We've all heard Coco Chanel's saying (we paraphrase): 'Take off the last thing you put on.' It's a little trick in fashion used to rein in the overenthusiastic when a look is already complete. Had The Stolen Girl taken that advice we could have been looking at a flawless show.
But, alas, it keeps adding and adding to an already thrilling plot until the end result becomes unimpressive and gaudy.
Of course we're talking about television, not fashion, and the jewels in this scenario are threads of narrative draped one on top of the other until there are simply too many ideas that aren't executed tightly enough.
Billed as 'a parent's worst nightmare', Disney+'s new thriller, executive produced by Happy Valley's Nicola Shindler, is an adaptation of Alex Dahl's 2020 novel Playdate.
It sees the Blixes' lives turned inside out when their nine-year-old daughter Lucia (Beatrice Campbell) is kidnapped after a sleepover at her new friend Josie's (Robyn Betteridge) house.
The chilling trailer showed the couple, Elisa (Denise Gough) and Fred (Jim Sturgess) fretfully going to collect their daughter only to discover that Josie's beautiful home is a holiday rental and that her mother, Rebecca (Mickey 17's Holliday Grainger), is not who she claimed to be.
What to Read Next
Related: New British crime thriller with Broadchurch and Black Doves star shares first look
The investigation into Lucia's disappearance drags painful secrets out into the open with devastating repercussions, the impact of which should have had viewers enthralled. However, one earth-shattering blow after the other, and a twist at every corner, lessens that impact.
The problem with stuffing a limited series with so many ideas is that there is rarely enough time to flesh them out. Elisa's backstory has enough legs, as it were, to be rich and interesting, but the time constraints mean that the story is unable to unfold organically, so it feels rushed, making certain plot points disappointingly obvious ahead of the reveal.
Similarly, tenacious journalist Selma (One Day's Ambika Mod) is an interesting character but her hunches never feel substantiated. It's as though The Stolen Girl makes the evidence fit her assumptions rather than building the picture well enough for Selma to be driven to action.
The other problem with so many plot points vying to outdo the other is that plausibility goes out of the window. Yes, this is a drama and so it doesn't have to play by the rules, but for it to feel thrilling, the realism – the feeling that it could happen to you – needs to be present. For that, each twist needs to be earned.
Its the performances that redeem The Stolen Girl. Grainger is the stand-out star, closely followed by Gough.
Rebecca is unnerving as she teeters on the edge of mania and desperation. Grainger's adrenaline-fulled performance gives us a character who is dangerous, chilling and empathetic all in one.
What Gough does with those piercing blue eyes locks you into Elisa's grief and her driven performance keeps you tethered to her plight.
The Stolen Girl undoubtedly got its casting right, it's just a shame that the execution of the story doesn't live up to them or to the compelling mystery that gets lost in the excess.
All episodes of The Stolen Girl are available to stream on Disney+ now.
TV writer, Digital Spy Janet completed her Masters degree in Magazine Journalism in 2013 and has continued to grow professionally within the industry ever since. For six years she honed her analytical reviewing skills at the Good Housekeeping institute eventually becoming Acting Head of Food testing. She also freelanced in the field of film and TV journalism from 2013-2020, when she interviewed A-List stars such as Samuel L Jackson, Colin Firth and Scarlett Johansson. In 2021 she joined Digital Spy as TV writer where she gets to delve into more of what she loves, watching copious amounts of telly all in the name of work. Since taking on the role she has conducted red carpet interviews with the cast of Bridgerton, covered the BAFTAs and been interviewed by BBC Radio and London Live. In her spare time she also moonlights as a published author, the book Gothic Angel.
