Rhimes’s ‘The Catch’ 
doesn’t add to ‘TGIT’

By ALEX INTNER

Daily Arts Writer

Very few brands are as 

powerful as Shonda Rhimes’s 
(“Scandal”). She is so important 
to ABC as a 
network to the 
point where it 
has essentially 
given 
her 
a 

night 
of 
her 

own. However, 
“Thank 
God 

It’s Thursday” 
has been facing 
rating declines 
as of late. Both 
“Scandal” 
and “How to Get Away with 
Murder” are down double-
digit percentages from where 
they were last season. While 
neither show is in range of 
being cancelled, “TGIT” is in 
desperate need of a hit that 
will help stabilize the night. 
“The Catch” is not that show. 
Even though it has the guise of 
being suave and sexy, once you 
actually watch it, it comes off as 
dull and boring.

“The Catch” follows a private 

detective named Alice (Mireille 
Enos, “The Killing”) who — 
get this — can’t figure out her 
fiance Benjamin (Peter Krause, 
“Parenthood”) is a con man 

who’s been with her to infiltrate 
her company. What a vocational 
irony-driven 
coinkydink! 
In 

the pilot, Krause’s character 
disappears on Alice, taking 
every trace of his existence 
with him. Now, she’s forced 
to confront her former fiance 
conning her as she tries to hunt 
him down.

The first big strike against 

“The 
Catch” 
is 
Enos’s 

performance, as the actress 
barely forms a character. She 
brings little charisma to a role 
that requires a lot of it. She’s 
asked to show emotion, but can’t 
seem to bring it to life. She has no 
chemistry with any of her scene 
partners, even Krause. It doesn’t 
help that she isn’t given a lot on 
the page with which to work. 
However, when you put her in 
a lineup with Ellen Pompeo 
(“Grey’s 
Anatomy”), 
Kerry 

Washington 
(“Scandal”) 
and 

Viola Davis (“How to Get Away 
with Murder”), who consistently 
elevate their dramas with pure 
performance ability, she pales in 
comparison.

“The Catch” attempts to be 

slick in its production, but it just 
doesn’t succeed in any capacity. 
There are purposefully smooth 
cuts and some fun directorial 
moments 
from 
Julie 
Anne 

Robinson (“Pushing Daisies”), 

but once it reaches the 500 
millionth stylish edit, they lose 
their luster. There’s also an 
overzealous score, which hits 
you over the head with every 
single emotional beat. I get that 
Alice is sad that her fiance left 
her, or that active manhunts can 
be intense, but you don’t need to 
have music emphasize the point 
with a complete lack of subtlety.

Yet “The Catch” does have 

some 
worthwhile 
elements. 

Krause, who replaced Damon 
Dayoub (“Stitchers”) from the 
original pilot, actually brings 
a sense of poise to Benjamin. 
He’s charismatic, charming and 
mysterious as a con man. The 
only genuine moments from the 
pilot — like when he asks Alice 
to run away with him before he 
leaves to not have to hurt her — 
come from his dramatic chops 
and delivery.

Still, 
Krause’s 
strong 

supporting performance is not 
nearly enough to salvage this 
show. It tries to be a show with 
sex appeal and smoothness, 
but it can’t recover from its 
nonsensical vocational irony 
narrative or a dull performance 
from its leading lady. ABC 
shouldn’t be desperate to boost 
its TGIT lineup yet, but this is 
definitely not the show with 
which to do that.

C

The Catch

Series 
Premiere 
Thursdays 
at 10 p.m.

ABC

FILM REVIEW

ABC

Looks like just another boring, white TV couple.

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michigandaily.com/section/arts

A+

And Then 
There 
Were None

Miniseries

BBC

This book is 

like repeatedly 
being punched 
in the stomach. 

