TV Mini-series Review

TV Review: THE NIGHT MANAGER: Season 1, Episode 5 [AMC]

Hugh Laurie Episode Five The Night Manager

AMC’s The Night Manager Episode 5 TV Show Review. The Night Manager: Episode 5 have started putting things in perspective for Jonathan Pine (Tom Hiddleston) as his mission to take down Richard Roper (Hugh Laurie) has led up to the place where it all started. With only one episode left, it’s about to be intense for the British spy. However, it looks like Pine may be making some mistakes along the way, which may come back to bite him if he’s not careful in covering his tracks.

If only Angela Burr (Olivia Colman) knew about the mistakes that Pine has been making on the field, she would’ve aborted the mission and return Pine back home. It wouldn’t even hurt if she just gave up his name to Geoffrey Dromgoole (Tobias Menzies) just to save herself from humiliation. Angela’s family is also put in danger because of the mission, so the question she has to ask herself is if what she’s doing is all worth the risk? Colman has given a powerful performance during the episode showing how difficult it is to keep her professional and personal lives separate.

Advertisement
 

There were times that it appeared that Roper was about to close in on Pine, but that wasn’t the case. It’s not hard to see how many times Pine and Roper’s girlfriend Jed (Elizabeth Debicki) stared into each other’s eyes every time they are near one another. Major Corcoran (Tom Hollander) always seemed to catch that, but not Roper. He’s just more concerned over what Jed is hiding from him and how much she knows about the work he does. We are always seeing Pine at risk of exposing his cover, and that’s what makes the show great. Seeing Pine in danger increases the tension and keeps viewers at the edge of their seats. It’s only a matter of time before Roper finally figures out what Pine is up to.

Speaking of Roper, his evil ways have started surfacing during this week’s episode. We see a completely different side to this man from when he was acting more as a father to Danny. The first few episodes showed Roper as a caring and loving human being who was surrounded by family and friends. This episode showed us the vicious side of Roper, and Hugh Laurie did a brilliant job transforming into this evil demon. Getting to see him lighting up his cigar and watching as his weapons of mass destruction annihilating a whole village to a customer was frightening to watch. It was sheer genius to watch Hugh Laurie pulling off what may be one of his finest performances on television.

We finally see the true face of this war criminal, so Pine has no idea who he’s dealing with. Roper knows that there is a traitor in his group, so he’s suspicious of everybody. Even Pine is on his list of suspects, but he still needs him in order for things to run smoothly for this big arms deal. Roper is putting all the players on the table, so it seems that he may be waiting for the right moment to make his move and find out who the real traitor is.

The most shocking move that Pine made this week was when he finally told Jed the truth of who he is and what he’s after. After the promise of getting her out from living under Roper’s roof, Jed has suddenly become an ally in Pine’s mission to take down Roper. It was a risky move of Pine to clue Jed in on his mission, but Jed seems that she would do anything to get as far away from Roper as she can. However, this has also caused Jed to put herself in danger just like Pine so that may not have been the wisest decision on Pine’s part.

Corky even had his suspicions on Pine and he was keeping an eye on him. Pine was lucky that Corky didn’t tell Roper everything or else he would be toast. The problem was that he needed to keep Corky off his tail while also making sure Roper doesn’t suspect him. The only logical step for him to do was to put Corky on Roper’s radar and the opportunity made itself available to do it. He even had Jed convince Roper that Corky was the traitor. In what was the most intense fight in an army base outside the fences, Pine managed to gain the upper hand and kill Corky. It was a smart yet cold move for Pine.

After leaving the convoy, the group heads for Cairo to the Nefertiti Hotel, where Pine worked at the start of the series. Seeing Pine return to the place where it all began felt kind of poetic. Hiddleston managed to nail Pine’s reaction spot on when he sets foot at his old workplace. It’s makes viewers wonder if Roper somehow knew who Roper was and where he came from. And what if the hotel staff recognizes him? The clock is ticking on Pine and he’s on a tight spot. It will be interesting to see how it all goes down in the finale next week.

Overall, the fifth episode continued to build up the suspense as Pine tried to cover his tracks in order for Roper not to suspect him. It will be interesting to see if Roper still suspects Pine during the final hour. Hugh Laurie was excellent in showing his character’s transformation from a family man to the war criminal that everyone is afraid of. As next week’s finale approaches, Pine’s life is on the line and everyone wants to know if he makes it out alive.

Leave your thoughts on this review and this episode of The Night Manager in the comments section below. For more The Night Manager photos, videos, and news, visit our The Night Manager Page, subscribe to us by Email, “follow” us on Twitter, Tumblr, Google+ or “like” us on Facebook.

FilmBook's Newsletter

Subscribe to FilmBook’s Daily Newsletter for the latest news!

Thank you for subscribing.

Something went wrong.

Mufsin Mahbub

**Fired from FilmBook for Plagiarism** Mufsin is a freelance writer from New York who has a Bachelor’s Degree in Journalism at Long Island University. He has written for publications like HollywoodLife, Clubplanet, and Heavy. He is an avid lover for everything related to TV and film. He has gone to dozens of film screenings, press events, and loves to attend New York Comic Con every year. He gives an honest opinion on every TV show or film that people are going to be talking about.
Back to top button
Share via
Send this to a friend