Review: It's not Batman, it's "Person of Interest"

This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2011, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.

"Person of Interest" (Thursday, 8 p.m., CBS/Ch. 2) is a crime thriller with a twist. Because, these days, every crime thriller has a twist.

It's about Reese (Jim Caviezel), a former CIA agent who's not as dead as everyone thinks he is. He's just really ticked off.

Reese is recruited by Finch (Michael Emerson of "Lost"), a software billionaire who invented a program that uses pattern recognition to identify people about to be involved in violent crimes. The program cannot, however, determine if that person will be the victim or the victimizer.

Finch and his guys use state-of-the-art surveillance technology to point Reese in the right direction. Operating outside the law - and sometimes with the help of a couple of cops (Taraji P. Henson and Kevin Chapman), they try to prevent mayhem before it happens.

They're vigilantes with good intentions. Sort of like Batman. Which isn't entirely a coincidence, given that "Person of Interest" writer and executive producer Jonathan Nolan co-wrote both "The Dark Knight" and "The Dark Knight Rises" with his brother, Christopher.

"I love crime procedurals," said Jonathan Nolan. "I always have. I love cop shows. But I was more interested in writing something that was, I think, a little more dangerous.

"The Batman analogy is not a million miles away. I've just always been more drawn to characters who were sort of on the periphery or kind of an arm's-length relationship with law enforcement."

There are definitely parallels between Reese and Bruce Wayne. Both characters are tortured by the death of people close to them. Both set out to right wrongs as a way of fighting back.

Both have martial arts skills that make them a danger to a room full of foes.

Reese is, "deep down, a guy who is searching for a purpose," Caviezel said. "Finch seems to offer that, and I think that purpose probably is justice."

You could argue that Reese lives more in the real world - no supervillains in clown makeup - but you do have to buy into the conceit that all this is technologically possible.

If you do, "Person of Interest" is pretty good entertainment.