Apple TV+’s new series “The Mosquito Coast” wants to
go there not literally, so don’t expect something like Peter Weir’s 1986 film, also based on the book by Paul Theroux. Instead, this series more wants to press on about the disillusions that drive its focal family from America to seek refuge in a different country, namely those related to almighty, all-American capitalism. It can be good at bringing those ideas up in a few long-winded monologues, delivered with a special mania from its lead actor, Justin Theroux (nephew of Paul), playing a character who would nonetheless rather die than have an Apple TV+ subscription. But the series is far less radical than it posits especially with plotting that turns a blind eye to the family’s inherent advantages and the tone-deaf tourism of “The Mosquito Coast” makes for an adventure that s increasingly difficult to go along with.