Review of Memphis Beat

When I first saw "Memphis Beat" advertised, I was excited that finally someone was going to show the real Memphis. For that reason, I've been trying to like it ever since, but it's not happening.

I mean, it's Memphis, and I like Memphis. Jason Lee, who plays Detective Dwight Hendricks, impersonates Elvis singing in clubs at night. As far as I'm concerned, you can't go wrong with Elvis music. He's even got the accent down, something that doesn't happen often. So why is it that I just can't warm up to "Memphis Beat?"

I think the problem is that it's not clearly defined to me whether the show is supposed to be so goofy it's funny, or whether it wants to be a serious drama. The character of Dwight Hendricks works okay, but some of the other characters seem to have fallen out of a cartoon panel.

For instance, his partner, Charlie "Whitehead" White, played by veteran actor Sam Hennings is just a little too out there for me. In one episode an airplane lands in a park with no one aboard. While Hendricks and White are trying to find out what happened to the owners, supposed recent lottery winners, White keeps talking about this "ghost plane" is an omen of bad things to come. It's hard to take the show seriously when one of the main characters comes across as having taken several extra years just to get out of high school. By the middle of that episode, I was wishing Scotty would "beam him up."

Another problem I have with the show is the police station. Now, I've seen the Memphis Police Department, and no, I wasn't arrested. The station on the show is this old brick building that on the inside looks like it might have once been bombed by the Nazis. (Can I still use that word or is Nazi politically incorrect now?) In fairness, a friend who lives in Memphis told me that the Memphis City Police Department does have some satellite station houses located around Memphis in some older buildings now. All I can say is if they can't afford a bucket of paint, they need to ask the City for a bigger budget.

I like Celia Weston's character, though, as Detective Hendricks' mother. She's spunky and full of life, just like a lot of southern women I know. In one episode, she started dating a man across the street, and when she found out that Hendricks threatened him, she slammed the door in her son's face. This woman I can believe.

As far as the rest of the cast, Alfre Woodard plays a decent Lt. Tanya Rice, Detective Hendricks' boss, but her southern accent hurts my ears. I've always admired Ms. Woodard's work, but I'm having trouble seeing her even taking this job in a city where someone gets murdered daily. The least they could do is give her a decent office downtown.

The rest of the cast includes Leonard Earl Howze, D.J. Qualls and Abraham Benrubi. I don't have much of a problem with them except that Qualls reminds me of a Keystone Cop in his role. Of course, he does work hard because he's the only patrolman who apparently shows up at every crime scene. I'm not an expert by any means, but on most of the Memphis newscasts I see, there's usually at least a couple more. Maybe the writers should check out the local news occasionally.

A lot of shows have tried to mix humor with the serious as was done so well in "M*A*S*H", but I think it must be a tricky thing to pull off. I think the writers for "Memphis Beat" would benefit more by going one way or the other. I think I would like it better. Maybe they need a little less dependence on Elvis and barbecue and give it a lot more true Memphis.

Sources:

http://tv.yahoo.com/show/45862/season
http://www.tnt.tv/dramavision/?cid=62436