The Following

Both Bacon and Purefoy are so intensely earnest, The Following quickly supersedes its patent Silence of the Lambs setup.

Bacon, always a watchable actor, is the perfect, and necessary, counterbalance to Purefoy.

If what you're looking for is a good scare that's cunningly and ruthlessly executed, be forewarned. The Following is the real deal.

If you can make it through Monday's first episode of Fox's much-anticipated new suspense drama 'The Following,' you have some intense, but high-quality, television ahead.

The pilot rivals anything you'll see at the cineplex in terms of acting, surprise, and suspense. You will go into each commercial break with your heart in your throat. But what really makes The Following more like a feature film than a primetime program is its extravagant, emphatic savagery.

The plotting is intricate, the entire acting ensemble is first-rate.

There's no pulling punches, and exec producer Kevin Williamson delivers a full-throttle ride that, four episodes in, proves twisty, unpredictable and tense.

[Purefoy's and Bacon's] performances--and scenes that focus on Carroll's killer minions that I won't talk about lest I spoil things for readers--are the strongest parts of the series and overshadow the weaknesses. Those include numerous plot holes and some sketchy logic, plus Williamson's annoying habit of beating us over the head with the Poe references.

The Following is as graphically violent, gruesomely gory and generally horrifying as anything on network TV and most anything on basic cable. But as crafted by Kevin Williamson, 'The Following' is also riveting.

The story isn't brilliant or all that sophisticated, but the scripts are stocked with enough clever twists and turns to keep you guessing.

This provocatively, almost boisterously violent thriller bolts into action with a clever premise and sustains it with good, unexpected jolts. [28 Jan 2013, p.43]

Referencing literary works and imitating horror films may seem derivative, but by drawing from the familiar, The Following obviates the need for extensive exposition and jumps right into the action.

It's hardly a new story... But ... 'The Following' is tricked out with enough narrative and casting bling to warrant the huge push Fox has given it.

Though dazzlingly plotted and acted, the show is not easily watched.

The Following ... is one of the most disturbing procedural dramas on television, in its own way creepier than similar network shows and even cable series like "Dexter" or "Breaking Bad" or "The Walking Dead." It's hard to turn off and even harder to watch.

[A] somewhat overheated but still fairly effective new thriller.

This is a genuinely scary and unsettling series.