Luke Pasqualino

In Medusa Deluxe (2023), Luke Pasqualino arrives as Angel, Mosca’s partner, holding a baby. The hairdressing contest around him is full of people with plenty to say; he appears to be the only one grieving. We were moved by Angel because he made a death matter among people so occupied with themselves. It is a modest contribution to a busy ensemble, and a useful place to look for what Pasqualino can do. He makes us care about someone in a film whose murder puzzle struggles to hold our attention.

His television career moved from Freddie McClair in Skins (2009–2010) to the lead as d’Artagnan in The Musketeers (2014–2016). The latter puts his swordplay to work alongside Tom Burke and Santiago Cabrera, with the group’s chemistry as important as the action. Between those series came Snowpiercer (2013), in which he plays Grey for Bong Joon-ho largely without dialogue. That part makes clear how much he can communicate physically. The move from romantic television leads to Angel is less surprising when we remember that supporting work.

Charm remains an asset, though a role that asks only for that leaves much of the actor untested. Medusa Deluxe gives him a specific emotional job, even if Thomas Hardiman’s unbroken-shot staging is more successful than the mystery. Clare Perkins is superb, and there is considerable pleasure in the surrounding comedy. Pasqualino’s grief gives that comedy something to rub against, without solving the film’s difficulty in making us care about its investigation.

Criminal Record (2024), in which he plays JP Brownlee, is the stronger recommendation as a whole. Peter Capaldi and Cush Jumbo supply its central contest, so our enthusiasm for the programme should not be mistaken for a verdict on his contribution. For a closer look at what interests us about Pasqualino, try Medusa Deluxe, provided a tightly plotted mystery is not the chief attraction.