Stream It Or Skip It: ‘Anatomy Of A Scandal’ On Netflix, A David E. Kelley Adaptation Of A Novel About Power And Sexual Assault In The British Parliament

David E. Kelley has managed to continue his prolific, decades-long TV career by pivoting to adaptations of salacious novels that become equally salacious cable and streaming dramas (think Big Little Lies, think The Undoing). They usually involve upper-class people living seemingly idyllic lives, until they’re upended by some sort of scandal, usually involving heinous crimes. His latest adaptation, this time taking place in England, is no different.

ANATOMY OF A SCANDAL: STREAM IT OR SKIP IT?

Opening Shot: Blurry shots of what looks like two people having sex in a wood-paneled lift.

The Gist: As high-powered barrister Kate Woodcroft (Michelle Dockery) is celebrating by working on her next case. Meanwhile, Sophie Whitehouse (Sienna Miller) is attending the birthday party of a friend’s husband, wondering where her husband James (Rupert Friend), a home minister and member of Parliament with close ties to the prime minister, is. He’s actually talking to a constituent, but he gets word that a scandal is about to break.

Reports are about to come out that he was in a months-long affair with a subordinate named Olivia Lytton (Naomi Scott) that he only broke it off a few weeks prior. When he tells Sophie that he “fucked up” and that it meant nothing, Sophie tries to keep her composure, but when the PM’s resident spin doctor comes to advise James about what to say to the press, she goes into the kitchen and pukes.

James does his best to manage the scandal, both with the press, public and Sophie. Sophie is rightly upset, but she knows that leaving him isn’t in her family’s best interest, or in the best interest of maintaining her status. But her resolve is shaken when she goes to Westminster to have lunch with James in the middle of his fellow MPs. A few of the old fogeys think James’ infidelity may serve him well, but Sophie thinks that’s bullshit. She also gets upset while in the lift, knowing that it’s one of the locations where James and Olivia had sex.

James offers to quit politics because he’s devoted to Sophie and their family, which seems to soften Sophie’s stance a bit. But when we cut to Kate looking at her new high-profile case, it looks like the scandal is about to get a whole lot deeper.

What Shows Will It Remind You Of? Not just because of its similar title, but Anatomy Of A Scandal has a similar setting and themes as A Very British Scandal. It also has the “seemingly blissful life of an upper class couple ripped to shreds” theme of another David E. Kelley adaptation, The Undoing.

Our Take: Adapted by Kelley and Melissa James Gibson from Sarah Vaughn’s 2018 novel, Anatomy Of A Scandal doesn’t really get going in the first episode. It basically is a series of insincere apologies by James, who insists that his affair means nothing but seems to have hazily fond memories of connecting with Olivia in the lift and in a hotel room while swigging Champagne.

Then there’s Sophie, who at first seems to be trying her hardest to keep her composure, even though the life she’s built for herself seems to be crumbling around her. It’s odd that she doesn’t really see how insincere James’ apologies are; he feels like this is something they’ll just get past.

So when the actual case against James, in which Olivia accuses him of rape, actually gets going, what are we going to have? Is Sophie going to publicly rally behind her husband or go off on her own? In a post #MeToo world, will Kelley and Gibson’s adaptation take Olivia’s accusations seriously or take James’ side? Or is the series just going to be a series of denials and courtroom scenes?

We’re sure those courtroom scenes will be fun to watch, with Dockery’s character coming to the fore instead of just being a barrister with no work-life balance. Miller is actually pretty compelling as Sophie tries to keep things together while her emotions are all over the place. Friend, usually known for uttering few words as tough guys in shows like Homeland, plays the slimy politician remarkably well. So this show may be salvaged by their performances, especially when we get to court. But by the time we get to that part, are we even going to care?

Sex and Skin: Any sex is shown either pre- or post-coital. Even the lift scene is pretty chaste.

Parting Shot: When two police detectives approach James outside the parliament building and tell him that they want to question him about a rape accusation, the emotional blow is shown physically, with James being knocked off his feet by the accusation.

Sleeper Star: We only see brief glimpses of Naomi Scott as Olivia. But it seems that her character has more going on than just being a subordinate who sleeps with her handsome youngish boss.

Most Pilot-y Line: In the House of Commons, James defends a bill by saying, “If it looks like a duck, walks like a duck and quacks like a duck, vote aye for that duck!” Yeesh. Some silly stuff is said in the House of Commons in real life, but that feels like something an American would think a British politician would say there.

Our Call: SKIP IT. Anatomy Of A Scandal looks great and has some fun performances, but it not only feels like Kelley has trod this ground before with The Undoing, but the show feels like it’s giving the serious subject of sexual assault too slick of a treatment.

Joel Keller (@joelkeller) writes about food, entertainment, parenting and tech, but he doesn’t kid himself: he’s a TV junkie. His writing has appeared in the New York Times, Slate, Salon, RollingStone.com, VanityFair.com, Fast Company and elsewhere.