This four part British series about a heist gone wrong starts out so strong, it’s difficult to maintain the incredible initial intensity throughout. But anyone who likes contemporary crime drama should definitely check out “Inside Men.” This series has a refreshingly hard edge. Its central protagonists are not unscrupulous villains, but ordinary men looking for a shortcut to a better life. As two lower level employees (Warren Brown and Ashley Walters) at a money counting house look to skim from the take, they don’t realize that this risky caper is going to open the door to something unfathomable. When discovered by their supervisor (Steven Mackintosh), his response is not what they would have predicted. Soon these three “inside men” are plotting a scheme that will net them millions! And as you might expect, it’s not easy to plan the perfect crime.

The narrative is divided into two timelines that alternate back and forth within a given episode. The series starts in the midst of the big heist, and the other plot line backtracks to many months before the event. Not only, therefore, are we seeing the present-day heist spin out of control, we are seeing the tumultuous days leading up to the event. The actual action sequences are extremely well done and exciting, while the planning stage is also fraught with tension. All of the men have women and/or families that figure into the scenario in one way or another (kudos to Kierston Wareing, so good in The Take, for channeling her best Lady MacBeth as Brown’s girlfriend). The beauty of this story is that you really never know where it is going. Having seen the heist in the opening episode, there are still plenty of surprises once the back story catches up and gives us a fresh perspective on what’s going on.

The pacing of “Inside Men” is fast and frenetic and it works so well due to the performances. Walters is quite solid as the emerging conscience of the group, while Brown is more impetuous. But, for me, this is Mackintosh’s show. His character arc plays out similarly to Bryan Cranston’s in Breaking Bad (although obviously not in as much depth). Starting as the idealization of a perfect professional family man, his increasing detachment and willingness to explore the darkness of his soul are riveting to watch. If “Inside Men” has any flaws, it is that it comes to a rather hasty conclusion. Seriously. When the final episode was over, I actually didn’t realize that was the end of the series. I thought there were more episodes. Don’t get me wrong, things come to a resolution–but it also would have been easy to keep the story continuing. But that’s something I like about British TV (as opposed to American), they aren’t boxed into a certain number of shows. “Inside Men,” therefore, doesn’t get a chance to burn itself out. It’s just quick, gritty, and memorable. 4 1/2 stars. KGHarris, 8/12.

This four part British series about a heist gone wrong starts out so strong, it’s difficult to maintain the incredible initial intensity throughout. But anyone who likes contemporary crime drama should definitely check out “Inside Men.” This series has a refreshingly hard edge. Its central protagonists are not unscrupulous villains, but ordinary men looking for a shortcut to a better life. As two lower level employees (Warren Brown and Ashley Walters) at a money counting house look to skim from the take, they don’t realize that this risky caper is going to open the door to something unfathomable. When discovered by their supervisor (Steven Mackintosh), his response is not what they would have predicted. Soon these three “inside men” are plotting a scheme that will net them millions! And as you might expect, it’s not easy to plan the perfect crime.

The narrative is divided into two timelines that alternate back and forth within a given episode. The series starts in the midst of the big heist, and the other plot line backtracks to many months before the event. Not only, therefore, are we seeing the present-day heist spin out of control, we are seeing the tumultuous days leading up to the event. The actual action sequences are extremely well done and exciting, while the planning stage is also fraught with tension. All of the men have women and/or families that figure into the scenario in one way or another (kudos to Kierston Wareing, so good in The Take, for channeling her best Lady MacBeth as Brown’s girlfriend). The beauty of this story is that you really never know where it is going. Having seen the heist in the opening episode, there are still plenty of surprises once the back story catches up and gives us a fresh perspective on what’s going on.

The pacing of “Inside Men” is fast and frenetic and it works so well due to the performances. Walters is quite solid as the emerging conscience of the group, while Brown is more impetuous. But, for me, this is Mackintosh’s show. His character arc plays out similarly to Bryan Cranston’s in Breaking Bad (although obviously not in as much depth). Starting as the idealization of a perfect professional family man, his increasing detachment and willingness to explore the darkness of his soul are riveting to watch. If “Inside Men” has any flaws, it is that it comes to a rather hasty conclusion. Seriously. When the final episode was over, I actually didn’t realize that was the end of the series. I thought there were more episodes. Don’t get me wrong, things come to a resolution–but it also would have been easy to keep the story continuing. But that’s something I like about British TV (as opposed to American), they aren’t boxed into a certain number of shows. “Inside Men,” therefore, doesn’t get a chance to burn itself out. It’s just quick, gritty, and memorable. 4 1/2 stars. KGHarris, 8/12.

This four part British series about a heist gone wrong starts out so strong, it’s difficult to maintain the incredible initial intensity throughout. But anyone who likes contemporary crime drama should definitely check out “Inside Men.” This series has a refreshingly hard edge. Its central protagonists are not unscrupulous villains, but ordinary men looking for a shortcut to a better life. As two lower level employees (Warren Brown and Ashley Walters) at a money counting house look to skim from the take, they don’t realize that this risky caper is going to open the door to something unfathomable. When discovered by their supervisor (Steven Mackintosh), his response is not what they would have predicted. Soon these three “inside men” are plotting a scheme that will net them millions! And as you might expect, it’s not easy to plan the perfect crime.

The narrative is divided into two timelines that alternate back and forth within a given episode. The series starts in the midst of the big heist, and the other plot line backtracks to many months before the event. Not only, therefore, are we seeing the present-day heist spin out of control, we are seeing the tumultuous days leading up to the event. The actual action sequences are extremely well done and exciting, while the planning stage is also fraught with tension. All of the men have women and/or families that figure into the scenario in one way or another (kudos to Kierston Wareing, so good in The Take, for channeling her best Lady MacBeth as Brown’s girlfriend). The beauty of this story is that you really never know where it is going. Having seen the heist in the opening episode, there are still plenty of surprises once the back story catches up and gives us a fresh perspective on what’s going on.

The pacing of “Inside Men” is fast and frenetic and it works so well due to the performances. Walters is quite solid as the emerging conscience of the group, while Brown is more impetuous. But, for me, this is Mackintosh’s show. His character arc plays out similarly to Bryan Cranston’s in Breaking Bad (although obviously not in as much depth). Starting as the idealization of a perfect professional family man, his increasing detachment and willingness to explore the darkness of his soul are riveting to watch. If “Inside Men” has any flaws, it is that it comes to a rather hasty conclusion. Seriously. When the final episode was over, I actually didn’t realize that was the end of the series. I thought there were more episodes. Don’t get me wrong, things come to a resolution–but it also would have been easy to keep the story continuing. But that’s something I like about British TV (as opposed to American), they aren’t boxed into a certain number of shows. “Inside Men,” therefore, doesn’t get a chance to burn itself out. It’s just quick, gritty, and memorable. 4 1/2 stars. KGHarris, 8/12.

This four part British series about a heist gone wrong starts out so strong, it’s difficult to maintain the incredible initial intensity throughout. But anyone who likes contemporary crime drama should definitely check out “Inside Men.” This series has a refreshingly hard edge. Its central protagonists are not unscrupulous villains, but ordinary men looking for a shortcut to a better life. As two lower level employees (Warren Brown and Ashley Walters) at a money counting house look to skim from the take, they don’t realize that this risky caper is going to open the door to something unfathomable. When discovered by their supervisor (Steven Mackintosh), his response is not what they would have predicted. Soon these three “inside men” are plotting a scheme that will net them millions! And as you might expect, it’s not easy to plan the perfect crime.

The narrative is divided into two timelines that alternate back and forth within a given episode. The series starts in the midst of the big heist, and the other plot line backtracks to many months before the event. Not only, therefore, are we seeing the present-day heist spin out of control, we are seeing the tumultuous days leading up to the event. The actual action sequences are extremely well done and exciting, while the planning stage is also fraught with tension. All of the men have women and/or families that figure into the scenario in one way or another (kudos to Kierston Wareing, so good in The Take, for channeling her best Lady MacBeth as Brown’s girlfriend). The beauty of this story is that you really never know where it is going. Having seen the heist in the opening episode, there are still plenty of surprises once the back story catches up and gives us a fresh perspective on what’s going on.

The pacing of “Inside Men” is fast and frenetic and it works so well due to the performances. Walters is quite solid as the emerging conscience of the group, while Brown is more impetuous. But, for me, this is Mackintosh’s show. His character arc plays out similarly to Bryan Cranston’s in Breaking Bad (although obviously not in as much depth). Starting as the idealization of a perfect professional family man, his increasing detachment and willingness to explore the darkness of his soul are riveting to watch. If “Inside Men” has any flaws, it is that it comes to a rather hasty conclusion. Seriously. When the final episode was over, I actually didn’t realize that was the end of the series. I thought there were more episodes. Don’t get me wrong, things come to a resolution–but it also would have been easy to keep the story continuing. But that’s something I like about British TV (as opposed to American), they aren’t boxed into a certain number of shows. “Inside Men,” therefore, doesn’t get a chance to burn itself out. It’s just quick, gritty, and memorable. 4 1/2 stars. KGHarris, 8/12.

This show has everything. Great plot, amazing actors and twists and turns to take you by surprise even if you think you hve seen it all

VERY MINOR SPOILERS:

I just can’t fathom a more harsh penalty promulgated by my delay then to have follow a “K-Harris” review!

I can’t add anything to the excellent outline provided by K-Harris, though perhaps I can compliment with some additional color. The performances are excellent and as huge fan of UK programming, the 3-main characters all have fine pedigrees:

Steven Mackintosh (John the cash house manager) most recently off a stint in the *5 “Luther”

Ashley Walters (Chris the security guard) was seen in “Hustle” and “Outcasts” among a number of other series

Warren Brown (Marcus at what can be best described as a clerk that moves the trolleys of cash into the vault) was in the excellent Zombie themed mini-series “Dead Set”

I thought that the plotting was good, though I am not the biggest fan of sequences that move back and forth through timelines. What really interested me was the motives of the 3-individuals and particularly those of John whose star was on the rise and had a newly adopted daughter (their only child). While it is not a perfect parallel, John reminds me of a similar character played by Philip Seymour Hoffman in what was in my opinion a top 3 movie of the year in 2003 entitled “Owning Mahowny”. When PSH’s character is asked about the rush he felt when gambling as compared to regular life. On a scale of 10 he replied “10 and 2″.

I watched the series over 2-nights and would recommend as both a very good program and an excellent well acted change of pace from the norm.