Smart scriptwriting and drip-fed action keep you hooked for the duration

For several weeks now on Saturday evenings, BBC4 has been broadcasting an enticing and gripping foreign language drama – HOSTAGES – which comes to an exciting end on Saturday 14th March at 9pm and now the brilliant series will be released on DVD and Digital Download from March 16th.

The Israeli thriller is a kidnap series, which audiences may be familiar with after the recent broadcasting of the US version of HOSTAGES starring Toni Collette and Dylan McDermott. Produced by Chaim Sharir and filmed on location in modern-day Jerusalem, the series offers a very different feel to the glossy, almost mini-movie type feel of its multi-million dollar, star-studded American counterpart.

HOSTAGES is an intense psychological crime-thriller that follows a renowned surgeon, Dr Yael Danon (Ayelet Zurer), about to perform a routine operation on the Israeli Prime Minister, Mr. Shmuel Netzer. But there is nothing routine about it when the night before the procedure, her family consisting of her husband Eyal (Micha Selektar), son Assaf (Yaov Rotman) and daughter Noa (Dar Zuzovsky) are taken hostage by Adam Rubin (Jonah Lotan) and she is ordered to sabotage the operation and kill the president – or her family will die. Her battle to save both her family and the president takes us on a journey where everyone is fighting for survival.

HOSTAGES is created by Rotem Shamir and it is not hard to see why this TV series has generated such critical acclaim since its release. From the very first episode, the audience are treated to a gripping 40-minute suspense-filled, drip-fed action, which effortlessly builds up tension and becomes a show that you cannot turn off – one of the luxuries of being able to watch back-to-back episodes on DVD. 

The superb acting and directing allows the drama and action to slowly unfold throughout its 10 episodes and great care is taken into developing the characters. There is no denying how absorbing the plot to the story is and without a doubt it’s easy to become hooked for the duration. It successfully entwines the drama surrounding the assassination plot of the Prime Minister and also the personal dramas of the Danon family, who are very close, but they also conceal their own secrets including debt to big-time lenders, secret pregnancies and a web of lies has entangled the well-respected family. 

For those not used to foreign films, then the subtitles can initially detract from the subtext and visuals, but they do not encroach on the story by any means and after ten-minutes or so, they barely become noticeable and it is not a forced habit to read the subtitles translated from the Hebrew dialogue. 

Throughout the ten episodes, the audience are drawn to the main characters, their plight and will be pleasantly pleased as they reach the surprising climax in the finale. HOSTAGES is a good example of blossoming Israeli TV drama that oozes talent and the exceptionally smart scriptwriting capabilities of Omri Givon and Rotem Shamir. 

Ayelet Zurer delivers her role as the smart and sassy doctor with ease and has great onscreen presence alongside Jonah Lotan, the tenebrous gunman holding her family prisoner, who you may be forgiven for finding rather compelling. 

As much as I enjoyed the US remake on Channel 4 last year, there is no denying the original Israeli thriller effortlessly provides a nail-biting, satisfying story that amplifies a superb kidnapping plot towards a nerve-shredding finale. For fans of thrillers and slow-burning action dramas, this TV series is an absolute must-have for your viewing collection.

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