Lady in the Lake – Review | Apple TV+

LADY IN THE LAKE on Apple TV+ is a new noir thriller series with a story told over seven episodes. The mini-series takes place in 1960s Baltimore and stars Natalie Portman and Moses Ingram. Read our full Lady in the Lake series review here!

LADY IN THE LAKE is a new Apple TV+ thriller series with a delicious noir vibe and amazing production quality. It’s also a murder mystery right up until the final episode. That alone could be enough to keep you watching.

Fortunately, I also found myself extremely invested in the two main characters. They are portrayed by Natalie Portman and Moses Ingram, who deliver stellar portrayals of women living in Baltimore in the 1960s.

The series has seven episodes and we’ve watched them all for this review.

Continue reading our Lady in the Lake series review below. Find it on Apple TV+ from July 19, 2024, where the first two episodes are released.

Meet Maddie Schwartz and Cleo Johnson

In Lady in the Lake, we meet and follow two characters. One of them is even the narrator (Moses Ingram as Cleo). It all begins on Thanksgiving 1966 when the disappearance of a young Jewish girl grips the city of Baltimore. Later, an adult black woman disappears and it doesn’t get much coverage.

Still, that first disappearance inadvertently results in the two women converging on a fatal collision course.

One of them is Maddie Schwartz (Natalie Portman) who is a Jewish housewife seeking to reinvent herself as an investigative journalist. Actually, she just wants to be more than someone who exists only to serve her husband.

The other is Cleo Johnson (Moses Ingram), a mother fighting to make this world better for her two sons. She’s also trying her best to navigate the political underbelly of Black Baltimore, which is no small task.

Too smart for her own good

I’m sure both Maddie (Portman) and Cleo (Ingram) could be described as being too smart for their own good. And both are, but in very different ways. Maddie has allowed herself to be held down and back for almost two decades. In fact, she believed this was what she should do.

Cleo, on the other hand, is brilliant with numbers, so in order to provide for her family, she works as a bookkeeper for the one man who seems to run most of Black Baltimore. Cleo Johnson is very clearly extremely intelligent and can run circles around most other people.

Also, yes, there was clearly a White and a Black Baltimore. At this time, it wasn’t even legal for a black and white person to live together. This detail also comes into play as Maddie moves to Black Baltimore in an effort to get free from her marriage.

Separate but connected

We see the two women living very separate lives though they intersect briefly in the opening sequence.

Later, Maddie becomes fixated on the mystifying death of the lady in the lake. She especially wonders why the newspaper she has managed to attach herself to (as a Miss Helpline writer, who dreams of being an investigative reporter) won’t cover it.

The result of both their actions puts them in danger, but Maddie is much slower to realize just how dangerous it all is. Cleo knows from the beginning and just tries to maneuver around as best she can.

Ultimately, Lady in the Lake is a noir thriller about the price women pay for their dreams.

Start watching Lady in the Lake on Apple TV+

Alma Har’el is the creator, executive producer, writer and director. She’s also the editor of five episodes, so this is her project in so many ways. She previously directed and produced Honey Boy (2019) which also starred Noah Jupe.

The series is based on the novel by Laura Lippman, who is also an executive producer alongside Christopher Leggett, Julie Gardner, and Layne Eskridge. Natalie Portman also serves as executive producer alongside producing partner Sophie Mas.

The late Jean-Marc Vallée also served as executive producer. The first episode of the series is dedicated to Jean-Marc Vallée (Big Little Lies, Sharp Objects) who passed away on Christmas Day 2021.

The first two episodes of Lady in the Lake will premiere globally on Apple TV+ on Friday, July 19. Following this premiere, new episodes will premiere weekly on Fridays through the series finale on August 23

Lady in the Lake premieres exclusively on Apple TV+ on July 19, 2024.

Details

Creator / Director: Alma Har’el
Writers: Briana Belser, Alma Har’el, Nambi E. Kelley, Boaz Yakin
Cast: Natalie Portman, Moses Ingram, Y’lan Noel, Byron Bowers, Josiah Cross, Mikey Madison, Pruitt Taylor Vince, Dylan Arnold, Brett Gelman, Noah Jupe, Wood Harris, Angela Robinson, Jennifer Mogbock, David Corenswet, Bianca Belle, Charlie Hofheimer, Tyrik Johnson, Samir Royal