tv review: 'under the bridge'

By Nadia Dalimonte

Lily Gladstone in "Under the Bridge" (2024)

Victims of many true crime stories in film and television lack characterization and humanity. Often young women in these narratives, the question of who they were beyond a statistic remains largely unanswered. The stories tend to focus on who committed the crime, using the whodunit element to build suspense, while the interior worlds of the victims go underrepresented. Names and faces become headlines, archived in a constantly changing news cycle. The Hulu limited series “Under the Bridge” pulls from the archives to respectfully dramatize one of the most horrific true crime stories in Canadian history. On November 14, 1997, fourteen-year-old Reena Virk attended a party in Saanich, British Columbia and never returned home. Following the murder, a violence prevention campaign emerged from Reena’s parents, encouraging the BC government to introduce anti-bullying programs into schools.

Developed by Quinn Shephard and based on Rebecca Godfrey’s book of the same name, “Under the Bridge” explores the backstory of Reena (Vritika Gupta) in the context of intergenerational relationships, systemic bullying, and the devastation of broken homes. For many kids navigating their teenage years without a healthy family foundation, emotions like anger and anxiety have no place to go except inflicted on others. It is a brutal cycle Reena finds herself cornered into, and she wants to make the bullies feel as bad as she does. Series co-director and co-writer Quinn Shephard makes a compelling effort to try and understand who Reena was as a person. Like most teenagers, she felt frustrated living at home and being told what to do by her parents, Indian immigrant Manjit (Ezra Faroque Khan) and Indian-Canadian Suman (Archie Panjabi). Reena craved acceptance, and found a corrupted version of it outside her flawed but loving family.

The viewer also gets to know Reena through the impact of peer surroundings, mainly the girls of the Seven Oaks Youth Home. Nicknamed “BIC” for being labelled as disposable (like the lighters), these girls form a gang to look out for each other, because they have no one and nowhere else. The gang includes leader and John Gotti worshipper Josephine (Chloe Guidry), her terrifying best friend Kelly (Izzy G), and fellow youth home resident Dusty (Aiyana Goodfellow). Josephine and Kelly are the biggest instigators of the group. They call themselves the Crip Mafia Cartel (CMC) and build a foundation on vicious intimidation tactics to survive. Dusty is kept on the outskirts of being a true gang member. Josephine and Kelly manipulate her vulnerable state of mind to get whatever they want, ultimately extending the same behavior towards a shy Reena. Their faux acceptance fills Reena’s loneliness. It is heartbreaking to watch her soul gradually deteriorate at the hands of so-called friends, who are lost and broken themselves. As Riley Keough’s Rebecca Godfrey states, “Young girls in Victoria were the ones we were supposed to protect, not be protected from.”

There are several layers to this narrative beyond a girl falling into the wrong crowd. “Under the Bridge” takes a ground-level approach in its inclusion of teenage perspectives. On a more resonant level, the series focuses on authoritative figures in the areas of law enforcement, journalism, and parenthood. Lily Gladstone plays police officer Cam Bentland, an Indigenous woman adopted by her father, police chief Roy Bentland (Matt Craven). Cam takes the lead investigator role on the murder case, bringing immense sensitivity and urgency to finding Reena. Having grown up knowing the feeling of abandonment, Cam also identifies with the Seven Oaks girls. Her presence is a beacon of hope for justice, and a voice of reason speaking out against racism in Canada’s police force. Her character also ignites a needed conversation particularly around Indigenous Canadian history.

Lily Gladstone anchors the series with a sublime, thought-provoking performance that immediately draws you in. From Kelly Reichardt’s “Certain Women” to Martin Scorsese’s “Killers of the Flower Moon,” quiet intensity has become a defining quality in Gladstone’s work. Their sensitivity as an actor lends exceptionally well to the role of Cam. Gladstone conveys the weight of many resonant themes at play, from the struggle for acceptance in this position of power, to fighting for justice in a racist environment that also does not take rebellious youth seriously.

Gladstone shares authentic chemistry with each of their co-stars, among them Riley Keough who plays author Rebecca Godfrey. In the series, Rebecca begins writing her book called “The Misunderstood Girls of Victoria,” which would go on to become “Under the Bridge.” After years of living in New York, she returns to find Vancouver Island haunted by her own tragic memories and overwhelming guilt. The closer she gets to the girls of Victoria, and ultimately the murder case, the deeper her reconnection with an old friend: Cam. Together they find a mutual benefit — Rebecca gets material for her book, while the trust she earns among teens provides Cam with insider case-related knowledge. Rebecca and Cam feel sympathy towards the teens on different levels, which brings alliances into question and complicates their dynamic. Both perspectives are so fascinating to watch, in that they are navigating conflicting stances when it comes to defining justice for Reena.

Following her Emmy nomination for “Daisy Jones & The Six,” Riley Keough returns with another impressive performance that exhibits her understated and intuitive qualities. She balances a poignant backstory with a self-awareness in her character being the one to tell Reena Virk’s story. While Keough does not get a whole lot of material to explore, it makes sense for the author to be more of a footnote here. “Under the Bridge” has a bigger narrative picture at play, where much of the supporting cast shine.

Vritika Gupta in "Under the Bridge" (2024)

Reena’s parents Manjit and Suman, played brilliantly by Archie Panjabi and Ezra Faroque Khan, bring a significant amount of context and emotional resonance to the story. They too get layered backstories, which adds weight to one of Reena’s lines: “My story began long before I got here.” To understand her, the viewer goes back in time with her parents. Panjabi is one of the biggest standouts of the cast. She gives the most impressive performance of her career as a mother utterly heartbroken by the void in her family picture. Her emotional rollercoaster is so lived-in, you feel as though you are sitting right next to her through the entire ordeal.

The young cast also impresses throughout the series. Vritika Gupta gives a commendable performance as Reena and brings complex humanity to this role. You want to reach through the screen and stop her from meeting such poisonous influences. Chloe Guidry and Izzy G are terrifying as the troubled best friends Josephine and Kelly. Their unpredictable intensity makes each scene nerve wracking to watch. Aiyana Goodfellow shines memorably as Dusty, and has some of the most morally haunting moments in the series. The teens' shared chemistry is terrific and adds to the overall emotional pull of the storytelling, which balances various perspectives that maintain attention. As well, their individual abilities to test the grey areas of humanity make you absolutely loathe their behavior, and yet still feel pangs of sorrow and sympathy towards (most of) them.

A recurring theme that stands out in “Under the Bridge” is how impactful it is to have beams of support, people who love and care about you, and want what is best for you. Whether such support comes from chosen families, or families we are born into, the significance of that togetherness comes through, and its absence is strongly felt. What makes the series even more heartbreaking than it already is, Reena had this family life, but was so overcome with loneliness, and shown manipulative affection by kids who are missing real affection in their lives. As Suman (Panjabi) explains, to understand who Reena was is to understand the mindset of those who took her soul, and ultimately her life.

In mass media, victims of true crime are often limited to public perception and become defined by their tragic endings. The series adheres to the idea that stories have no definite endings or even beginnings. Reena’s story does not begin and end with murder, making “Under the Bridge” more than just another entry in the true-crime genre.

“Under the Bridge” premieres on Disney+ in Canada on May 8.