Jeff Goldblum talks to dead people. That's the basis for his new detective series, Raines, which will replace ER for two weeks starting on March 15th. NBC has posted the entire pilot on its First Look website. It's up in four, 11-minute chunks and you have to watch a promo each time for a terrible horror movie about killer ventriloquist dolls.I spent 44 minutes watching the pilot this morning and I can say "eh". You really have to like Jeff Goldblum because there are a lot of Goldblum-isms in there (stuttering, awkward pauses). And, maybe I just watch too much television, but I figured out the "twist" at the end in one of the first scenes.
What I did like about Raines is that the "ghosts" Goldblum talks to aren't really ghosts. They're just crime victims in his imagination. So, they don't give him any clues or anything. There's also a subtle noir-style storytelling mechanism that makes the series seem old-timey, rather than high-tech like many of the crime series currently on television. Nicole Sullivan has a pretty minor role, but hopefully we'll see more of her in future episodes, if the series ever finds an audience.
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
3-05-2007 @ 6:01PM
TVSeriesFinale.com said...
Speaking of Jeff Goldblum, the series that he dropped to be in this one, Knights of Prosperity, was just cancelled.
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3-05-2007 @ 6:46PM
Andrew Liptak said...
I just watched it- looks like a fun series- fun sense of humor, and they can really flesh the guy out a bit. Loved his joke at the end: "The dead -they hunger for human brains. The feeding begins at sundown."
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3-05-2007 @ 7:08PM
Franklin said...
I saw this pilot a while back. It's not bad. A light-hearted, easy to watch affair. Not a spectacular, must-watch show, but if there's nothing else on or you're bored, Raines is decent viewing.
For some reason, Goldblum in this reminded me of Al Gore, in manner, the way he talks, and even weirdly resembles him. I don't mean that as an insult at all, and wonder if Goldblum has in fact modeled his performance after the former veep. Imagine Al Gore, detective who talks to dead murder victims, the series.
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3-05-2007 @ 10:22PM
VSJ said...
My question is, just exactly how tall is Jeff Goldblum?!
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3-16-2007 @ 10:15AM
Ritte House said...
I like the show. My only suggestion would be to let Jeff Goldblum go. He seemed a little stiff in the show. He has this great deadpan way of delivering funny lines. His sarcasm is hysterical. I saw some of it but it seemed toned down. I can't explain it.
I really liked how the "ghost" changed as he learned more about her. Like when he found out she was a prostitute all of a sudden she had makeup and a cigarette. Then she said, why am I smoking? and the cig. was gone.
One more thing. Most of the police don't like him. Not in the same way as House where he irritates people but they still respect him. I got a complete disrespctful, cold, dislike coming from them. How often do you see that?
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3-17-2007 @ 3:57AM
JTArchie said...
I am watching it right now. 1/3 way through. Is it obvious to anyone else that the black guy ex partner is dead too?
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5-11-2007 @ 10:13AM
denise said...
I really like this show, Jeff Goldblum has a very dry wit that I find quite amusing. Are we going to see more? I hope so!!
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