REVIEW | Ripped-from-the-headlines scandals like the Anna Nicole saga are tailor-made for 'Criminal Intent'
May 8, 2007
BY DOUG ELFMAN Television Critic
About five years ago, all the "Law & Orders" competed for dibs to fictionalize ripped-from-the-headlines stories. But creator Dick Wolf eventually ditched that system. He figured there are plenty of headlines to go around.
"I've given up trying to legislate," Wolf says. "People haven't stopped killing themselves in unique and interesting ways."
This week's for-instance is on "Law & Order: Criminal Intent": Anna Nicole Smith's druggie son convulses to death on a floor. Distraught Anna Nicole wishes to die too, and she pops a rainbow of pills.
As usual, the names and circumstances vary. The blond bombshell is Lorelei, not Anna Nicole. Her son collapses at a party, not at a hospital. And so on.
I like regulars Chris Noth and Julianne Nicholson, though they're oddly a little flat this week. (Alternate "CI" episodes still star Vincent D'Onofrio and Kathryn Erbe.)
Even so, I prefer these "Law & Order" topical episodes to E!'s scandal-documentaries. E! shows can be ham-fisted, judgmental, dry and emotionless.
When a "Law & Order" tackles pop culture, it feels more potently true. I think it's because writers are in the industry, fleshing out exploits of peers. They paint with broad yet character-specific strokes.
The actors are insiders, too. Look at David Cross. In his brilliant stand-up routines, he savages Hollywood. Portraying Lorelei's smarmy man, he's clearly relishing the role, screaming "Bitches!" while holding a baby, then cooing at it. It's a funny scene.
More than usual, a big cast signed on for guest roles. Kristy Swanson, the first "Buffy the Vampire Slayer," plays fat Lorelei in animal-print lingerie. Cross is her manager-husband. Director Peter Bogdanovich is a playboy publisher.
And assuredly, that's a doggy star portraying Lorelei's bow-haired, vest-wearing pooch. That little bitch character is likely based on Anna Nicole's leg-humper Sugar Pie, but the pup is not drug-addled, at least not that I'm aware of.
BY DOUG ELFMAN Television Critic
About five years ago, all the "Law & Orders" competed for dibs to fictionalize ripped-from-the-headlines stories. But creator Dick Wolf eventually ditched that system. He figured there are plenty of headlines to go around.
"I've given up trying to legislate," Wolf says. "People haven't stopped killing themselves in unique and interesting ways."
This week's for-instance is on "Law & Order: Criminal Intent": Anna Nicole Smith's druggie son convulses to death on a floor. Distraught Anna Nicole wishes to die too, and she pops a rainbow of pills.
As usual, the names and circumstances vary. The blond bombshell is Lorelei, not Anna Nicole. Her son collapses at a party, not at a hospital. And so on.
I like regulars Chris Noth and Julianne Nicholson, though they're oddly a little flat this week. (Alternate "CI" episodes still star Vincent D'Onofrio and Kathryn Erbe.)
Even so, I prefer these "Law & Order" topical episodes to E!'s scandal-documentaries. E! shows can be ham-fisted, judgmental, dry and emotionless.
When a "Law & Order" tackles pop culture, it feels more potently true. I think it's because writers are in the industry, fleshing out exploits of peers. They paint with broad yet character-specific strokes.
The actors are insiders, too. Look at David Cross. In his brilliant stand-up routines, he savages Hollywood. Portraying Lorelei's smarmy man, he's clearly relishing the role, screaming "Bitches!" while holding a baby, then cooing at it. It's a funny scene.
More than usual, a big cast signed on for guest roles. Kristy Swanson, the first "Buffy the Vampire Slayer," plays fat Lorelei in animal-print lingerie. Cross is her manager-husband. Director Peter Bogdanovich is a playboy publisher.
And assuredly, that's a doggy star portraying Lorelei's bow-haired, vest-wearing pooch. That little bitch character is likely based on Anna Nicole's leg-humper Sugar Pie, but the pup is not drug-addled, at least not that I'm aware of.
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