2 out of 5 stars

Dr Eli Adler (Billy Crystal) bolts awake from a nightmare: a shrouded figure plunging to their death at the bottom of an empty swimming pool. Shaking off the dream, Eli shuffles through his apartment, grumpily searching for caffeine, only to stumble into something much darker than morning lethargy.

Initially, he’s confronted by strange occurrences: an interaction with his dead wife Lynn (Judith Light), visions of blood dripping from a bathtub, and the ominous sound of scratching coming from his front door. Opening it, he finds a young boy standing on his doorstep with blood-stained fingers. Asking questions provides no answers from this mysterious visitor, as the boy dashes across the street without explanation.

Ironically, the same confusion that hooks the viewer in with genuine intrigue is exactly what makes the miniseries Before so frustrating across 10 episodes. Opening with ambiguous nightmares, the series promises to explore themes of grief, trauma, and memory with strong hints of the supernatural. Unfortunately, this promising potential is undermined by monotonous setups and visual distractions, each failing to deliver the meaningful psychological depth that we have asked for. The result is a miniseries that, despite its strong premise, meanders towards an underwhelming and even predictable conclusion, with good performances peppered here and there.

Eli is a child psychologist grieving from the recent death of his wife Lynn, who committed suicide after her cancer treatments failed to cure her. We get a strong sense of his character: he balances his grief with existential boredom and cynicism. The only remedy he can think of is to return to his cases, hoping that the past will disappear.

But his encounter with the mysterious, silent boy starts to become an obsession. Following the boy to an ominous apartment building in the first episode, Eli meets with his foster mother Denise (Rosie Perez). Here he learns that the boy’s name is Noah (Jacob Jupe) and his tragic and mysterious past. Plagued by the boy’s presence in his life and dreams, Eli searches for answers, stubbornly rejecting anything supernatural as a plausible explanation. But when a colleague, played by Sakina Jaffrey, tips him off about a child patient with a peculiar case, Eli begins to suspect that there is much more to the situation. The patient’s name is Noah (Jacobi Jupe), and he is the same silent boy who has been stalking him.

Following the first three episodes or so, which offer many intriguing set-ups, viewers may find that the plot starts to fizzle out. As Eli investigates the reasons behind Noah’s unexplained silence, the story barrels down a dizzying path laid with odd moments and exhausting cues, each pointing to nowhere in particular. Plot points such as when Noah unexpectedly speaks 17th-century Dutch, which he soon has amnesia about, along with cryptic connections to Lynn, attempt to pull viewers along. Instead, it leaves the story’s future uncertain, the conclusion either too predictable or too uninspired.

Often, this push-and-pull relationship with the viewer becomes jarring and frustrating, as many will not know what to make of the ambiguous breadcrumbs and mixed messages. While the inconsistent plot may leave some frustrated, Jay Wadley’s dark music score leaves a lasting impression, which suits the nature of psychological horror, rescuing some scenes where needed.

Many of the inconsistencies mentioned are problematic because of the limited episode runtime, forcing a slow progression without sufficient time to develop characters or build a solid stage for the genre. That said, other series operating within similar claustrophobic spaces, such as the M. Night Shyamalan-produced series Servant (2019-2023), have found ways to execute well within a 25-30 minute runtime. Creator Sarah Thorp and Audrey Rosenberg’s screenplays suffer mainly from plot inconsistencies and failing to create cohesion. There is a scene early on in the second episode when Eli, confused by Noah suddenly speaking a foreign language, seeks the advice of a linguistics professor and expert. The expert cannot explain it, so he advises Eli to Google it. Whether this is a sardonic gag, a comment about generational resources and dependence on media, or an actual conflict within the story’s arc remains to be seen—either way, it sadly falls flat.

The dialogue can be useful, especially when performed by the right actors, such as Rosie Perez, Hope Davis and Maria Dizzia, whilst most of the supporting cast do their part given their small and mostly insignificant roles. Sakina Jaffrey as Eli’s colleague and Ava Lalezarzadeh as his assistant seem like they wish to do more, but the limited episode runtime does not allow them to inject anything of greater value.

However, Noah’s silence during the first few episodes does not suffice when prolonged, and by the time he does speak (when he’s not speaking in cryptic Dutch), it is hardly useful in drawing out a character. Jacobi Jupe’s performance seems mired in dull, tedious expressions and blaring yelps, pulling Noah’s character down to a toddler experiencing tantrums. We never really get a grasp on what Noah truly wants, and as the plot eventually unravels, we wonder if he is anything more than a conduit. This may be because of the short runtime of the episodes, as Thorp’s former credits do have some merit where melodrama and psychology meet at a crossroads with trauma, such as in The New Neighbour (2013), starring Jessica Biel and Kaya Scodelario.

The series does have its moments, some less expected to flourish than others. Many will find Crystal’s portrayal surprisingly useful. His acting credits helped shape the modern rom-com with When Harry Met Sally… (1989), and the buddy-comedy with Analyse That (2002). Now, Before seems to be his chance to lend his chops to the world of psychological horror. As strange as it sounds, he’s more than an adequate fit for the role.

Crystal’s versatility as an actor is exceptional, although we probably should not be as surprised as we are. He’s from a generation of actors who were rarely satisfied with being pigeonholed or tied to a specific character. We think of his contemporaries like Robin Williams, Dustin Hoffman, and even Robert De Niro. What Crystal injects into Eli is a good balance of wry solemnity that lends weight to the series, ultimately helping viewers understand the doctor’s troubling psychological world.

“Of course, I am in denial. I am supposed to be in denial. But it will not last. So can’t I just enjoy it for now?” he tells his therapist (Julia Chan), in the first episode. “Are you enjoying it?” she asks. “Not especially.”

Crystal also knows when to dial back on the humour. He often pontificates with the authority of an arrogant doctor. But he also speaks with the genuine cynicism of a sardonic widower—unimpressed with the supernatural, yet slightly intrigued by it because of Lynn’s ghostly presence. In this way, he’s able to drive the narrative a little more clearly than the plot would allow.

By the time the series reaches its finale, it’s likely most viewers have only stuck around because they’ve invested so much time in the buildup of intriguing yet predictable events. We get an explanation for the supernatural occurrences. But none of it holds weight when the main attraction is a shining performance by Billy Crystal.

USA | 2024 | 10 EPISODES | 16:9 HD | COLOUR | ENGLISH

Cast & Crew

writers: Sarah Thorp, Emmy Grinwis, Audrey Rosenberg, Joseph Sousa, Howie Miller & Desta Tedros Reff.
directors: Adam Bernstein, Jet Wilkinson, Emmanuel Osier-Kuffour, David Petrarca & Zetna Fuentes.
starring: Billy Crystal, Jacobi Jupe, Maria Dizzia, Rosie Perez, Judith Light, Sakina Jaffrey, Robert Townsend, Miriam Shor, Rebecca Ruane, Hope Davis, Julia Chan, Itzhak Perlman, Barbara Bain, Jennifer Esposito, Lenny Venito & Stephen Wallem.