Night Country’s Story Better 7 Years Ago

Although True Detective: Night Country is being credited with restoring the show’s reputation, its story shares many similarities with an underrated 2017 movie by Taylor Sheridan. Despite ailing ratings following season 3, Night Country has managed to breathe new life into the True Detective formula by introducing a new frozen setting, emphasizing the show’s occult themes, and centering indigenous communities in the narrative. However, it is precisely because of these reasons that some observers have noted True Detective season 4’s parallels with the earlier film.

Much like earlier iterations of the show, True Detective: Night Country blends the complex personal lives of law enforcement members with the need to solve an unusual mystery. In this case, the mysteries are two-fold. The first involves a group of scientists who are discovered frozen together in a giant block of ice. The second is a years-old cold case about the murder of an Inupiaq woman named Annie K. Both stories blend the supernatural with the temporal and deliver terrifying thrills, yet True Detective‘s narrative shares indisputable similarities with an earlier detective mystery.

How True Detective: Night Country Is Similar To Taylor Sheridan’s Wind River

Despite the originality that True Detective: Night Country has brought to the anthology, it’s clear that its story is very similar to Taylor Sheridan’s acclaimed 2017 hit Wind River. Like True Detective season 4, Wind River is a murder mystery set in a remote frozen location featuring the murder of an indigenous woman. These similarities alone would be enough to warrant a comparison. However, there are other connections that link the two projects even more closely together.

Just like True Detective: Night Country, Wind River features two different law enforcement agencies teaming up to get to the bottom of the crime. Wind River‘s case also has violent and extremely bizarre elements – albeit nothing as strange as the block of frozen scientists. Furthermore, the movie has an undercurrent of environmentalism, with concerns over oil drilling as opposed to True Detective‘s mining company. While the more supernatural elements of the show mark Night Country as a clear part of the True Detective universe, its similarities with Wind River cannot be ignored.

Wind River Is Mostly Better Than True Detective: Night Country

While True Detective: Night Country has been mostly seen as a success, its story falls short compared to Wind River. Although television and cinema are very different mediums, there’s a strong case to be made that the latter’s limitations – especially in terms of runtime – actually help the Taylor Sheridan story. Wind River is a streamlined and focused murder mystery that successfully packs in character development and emotional impact into its 107 minutes. By contrast, the biggest critique of True Detective season 4 has been its many different plot tangents, making the story hard to follow.

There’s also a sense that Wind River‘s status as a standalone project works to its benefit. Another problem some viewers have had with True Detective is the show’s references and apparent dependence on season 1, without contributing much to the original’s beloved lore. By contrast, Wind River is focused solely on its own story and doesn’t have to worry about doing any previous installments justice. Although viewers spend less time with Jeremy Renner’s Cory Lambert and Elizabeth Olsen’s Jane Banner, their journeys and characters feel fresh and fully realized in a way that Danvers’ and Navarro’s don’t.

Related

True Detective: Night Country Story Recap – What Is Going On In Season 4?

Since a lot seems to be going on in True Detective: Night Country’s overarching storyline, a detailed breakdown of its major events seems necessary.

One Way True Detective: Night Country Is Better Than Wind River

The more effective portrayal of the murder-in-the-snow story in Wind River certainly makes True Detective: Night Country‘s achievements feel less significant. However, one way in which the show surpasses the Taylor Sheridan movie is in its portrayal of indigenous communities. One of the critiques leveled at Wind River on release was the role of Renner and Olsen as white protagonists, playing into the so-called “white savior” trope often seen in stories involving indigenous characters.

By contrast, True Detective season 4 puts Ennis’ Inupiaq community front and center. Not only does Kali Reis’ Navarro have essentially equal screen time to Jodie Foster’s Danvers, but the importance of indigenous culture plays a pivotal role in the wider story. Beyond the investigators, Leah Danvers, Annie Kowtuk, and Julia Navarro are all fully developed central characters, whose motivations and personal trauma help elevate True Detective: Night Country beyond a basic murder mystery.

True Detective

Release Date

January 12, 2014

Cast

Matthew McConaughey , Woody Harrelson , Colin Farrell , Rachel McAdams , Taylor Kitsch , Mahershala Ali , Carmen Ejogo , Michelle Monaghan , Michael Potts , Ray Fisher , Jodie Foster

Seasons

4

Where To Watch

Max