When good or at its best, 'Criminal Minds' is one of my favourites. "Mosley Lane" is one of Season 5's best episode, and left a real impression on me, even when only seeing it once or twice it is difficult to forget it.
The procedural re-enactment of the crime scene is clumsily inserted and done and doesn't really add very much. More of a problem is that the episode could have provided a reason for why the unsubs were committing their crimes, that was never made clear.
However, Matthew Gray Gubler in his 'Criminal Minds' directorial debut does fantastically well, "Mosley Lane" is one of his most talked about and acclaimed of his directed 'Criminal Minds' episodes and it is not hard at all to see why, providing a genuine tightness, creepy atmosphere, suspenseful tension and truly raw and often heart-rending emotion.
Scenes with the unsubs are chilling, enhanced by the creepy setting and particularly the quite terrifying performance of Beth Grant, the profiling and procedural aspects are very intelligently done and the ending is bittersweet, harrowing and heart-breaking, one of the most powerful endings of the show easily with the moment with the parents of the latest victim finding out that their son could have saved if found a day earlier being one of the show's most emotional.
Writing is taut and thought-provoking, visually the episode is one of the most atmospheric and striking and as ever the music is haunting and melancholic while never intrusive or distractingly over-bearing. The acting is very good from all the regulars and the unsubs particularly Anita are third only to George Foyet and Billy Flynn as Season 5's most frightening unsubs. The parents are very movingly portrayed, especially David Youse and Debra Sullivan, and Brooke Smith and Ann Cusack really add to the urgency and emotional power of the story.
Overall, a more than promising director's job from Gubler and a truly powerful episode that stays with you for a long time. 9/10 Bethany Cox
The procedural re-enactment of the crime scene is clumsily inserted and done and doesn't really add very much. More of a problem is that the episode could have provided a reason for why the unsubs were committing their crimes, that was never made clear.
However, Matthew Gray Gubler in his 'Criminal Minds' directorial debut does fantastically well, "Mosley Lane" is one of his most talked about and acclaimed of his directed 'Criminal Minds' episodes and it is not hard at all to see why, providing a genuine tightness, creepy atmosphere, suspenseful tension and truly raw and often heart-rending emotion.
Scenes with the unsubs are chilling, enhanced by the creepy setting and particularly the quite terrifying performance of Beth Grant, the profiling and procedural aspects are very intelligently done and the ending is bittersweet, harrowing and heart-breaking, one of the most powerful endings of the show easily with the moment with the parents of the latest victim finding out that their son could have saved if found a day earlier being one of the show's most emotional.
Writing is taut and thought-provoking, visually the episode is one of the most atmospheric and striking and as ever the music is haunting and melancholic while never intrusive or distractingly over-bearing. The acting is very good from all the regulars and the unsubs particularly Anita are third only to George Foyet and Billy Flynn as Season 5's most frightening unsubs. The parents are very movingly portrayed, especially David Youse and Debra Sullivan, and Brooke Smith and Ann Cusack really add to the urgency and emotional power of the story.
Overall, a more than promising director's job from Gubler and a truly powerful episode that stays with you for a long time. 9/10 Bethany Cox