Under The Banner Of Heaven : Andrew Garfield talks about his role in this true crime series .

The murder of Brenda Wright Lafferty and her baby daughter in a suburb in the Salt Lake Valley uncovered buried truths about the origins of the LDS religion and their violent consequences. All crime is cruel and unspeakable, but this was different somehow—the slaughtering of a woman, and her child, blood pooled on the tile like spilled paint. The killer had left no shred of evidence behind. Safe to assume he knew what he was doing. But Detective Jeb Pyre knows killers too. And he knows this one has left a signature . Pyre is an ex-Mormon cop with a troubled past; he’s seen the worst of religion. This case hits too close to home, revealing buried truths about his own origins in the Mormon Church .

What is the plot of the story ?

Under the Banner of Heaven tells the true story of a 1984 double murder that rocked Mormon-dominated Salt Lake City and marked the first time in Utah history that a generation of law enforcement officials was forced to confront a homegrown Mormon fundamentalist movement. The book focuses on the two troubled brothers, Ron and Dan Lafferty, who committed the murders, claiming they were acting on God’s orders. Under the Banner of Heaven tracks these brothers from their early childhood through their involvement in a Utah based fundamentalist offshoot known as The Church of Jesus Christ .

I can excuse Andrew Garfield not getting the Oscar for Tick Tick Boom… but if he doesn't get nominated and/or win an Emmy for Under the Banner of Heaven I'm gonna scream. #UndertheBannerofHeaven #ticktickboom

— Ashleigh McGaha (@ashmarie9501) June 4, 2022

Who is in the cast ? What role did each character portray ?

The cast include Andrew Garfield , Daisy Edgar Jones , Gene Jones , Annabeth Gish , Julie Condra , Spencer Treat Clark and Arliss Howard . Although most of the cast portray a single character throughout under the banner of heaven, some play two characters. Andrew Garfield as “Jeb” Pyre, an ex-Mormon cop with a troubled past who sees the worst of Utah’s religious communities. He is ex-LDS and is one of the first officers to confront a homegrown fundamentalist movement. Daisy Edgar Jones as “Brenda Wright Lafferty” , Ron Lafferty’s first wife, murdered in July 1984 along with her baby daughter because she knew too much about her husband’s involvement in an attempted murder and “salting the earth”, policies that brought shame to Mormondom and have been disavowed by LDS Church leaders.

What are the difficulties they face in the series ?

The story is told through flashbacks. Throughout the series, we see relevant information first of all by way of the brothers’ entire childhood and teen years. Through this physical and mental progress, we get to know the world they grew up in and they grow up with us—the viewer. We experience their sensitive eyes as they gaze at family members, neighbors, and their church leaders.

They are in love with their father who’s a hard-working farmer in California . They love him almost blindly because his will led him to leave home early and he never came back. The epic scenes in Under the Banner of Heaven indicate that many people who judge do not know Christ. The truth is that Jesus is flesh and blood and he still chooses to walk among us every day, but most of us do not know him. Christ told his disciples how to recognize him, “and a little child shall lead them,” said the Savior.

Who is the antagonist ? What are its motives ?

The Lafferty brothers’ actions mark them as a threat to the Mormon community. Though they clearly live in the shadow of their father, they still have a certain amount of freedom . But this is not enough to allow them to continue their violent acts. They are arrested and come close to reaching a plea bargain with prosecutors, but are unwilling to fully confess their crimes as well as what motivated them. It’s only when they escape custody that they begin talking openly and reveal more details about the murders. A religious fanatic, Dan Lafferty dies whileroning Jesus Christ and his brother falls into a coma after being shot by police .

Would you recommend watching this ?

If you like thrillers, mysteries and/or crime stories, watch Under the Banner of Heaven . If you enjoy the story of these two troubled brothers, then by all means check it out. Thanks for reading !