Creators:
Abi MorganScreenplay:
Abi MorganCinematography:
Hubert TaczanowskiComposer:
Harry EscottCast:
Stellan Skarsgård, Nicola Walker, Lesley Manville, Adeel Akhtar, Eddie Marsan, Sorcha Cusack, Steve Nicolson, Owen Teale, Michael Maloney, Jim Loach (more)VOD (1)
Episodes(6)
Plots(1)
John River, a brilliant police officer whose genius and fault-line is the fragility of his mind - a man haunted by the murder victims whose cases he must lay to rest. (official distributor synopsis)
Reviews (3)
Perhaps no other detective story is as sad as the six-part River series, even when you take into account the beautiful catchy song full of optimism, to which Stellan Skarsgård and Nicola Walker end up dancing. There is probably no point in mentioning the individual performances of the actors because they were mostly sensational. Of course, everyone can probably guess who stood out the most. (80%)
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I had to recover a bit from this mini-series to even be able to write some comments. This year I met with a detective for the second time, who came up with an original concept and no less imaginative way of investigating. Six episodes were enough for me to fall in love with Stellan as Rivera. I felt sorry for him the whole time. Everyone had to understand that this murder was not just some random event. His psychological breakdown was endless and the sixth episode crowned it, something I won't forget easily. The conclusion full of sadness and love will stay in my head for a long time.
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It's a kind of madness. An intimate melancholic psycho depression about coping with loss and involvement (or pretending that you belong) into society when you suffer from a mental disorder, by immersing yourself in the depths of the madness that will comfort you and work (yes, solving cases, which is typical for this genre), which more than skillfully combines the best of Nordic noir and British social drama. Praise to the masterfully minimalist, but captivating, empathetic Skarsgård River is perfectly justified, although (not only) Nicola Walker can keep up more than well. Which, of course, can hardly surprises anyone. In fact, It's all about the characters, because the detective line is kind of sidelined. The characters are both well-written and well-played, which will be clearly seen in the final episode, whose strength is based on the impact on the personal level rather than on the twists and turns in the crime line. The BBC simply proves once again (how many times already?) that the playful and clichéd genre theme "a genius detective torn apart by inner demons with ruined personal life" can still be portrayed in a unique way. And in a damn good quality; above all. | S1: 5/5 |
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