Memory of a Killer begins seemingly normally; Patrick Dempsey as Angelo appears to be living an ordinary suburban existence when visiting Maria (Odeya Rush) and Jeff (Daniel David Stewart), making small talk about their mother (deceased), selling office supplies, driving her off to her job teaching school and more. But eventually the tension builds as Angelo discovers something sinister behind all this suburban normalcy he presents himself with an unusual twist; something is happening that may eventually tear them apart as one person after another in this series — until his life turns darkly; in which all sorts of terrible secrets await them all in Memory of a Killer Fox series.
Suburban Normcore Dad Angelo rides away in an SUV so dull it could almost pass for a station wagon, eventually arriving at his wilderness lair – his own bat cave where he changes out of his dull khakis and puffy vest and into an elegant black suit from Ralph Lauren’s runway collection. Meanwhile, the boring SUV is abandoned for good and replaced with an eye-catching black Porsche EV.
Memory of a Killer Fox series
The Bottom Line Unfortunately, too outrageous to be taken seriously yet not amusing enough for enjoyment.
- Special premiere: Sunday, January 25th after the NFL playoffs (Fox).
- Time Period Premier: 9 PM on Monday, January 26 (Fox)
Cast: Patrick Dempsey, Michael Imperioli, Richard Harmon, Odeya Rush, Daniel David Stewart and Peter Gadiot
Ed Whitmore and Tracey Malone’s creation, Angelo is not your average suburban office supply salesperson.
He’s a hitman, so why would anyone hire them if they can’t look and act like one? Killing people for money doesn’t even seem worth the trouble anymore!
At first blush, this scene seems absurd and immediately discredits any intent for viewers to take the show seriously as a semi-dramatic story about an Alzheimer’s-afflicted hitman, since it actually depicts an eccentric dad who kills people as cosplay (Batman), while Alzheimer’s represents Joker (a fictional neurodegenerative condition).
Memory of a Killer: A Stylishly Silly Hitman Series Powered by Dempsey’s Scowl and a Porsche EV
Memory of a Killer is full of fun-to-watch silliness that I take as the series’ nod that it should be seen as such. Dempsey gives Angelo his all, playing him serviceably but, for me, what really shines through in every frame is Dempsey’s “I’m a Hitman!” silver haired scowl that never ceases to make an impressionful statement every time on screen.
Memory of a Killer contains several memorable scenes, with Angelo’s “I’m a Hitman!” line being my personal highlight. Porsche EV’s placement and lighting on screen is so perfect, I assume they have covered much of Memory of a Killer’s budget with this vehicle alone. Another highlight of Memory of a Killer is Angelo’s “I’m a Hitman!” wardrobe; ordering instructions are included with each item! Nothing quite compares to combining your hair, your Porsche, and suits into an ensemble.
The show is based on De Zaak Alzheimer, which in Dutch means “case”. This movie was in turn inspired by a Belgian novel of the same name and previously made into Liam Neeson’s 2022 adaptation Memory (not an Alzheimer joke, just reflecting some percentage of his recent cinematic output). You might confuse Memory with Michael Keaton’s Knox Goes Away — about an assassin with Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease — but these movies are different!
Why Memory of a Killer Fails to Feel Like a Prestige Drama Despite Its Big Names
Memory of a Killer was adapted for Fox by Ed Whitmore and Tracey Malone, with Daniel Minahan (of prestige cable dramas such as Homeland) directing its pilot. Unfortunately, Memory of a Killer does not resemble these prestige cable dramas in any meaningful way.
Angelo’s daughter and infuriating son-in-law mistakenly believe he sells copiers, necessitating frequent trips out of town. Instead, he retreats into his bat cave before donning hitman garb and heading into the city, killing people at the behest of Dutch (Michael Imperioli), an Italian restaurant owner. Although Dutch runs more than just selling pasta, critics have only received the first two episodes so their dealings have yet to be explained in detail.
Dutch has an inept nephew named Joe (Richard Harmon’s Joe), who acts as Angelo’s spotter (a hitman’s job). In the first half of the pilot episode, Angelo killed some triad boss even though they were attending their daughter’s birthday party which is clearly interrupted; Angelo has an unfathomably stupid code which at least in the second episode is mocked by another killer.
Does Memory of a Killer Take Its Audience for Granted?
Joe and Dutch don’t know much about Angelo’s life in the burbs; Maria and Jeff don’t know about his bat cave or the fact that he has an extravagant Design Within Reach of Hitmen-decorated apartment in the city. Why does Angelo need such extravagant accommodations, such as his bat cave, Hitman Porsche and bespoke suits from Design Within Reach of Hitmen, plus owning his own pied-a-terrorist?
Does he only kill in New York or does he kill everywhere? Personally speaking if I were Maria I would be both concerned by what Angelo does for a living – but outraged by his extravagant living arrangements if I learned what his business actually involved! When Maria will finally learn what Angelo does for a living, my initial reaction would likely be disbearation on both accounts: concern regarding his “hitman” profession but outraged over his profligacy of lifestyle.
Angelo also has a brother who lives in some sort of facility – not so lavish that upgrades couldn’t be made if Angelo spent less on suits and Porsches – because he is in the late stages of Alzheimer’s. Unfortunately, early therapies weren’t caught early enough, which would have helped when things like bank codes started being forgotten by his brother. A nurse told us it could have helped to have known when things like that started happening! Five minutes later, Angelo misplaces the security code to his hitman apartment’s security system.
Memory of a Killer Fox series: Is Fox Pushing the Alzheimer’s Crime-Drama Formula Too Far?
Ruh-roh may also suspect Angelo of killing many bad men, with people beginning to suspect something is amiss if their memory goes blank; which would only add further confusion for Angelo who tends to forget things quickly.
De Zaak Alzheimer has historically been adapted as feature films; this makes perfect sense as the combination of neurodegenerative disease as a plot point and secret criminal double lives is not endlessly suspenseful. Two hours would do fine; six to eight episodes on HBO or FX would require careful writing; an ongoing broadcast show where language, sexual content and violence must all be strictly censored are outright impossible to sustain.
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Memory of a Killer marks Fox’s third procedural in 13 months to revolve around middle-aged professionals trying to fulfill their professional responsibilities while struggling with cognitively altered circumstances, often including Alzheimer’s or something similar; therefore “killing people” and “Alzheimer’s” can be seen interchangeably with “doctoring” or whatever’s off with Doc and Best Medicine characters.
Fox, this formula seems odd to me. Please return to utilizing more civilian contractors assisting professionals in solving crime.
Why Memory of a Killer Collapses Under Its Own Careless Writing
Memory of a Killer doesn’t offer us careful writing; its prose is rather careless from start to finish, from leaden dialogue introducing Angelo’s professional backstory all the way down to its repetition about forgetting things long before we get an accurate diagnosis for Angelo and small dumb things such as consecutive scenes featuring characters named Linda (Gina Torres) and Belinda (Beth Benning); where network notes should have stated something like, “Can the character we won’t ever see again be named Barbara?”
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Memory of a Killer is awkward and silly, with any rough edges that might exist on a cable show with different decency standards and longer episodes removed by editing.
Referring back to “sanding down”, Dempsey was impressively solid; however, Angelo was far too smooth and his hitman act too refined; too much time is devoted to Angelo being an incomprehensibly caring father, grieving widower, and caring brother that I kept thinking how difficult it is to craft a compelling antihero for broadcast television – though not impossible; unfortunately this wasn’t it.
Imperioli comes closest to providing the sense of danger missing in Dempsey’s performance with his simmering menace; Rush makes Maria sweet but uninteresting; Stewart plays Jeff as insecure and irritating but becomes the show’s protagonist when he first notices Angelo’s unusual behavior; there is also another police detective named Dave (Peter Gadiot) but that character mainly serves as background noise.
Memory of a Killer kept my attention throughout, with lots of action occurring across two episodes I watched so far – many of them comical – which inevitably stretched credulity as it progressed. If suspension of disbelief became difficult within three minutes, that wasn’t an engaging story to watch anymore.