The People v. O.J. Simpson: American Crime Story

A stellar cast, deft storytelling and the drama of a trial that polarized America make for compelling television 21 years later.

Against all odds, this tightly written, sometimes stunningly performed 10-part drama avoids all those pitfalls, capturing the tenor of the time and breathing life into the participants. Not to mention re-creating a crackling good courtroom drama that fiction can only envy.

The FX limited-run series is every bit as watchable as the insanely watchable trial.

A frequently fascinating look behind the scenes of a case whose mix of celebrity, race, and money still resonates.

Ultimately, watching the trial play out as a fait accompli gives it the heft and structure of a classical tragedy in which everyone is undone by his or her seeming strengths turned to weaknesses.

The People V. O.J. Simpson: American Crime Story is thoroughly, surprisingly entertaining--but not always for the reasons that the people behind it intended.

It’s more interested in exploring, often inelegantly, issues of race and class, big ideas that get steamrolled under Murphy’s usual bombastic production style (his main contribution as a director is a lot of distractingly swooping camera moves).