Breaking news: You will no longer see the 52 hours of programs stored on your recorder since September. Impossible. Insurmountable task. Forget that.
Published at 12:55 am. Updated at 7:15 a.m.
So it's time to delete that archived content and make room for new winter releases, including the legal thriller Innocence Project from the Noovo channel.
Written by Nadine Bismuth (“Indefensible,” “A Family Link”) and directed by Catherine Therrien (“Virage,” “Cerebrum”), this series feels like an effective cross between “The Good Fight” and “How to Get Away with Murder.” “. It starts this Tuesday at 8 p.m. and for ten episodes we are promised breathtaking twists.
I watched the first two episodes on Monday, very compact, and I would have liked to binge the rest, which is always a good indicator of interest. The story now? That of the famous criminalist Armand Coupal (as always the solid Guy Nadon), who supervises four university students in a project as special as it is complex, namely to prove the innocence of a pimp who denies having killed his girlfriend a dozen years ago.
After exhausting all his appeals in court, this “pimp”, Anderson Jean-Louis (Fayolle Jean Jr.), is a member of a Haitian street gang in the Saint-Michel district and has committed numerous crimes. But did he beat up escort and nude dancer Vickie Tremblay (Claudia Bouvette) and shoot her twice in the head?
Anderson Jean-Louis swears no, even though he was convicted of Vickie's murder and is serving a minimum sentence of 25 years in prison.
This relatively simple plot hides several others, such as Russian dolls. By digging through Anderson Jean-Louis' file, the four students, led by the persistent Stella (Emi Chicoine), uncover new evidence and test the validity of the alibis. This ambitious and energetic Stella is the daughter of a well-known retired judge and a lawyer specializing in family law (Geneviève Rochette). You can imagine that these three different storylines of father, mother and daughter will intersect at some point.
PHOTO PROVIDED BY NOOVO
Scene from Innocence Project
Me Coupal is the backbone and anchor of Project Innocence. He was specially recruited by the dean (Sophie Lorain) of the faculty and is teaching at the university for the first time. However, we can say that his harsh methods do not please his students. Like criminalist Annalize Keating (Viola Davis) in “How to Get Away with Murder,” Armand Coupal doesn’t put on four pairs of white gloves. It's a bing, bang, thank you, good evening.
Me Coupal’s four “interns” come from very different backgrounds and backgrounds. The most militant, Bénédicte Lebon (Audrey Roger), wonders what message we are sending to victims of sexual violence by defending pimp Anderson Jean-Louis. Okay, he may not have murdered Vickie Tremblay, but he still exploited several young women, right? Very valid point. Debate.
Innocence Project skillfully integrates elements from justice, police and prison series (here “Remembering Oz”) and even a touch of “The Society of Disappeared Poets”, thanks to the rich wooden decoration of Me Coupal's classroom, but also because of the mentoring aspect of the television series.
Yes, the material for Projet innocence, produced by ALSO's Sophie Lorain and Alexis Durand-Brault, is dense. With a few humorous touches in the script and the presence of four young academics, the series stands out from more traditional legal productions. Please note that Innocence Project does not contain any court or trial scenes. The action takes place in the field, where we follow the twists and turns of the new investigation, which also goes back into the past of some characters.
Linda Malo plays the mother of the pimp Anderson Jean-Louis, whom she rejected. So. And I don't know if it's a conscious reference, but the author Nadine Bismuth named her police chief Bernard Brown (Alex Bisping). Yes, Bernard Brown. Like in the famous Oil of Olay advert from the late 1980s. Mademoiselle Henri? Yes, Bernard Brown. I smiled.
Death of the co-author of Indefensible
This sad news shocked the television industry last weekend. Criminal defense attorney Richard Dubé, creator and co-writer of the TVA series “Indefensible,” died suddenly on Saturday. He died of a heart attack.
PHOTO FROM RICHARD DUBÉ'S FACEBOOK PAGE
Richard Dubé during an appearance at Tout le monde entalk
Richard Dubé, 66, worked on “Indefensible” with his partner Izabel Chevrier, who produces and co-writes the legal series for TVA. In a moving message posted on Facebook on Monday, Izabel Chevrier spoke of the “indescribable pain” she has felt since the sudden departure of her lover, the man of her life.
“His calming presence, his laughter, his humor, his clarity, his loving arms, he was my companion through all the struggles and all the joys. We have formed a team that is united at heart. A part of my heart died with him. Richard was so happy. “He had finally realized a big dream: the proud completion of his 40 years in criminal law and becoming an author,” said Izabel Chevrier.
Filming for the second season of “Indefensible” wrapped at the end of November, giving the team some buffer time to absorb this immense shock. The third chapter confirmed by TVA will begin in September, still at the company Lapointe, Macdonald and Desjardins.