The son of an imprisoned crime boss and a couple of strip club owners become the central figures in a murder investigation.The son of an imprisoned crime boss and a couple of strip club owners become the central figures in a murder investigation.The son of an imprisoned crime boss and a couple of strip club owners become the central figures in a murder investigation.
Photos
- Lisa Gibson
- (as Julia Mueller)
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaA bail surety hearing, also known as a bail sufficiency hearing, is a way for an ADA to ensure that the funds being put up for bail are not illicit proceeds from criminal activity. If other parties are posting bail on the defendant's behalf, the hearing also helps ensure that the third parties are not being threatened or extorted in any way. Once bail has been posted, the DA's office has 72 hours to investigate the funds used and request a surety hearing to contest the legitimacy of the bail funds.
- GoofsWhen Detective Curtis takes the envelope from the victim's wife in the park, he does not wear gloves or hold the envelope in such a way as to not get his prints on it. He should have held it the way Detective Briscoe held the wallet, along the edges without his fingertips making direct contact with the flat side of the envelope, where they would dust for prints.
- Quotes
Stripper: Can you guys make it quick? I gotta cram for my psych exam before the happy hour crunch!
Detective Rey Curtis: Wouldn't you do better in a library?
Stripper: Hey: I'm covering my tuition and fulfilling a public service.
Detective Lennie Briscoe: Oh, which one's that?
Stripper: Read the literature. Clubs like this, they boost a man's testosterone level. He leaves here feeling confident. More productive...
Detective Lennie Briscoe: ...and broke.
Stripper: Then everybody's happy!
"Ambitious" is not one of the best episodes of Season 9 or of 'Law and Order', but it is certainly not a lesser episode. Most of it in fact was great, but pacing problems towards the end brought it down from great to overall very good. Which is a good position actually for the season and the show considering the high quality. This was an episode that really did stick out for me on first watch, especially when the truth is revealed. "Ambitious" may have gone down in my estimations since a little but it is still a good example of the early seasons being not to overlook.
The production values are slick and have a subtle grit, with an intimacy to the photography without being too claustrophobic. The music isn't used too much and doesn't get too melodramatic. The direction is tight but also accommodating enough, letting the story breathe while still giving it momentum thanks to some nice tension in the second half.
Moreover, the script is very well written and meaty, especially when things comes to trial and the whole intriguing conflict with the Feds. The story is engrossing and thought probing, especially in the second half and the dilemmas of getting a conviction with the conflict that comes with the case.
Character writing and interaction are on point, especially in the legal portions and the performances cannot be faulted either. Jeremy Davidson is suitably loathsome and it is easy to want his character to be sent down.
Only one significant drawback here, and that is that "Ambitious" gets over-complicated and rushed in the final third from trying to pack too much in, not uncommon for 'Law and Order' before and since.
All in all, very good. 8/10.
- TheLittleSongbird
- Oct 13, 2021