Intruders, TV review: A multi-stranded plot and uninteresting characters

The exception to this is 10-year-old Millie Bobby Brown as Madison/Marcus, her precocious acting talent really is quite eerie

Mira Sorvino with John Simm and Millie Brown, her co-stars in 'The Intruders' (BBC)

While clarity emerged on BBC1, confusion reigned over on BBC2 in the utterly baffling new paranormal thriller Intruders.

The fact that John Simm from Life of Mars now has an American accent and is playing retired LAPD cop Jack Whelan was enough of a stumbling block for our understanding. That’s before you even get to the multi-stranded plot involved a Men in Black-style assassin, a child possessed by the spirit of a middle-aged man and “infra-sound, a sound too low for the human ear to hear”.

The story has been adapted from a Michael Marshall Smith novel by an an X Files writer, Glen Morgan, which explains the relentless air of foreboding. It was also first aired on BBC America, which explains the setting, America’s drizzly Pacific Northwest, plus the presence of Mira Sorvino as Amy Whelan, Jack’s wife. It was nice to see the Oscar-winning actress back on screen again – she’s been keeping a low profile of late – although sadly she didn’t stick around for long. It was Amy’s disappearance early on in the episode that prompted Jack to begin his investigation.

No doubt, Jack Whelan is the type who won’t give up until he’s got some answers. Personally, I’m not sure these under-written characters are engaging enough to justify sitting through another seven episodes of overcast skies and inscrutable dialogue. The exception to this is 10-year-old Millie Bobby Brown as Madison/Marcus. Her precocious acting talent really is quite eerie.