‘Under The Bridge’ review: Lily Gladstone and Riley Keough lead this macabre tale of misguided loyalty and injustice

There is nothing more that makes you betray yourself than the longing to fit in. Such is the petrifying story of Reena Virk. (Image via X)

‘Under The Bridge’ Overview

Lily Gladstone and Riley Keough lead this sinister yet dreary true crime which tells the world the story of the gruesome murder of Reena Virk in 1977 by the infamous ‘Shoreline Six.’ The series takes you through the struggles of an outsider trying to fit in. Reena Virk (Played by Vritika Gupta) is a Indian Jehovah’s Witness in the serene district of Saanich, Canada. Virk goes through hoops to be accepted by a friend group obsessed with the mafia. ‘CMC,’ which stands for ‘Crips Mafia Cartel,’ is what the three girls have dubbed their group as. Kelly Ellard, the perpetrator of the vicious crime, Josephine Bell, a teen infatuated by Gotti and Dusty Pace, a fictionalised third group member who was never brave when she needed to be. Warren Glowatski, played Javon Walton plays a troubled teen who feels remorseful about his part in the murder of Reena Virk. The true crime series is based on a book by Rebecca Godfrey, portrayed by Riley Keough in the show. Her parallel with Cam, a tough Native American cop played by Lily Gladstone, although fictionalised, adds a depth to the story unrelated to the murder.

‘Under The Bridge’ Trailer

‘Under The Bridge’ Review: An appalling lore of injustice

The true crime drama deals with issues of teen angst, sexual abuse, child abuse, race, the need to belong. There is nothing more that makes you betray yourself than the longing to fit in. Such is the petrifying story of Reena Virk. A girl who just wanted friends. The series’ most powerful message was that of a girl struggling to balance doing the right thing and a misguided loyalty.

The series takes you through that fateful winter night of 14 November, 1977, when Kelly Ellard and Warren Glowatski brutally drown Reena Virk. Kelly Ellard, in a blind frenzy, drowns Virk so violently, she sucks up pebbles instead of air.

The winding road of a group of teens protecting each other no matter how heinous the crime felt like a kick in the gut. To stoop so low felt unreal to watch and the series did a splendid job at making you feel like a guilty bystander while everything was unfolding in front of our eyes. You felt so helpless. All you want to do is tell Reena Virk that things change but you can’t because she is in the bottom of a lake, under the bridge.

The last two episodes revolve around the trial of Glowatski and Ellard. Undeniably, the best episodes of the series. Glowatski, although advised by Godfrey and his lawyer to say ‘I don’t remember’ to every question the prosecution asks him, chose the path of honesty and recalled the happenings of 14 November in court.

Ellard stuck to denying her crime but what turned out to be her Achilles heel were the testimonies of Dusty Pace and Warren Glowatski. Coming from a rich family, Ellard was initially only sentenced to 5 years in prison, despite being the main perpetrator in the murder. While Glowatski was sentenced to life in prison for second degree murder. It really makes you feel sick thinking about what people can get away with if they have enough money.

The series showed a complicated dynamic between Godfrey and her childhood friend, Cam. Although fictional, Cam played an integral role in the true crime. Unwavering on her stance to get justice for Reena Virk, Cam was reminded of herself in Reena. A ‘Bic girl’ who was adopted by the police chief of Saanich. The plot line of their characters’ history with Godfrey’s brother felt like a nice addition but it went nowhere.

‘Under The Bridge’: Reena was missing from her own tale

“I think people should be remembered for who they were, not what happened to them,” Godfrey tells the parents of Reena Virk in the series. Yet, it felt as though Reena’s murderers got a better chance to be fully expressed in the series. Coming out of the series, one still does not know who Reena Virk truly was.

“For someone who wants to write a book about my daughter, you sure don’t know much,” Suman Virk told Godfrey.

The series showed an unexpected bond forming between Glowatski and Godfrey. The pages of her book mentioned him way more than Reena, who the story was actually about. The series also lost its original direction and focused more on the perpetrators of the crime rather than trying to understand how it felt to be Reena Virk that night.

‘Under The Bridge’: Javon Walton and Izzy G stand out

The series had an impeccable cast. Every character seemed fleshed out and you could feel their pain, misery and deviousness. The main standouts were Javon Walton (Glowatski) and Izzy G (Ellard).

The series did such a great job in bringing out the devil in Ellard through Izzy. In one scene, she just keeps yelling “I DID NOT KILL REENA VIRK” during her trial and then she immediately breaks down into a pool of tears. It was moving to say the least but what was best about her performance was how much she succeeded in making the viewer hate her.

Walton plays a troubled teen who get embroiled in the crime even when he did not know Reena Virk. He dabbles in emotions of guilt and fear. Godfrey and Glowatski’s unexpected friendship felt eerie and beautiful due to Walton. You can’t help but feel bad for him despite knowing what he did.

Lily Gladstone, although brilliant, felt a bit lacking sometimes. Her performance felt a bit one toned but maybe that is what Cam required. When finally Cam did scream at Godfrey, we just thought ‘It’s about damn time.’ Riley Keough was also good in the series.

‘Under The Bridge’: Conclusion

Justice was not served. Ellard kept denying her crime till 2016, after which she was sentenced to life in prison with day parole. Ellard also has two children. It is not fair. It is really not fair. The series did a splendid job in making you realise how unfair the justice system is. Especially when it comes to someone who is not white. The series navigated the struggles of racial discrimination brilliantly. No matter what Reena did, she was always going to be beneath the mean girl group of Ellard and Bell. Not cool enough, not dangerous enough, not beautiful enough for ‘CMC.’

It was revealed that Glowatski, during the trial, remembered how hairy Reena’s back was. That was the detail that struck him most during that night. They did not look at Reena as a person, but an animal. Someone who the world wouldn’t miss.

Glowatski and Ellard are both living a life now. However, twisted and difficult, it still is a life. Reena will never get that. The question is, can you live with it?

All episodes of ‘Under The Bridge’ are streaming on Disney+ Hotstar.