Marcia Clark (Sarah Paulson) meanwhile becomes incredibly concerned thinking the Bronco is Simpson’s, which they had impounded for evidence. Shapiro’s ego oozes as he makes himself seem less responsible for the situation.
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If you haven’t seen FX’s American Crime Story adaptation of The People vs. OJ Simpson you are missing out on great TV. Can you imagine any reporter asking them to spell their name today? Actor Malcolm-Jamal Warner portrays Al ‘AC’ Cowlings on the show, Simpson’s longtime friend and the man who drove that white Ford Bronco on Interstate 405. Christopher Darden waxes philosophic with his father’s neighbors about how Simpson became white as soon as he became rich-to which one retorts, “Well, he’s got the cops chasing him, he’s black now!”
He elaborated, “I’m neither defending him nor throwing him over the bus; I’m looking at the media’s role and how the media forms public opinion”. Thats one of those things thats always followed by someone throwing their hands up in the air and saying, Only in Hollyweird! The chase, which will be seen during tonights episode of American Crime Story, definitely looks like it took a lot of coordinated efforts in order to get it done. It’s easy to see the anguish in his character which can easily make the viewer feel conflicted. Rob attempts to calm him down as he fears that O.J.is planning to shoot himself – however O.J. hangs up. Shapiro and Kardashian both assumed O.J. took his life after reading the notes left behind. But O.J.’s perspective is just one of at least a dozen.
“We felt like we were really in the middle of this trial”, she said.
As the chase continues, the LAPD questions protocol. When Marcia asked why no one was shooting out the Bronco’s tires, she was told that they couldn’t have a shoot-out on a live national broadcast. The district attorneys in the LAPD offices, sports fans at bars (who thought they were watching the NBA Finals), and even O.J.’s family crowd around the television to watch. We see people lined up along the freeway cheering on O.J. and holding up signs of encouragement.
“Culturally, we were all so obsessed with [the chase] at such a superficial level, and yet the idea of what was actually happening inside the auto went well beyond anything that anyone might have imagined at the time”, Jacobson said. Chris is heard lecturing his neighbors, who appear to be rooting for O.J. He tells them that although O.J.is part of the black community, he never gave back to them and doesn’t deserve the support he is getting.
Even Shapiro arrives back at his home assuming Simpson is dead, and learns from his wife Linell (played by Cheryl Ladd) that the chase is happening and on television. Kardashian lays O.J. down on the couch and the man finally gets to talk to his mother by telephone. O.J. repeatedly says he’s sorry.
Shortly after, A.C. contacts the police while still driving O.J.in the auto.
In reality, the police are turning off the lights at O.J.’s behest – the latest in a long string of concessions they’ve made for the football legend, including the extended window of time that allowed O.J.to slip away in the Bronco in the first place.
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The People v. O.J. Simpson’s second episode, “The Run of His Life”, offers a fascinating examination into the day of the infamous Bronco chase and the state of Los Angeles at the time of the widely covered event, but what it doesn’t offer is the same sort of compelling personal development that the premiere (and later episodes this season) do so well.
