Joe Barton writes thrillers in which jokes and family unhappiness deserve as much attention as the case. We like that generosity, especially in Giri/Haji, but his plots can grow cumbersome and his conflicts can repeat themselves.
Fi1m perspective
In Giri/Haji (2019), humour interrupts the serious business of duty and family, and the interruptions help us understand the people. Barton’s Japanese detective moves through a story connecting Tokyo and London, but the writing keeps finding time for people a tidier thriller might hurry past. That willingness to stop and listen is what we value most in his work. He asks for patience, and generally repays it.
Actors are essential to making that approach work. Takehiro Hira’s Kenzo Mori provides steadiness amid the changes of style, while Kelly Macdonald’s Sarah helps make the conversations matter as much as the criminal developments. Barton gives them more to play than explanations of who has done what. The gang intrigue can still drag, and another complication is not always what this crowded programme needs.
The early work included writing on Humans (2015) and the screenplay for the horror film The Ritual (2017), before Giri/Haji became his breakthrough as a creator. The subsequent move into the time-reset plotting of The Lazarus Project (2022) and espionage in Black Doves (2024) makes sense. Those changes of genre fit a writer who uses thrillers to make room for character drama. The question for us is how much of that drama survives the demands of the plot.
Amadeus (2025), his adaptation of Peter Shaffer’s play, makes the limits clearer. Across five episodes, the central rivalry begins to repeat itself when the music should take over. We were moved by Paul Bettany and Gabrielle Creevy, who make artistic jealousy and its consequences hurt despite that repetition. The extra space gives their performances room, but does not supply enough fresh turns to the rivalry to justify all of it. Start with Giri/Haji, where the company is worth staying with even when the case becomes a chore.
Biography
Joe Barton is a British screenwriter of film and television. Born in London in 1985, he studied Film and Television Production at the University of Westminster.
His television credits include writing for Humans (2015). He created and wrote the crime series Giri/Haji (2019) and the science-fiction series The Lazarus Project (2022). He also created the 2025 miniseries Amadeus.
Barton has written screenplays for the films The Ritual (2017), iBoy (2017) and Encounter (2021). His work has received BAFTA nominations.
