Zero Day: A Review

House of Card Meets Mr. Robot

Timely. Relevant. Great acting. Great editing and pacing. A very good political drama.

All perfectly describe Netflix's new limited series Zero Day. The billing as a 'thriller' doesn't quite fit the same way.

Robert DeNiro convinces as former President George Mullen. A happily-out-of-the-limelight, retired public servant, he spends his days in a plush NY home as much as a typical retiree as a former president can.

A massive cyber attack rocks the U.S., and President Mullen heeds the call to investigate who done it.

Enter conspiracy, back room politicking, shady foreign agents, and potential enemies within.

THE GOOD

One of the first things I noticed: how much information came fluidly packaged in so little space. The editing really is outstanding. Throughout the first couple episodes, I paused the show to find only ten, twenty minutes passed. Sometimes, this is a bad thing. With Zero Day, a pleasant surprise.

None of the actors phone in their performance. They are believable in their roles, and they deliver on the expectations one would have of someone in those real-life positions. Some deserve more screen time and character development, but performance-wise, no complaints.

While it should go without saying, a massive cyber attack lends itself to perfect fertile ground for a plot. Steering away from a Jason Bourne-solution to one more rooted in reality is also a solid choice. Fans of this genre are familiar and accepting of both, but for Zero Day, the lower key approach proves best.

THE MEH

Six episodes feels too short for everything the production team tried to do with the show. Leaving subplots open to interpretation is one thing. Leaving major elements of an obviously one-off story unfulfilled is another. This is where production choices bite Zero Day.

If some of the choices were made due to episode or series length constraints, they can be somewhat forgiven. If not, someone tried too hard at creating mystery or the appearance of a thriller.

Zero Day is not Mr. Robot, though it possesses elements of that modern classic. Zero Day is a political drama à la House of Cards. Either cutting away some of the more contrived thriller elements or expanding the series' run to allow further exposition would have vastly improved the overall delivery.

VERDICT

While not everything advertised, Zero Day provides a thought-provoking, solid, techno-political drama worth the time.