Nordic Not-So-Noir

BBC4 are starting the autumn season of their Saturday night international crime spot with a new series from Sweden entitled Crimes of Passion. Now we've all come to love a bit of Nordic Noir but anyone expecting a dark, moody atmosphere and layers of woolly jumpers is going to be disappointed this time. Instead it's all sunshine and light, and swirling 1950s dresses.

A group of academics go to celebrate Midsummer on an idyllic but isolated island where their festivities are soon disrupted by two unexpected extra guests. Now, if the whole "No phone, no neighbours, total isolation" situation hadn't set the alarm bells ringing, the arrival of barely-welcome old friends is surely cause for concern - and, true to the course of crime stories, it isn't long before the first murder.... Although one of the guests, Einar, manages to cross to the Mainland and bring back his friend, superintendent Christer Wijk, to investigate, the only boat is soon out-of action, so everyone is trapped on the island with a murderer - such fun for Midsummer!

Yes, it may seem light after The Killing and Wallander but what's wrong with a bit of old-fashioned Miss Marple style crime? From the comments I've seen around the web not everyone has liked it, but I did and I'll be watching again next week!

Hinterland

Well the first series of Hinterland has finished - on a bit of a cliff-hanger it must be said, with the last programme raising all sorts of issues that didn't get sorted, so hopefully DI Matthias and his team will be back very soon.
I've blogged about this series before when I watched the Welsh-only version Y Gwyll via S4C clic last Autumn and wondered if it would feel any different watching the (mainly) English version.

Set in and around Aberystwyth, it's as dark and brooding as any Nordic Noir lover could wish for; the mountains and windswept marshes provide the perfect setting. I'd caught glimpses of the brooding landscapes before but had always been distracted by having to follow the subtitles. This time I could appreciate the photography and direction more but somehow it lost that special Welsh feel to it.
I was a bit surprised that the 2 hour-long programmes were reduced to 90 minutes, but perhaps this was only down to losing the advert breaks and second set of titles and credits; I didn't feel anything was missing from how I remember the plots panning out.
As I said, the whole series built up to a cliffhanger, plus there are personal issues surrounding Matthias that haven't been explored yet, so I'm hoping it will be back on our screens soon, whichever language it's in.

Y Gwyll/Hinterland

 The winter nights are drawing in so it's time to settle down with the latest foreign language crime thriller on TV.
Well, not quite on TV this time and not quite 'foreign' language either because although Y Gwyll has the bleak landscapes, brooding skies, and Volvo-driving detectives it isn't the latest in a long line of Nordic Noir imports but a new Welsh-language production from S4C. This is where the 'not quite on TV' aspect comes in, as I can't get S4C on my Midlands-based Freeview, but was intrigued enough by the word I'd heard on Twitter to catch it on S4C clic  with the English subtitles option.
Did it live up to the hype?  Well, I must admit I was a little surprised when within the first hour, the investigating team of detectives seemed to be well on their way to solving the case. I had, for some reason, being expecting a long drawn out story arc such as seen in  Broadchurch or The Killing, but I'd got it wrong. The first case - the murder of an elderly woman formerly in charge of a children's home - filled two hour-long episodes, and I assume this is the format to be followed in future weeks. So far, it's gritty 'real crime', with a lot of blood but no stomach-churning violence.
It's set in and around the seaside town of Aberystwyth with the wintry countryside showing a dark and barren aspect. For emptiness and bleakness, it definitely rivals anything Scandinavian.
I'm a bit disappointed that the BBC haven't picked it up to show in their 'foreign crime' slot but presumably they think there's more audience for Scandinavian or French drama. Hopefully, the word about it will spread and we'll see Y Gwyll on mainstream TV in future.  I for one will be watching again some time this coming week - probably after the next two episodes have been released on line, so I can see them together.

Homeland Series 3 - why?

I sat enthralled all the way through Series 1 of Homeland - the story of a US marine, captured by Arab terrorists and held by them for 8 years. Eventually he's released but has he been 'turned' by his captors? is he maybe suffering from Stockholm syndrome and identifying with them? Whichever, I was absolutely glued to the TV as his story unfolded - but then, after building to a big dramatic ending, a second series was scheduled and the first fizzled out like a damp firework.
We're now 3 episodes in to that second series - and I hear that there's going to be a third!
This should be a good thing, right?
Sorry but I don't think so. This series already seems to be ambling, diverting up by-ways and generally chasing its tail instead of moving forwards. OK, two of the episodes have ended with dramatic revelations but it's starting to feel a bit like nothing much happens then there's a build up just before the credits, much the way there is in a soap!
The thought of things being unresolved at the end of this series and dragged out into yet another makes me think I'll just give up now. It's such a shame as it's the one thing I watch regularly on TV. Still, The Killing III will be on soon and thankfully the Danes seem to know how to make a wonderful TV series AND how to make sequels to it.

Homeland - what should happen next?

As Homeland is back on our TV screens very soon, I've been checking out my post from May on how I think the first series should have ended and, more importantly, what should happen next ......
Not long to wait now till we find out!
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Originally posted 16th May 2012


I'm assuming that anyone reading this has seen the last episode but if not, be warned, there are plot spoilers!

Last weekend the first series of Homeland came to an end - and not, in my opinion, a very satisfactory end. Having followed several discussions about it on Twitter, it seems that opinion was divided, but I felt rather cheated that so many plot-threads had been left hanging. I don't like the feeling of being put 'on hold' till the next series airs - and, as filming hasn't started, who knows how long that may be (though it is supposed to air in US in Autumn).

So, how would I, in a perfect world, have had the plot pan out? at what point would I call a halt for the season break? and how would I carry it on to another series? Here are my ideas for what they're worth,  prompted by a post from Liz Harris on Choc Lit Authors Corner 

Firstly, I'd have ended the programme - yes, on a cliffhanger despite my moans - just as Brodie pulled the detonator, maybe have his daughter phone him before but him still be prepared to go through with it - and then the viewers have to wait and see if he actually blew everyone up. I think it's necessary to end on a cliffhanger of some sort - if all the ends are tidied up too neatly there barely seems reason to stretch things to a second series. I'd have cut all the secondary plot with Carrie, electric shock treatment and remembering something Brodie said just concentrated on the main 'blow up the vice-president' action. I think it's enough to leave the viewer undecided about Brodie's state of mind - Carrie's story can be picked up later.


So, taking Series 2 from that starting point - Brodie realises that his actions will accomplish very little, will not bring back the dead child, and decides on a different strategy. Claiming to have had a change of heart, he appears to become a double-agent, working for Abu Nazir but reporting to the CIA. Things can't be that straight forward though, so while appearing to support the Vice President, he's actually manipulating events to try to discredit him by making the school-bombing public knowledge - passing information to newspapers maybe?
As for Carrie  - well, she can hardly have a career left in the CIA by now. She doesn't seem stable and reliable enough for them to employ her at all. Even so, that doesn't mean she'll give up on spying on Brodie, but in a more stalker-type way. It could be Clare Danes' acting at fault but I've not been able to make my mind up about whether she really was falling for Brodie and held back by her suspicions or if she was just trying to worm out his secrets.

Meanwhile, in an effort to find something useful for the actor playing Brodie's wife to do, she turns out to be an undercover agent for CIA spying on her husband. This explains the failure of the bomb to detonate - she HAD looked in the garage, found out what he was up to and tampered with it. It also explains the apparent speed with which she dumped her lover - remember they were on the brink of announcing their relationship to the world? - she hasn't dumped him, he's still there in the background and may well be her CIA liaison.

Brodie's daughter will of course turn into a placard-totting, missile-throwing protester who turns up every time her Dad appears on the election-trail.

Just one untied end - Saul's wife. What was all that plot about? Such a lot of build-up, then she disappears abroad! I think she may get kidnapped and held hostage, unless the script-writers have completely forgotten her..

Sherlock or Watson?

I've been avidly watching the latest BBC series of Sherlock - and following the on-line chat that follows. What surprised me most was that alongside discussions of plot twists and Conan Doyle's original stories was a thread debating Sherlock's sex appeal. Now, I've enjoyed the series immensely but Sherlock as sex god? No thank you!
No doubt under the nerdy exterior he's very clever but he's selfish, opinionated, arrogant, rude.... the list of undesirable qualities could go on for ever! The most important person in his life will always be himself.

Sidekick John Watson on the other hand has the appeal of a cute cuddly dog - loyal, trusting. Equally caring and useful he's the sort of guy who would bring breakfast in bed, get up in the middle of the night to settle a crying child and know how to unblock a drain or fix the car. Sherlock's behaviour in a domestic crisis doesn't bear thinking about!
I know which one I'd pick.

The only snag is John's attachment to Sherlock - how can any woman, or man, come between him and the genius sleuth?

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My thoughts on the latest Sherlock Holmes movies with Robert Downey Jr