Prime Suspect: The Final Act

In a remarkable performance Helen Mirren plays the alcoholic detective Jane Tennison with depth and understanding rare in television. Mirren once the vivacious girl who was opposite James Mason in Norman Lindsay's "Age of Consent" today is not frightened of getting down and dirty in her roles. She goes full bore warts and all. Supported by a strong cast of British character players we can overlook some minor plot weaknesses when the overall quality of this series is streets ahead of the usual crap cop shows on the box. If only most TV was this good. Not often do we see actors bare their souls like Mirren outside of the cinema screen. Others in the cast worthy of mention are Stephen Tompkinson as Sean Philips, and Gary Lewis as Tony Sturdy.

It's retirement time for Jane Tennison, but she has one more case to solve in "Prime Suspect: The Final Act" starring Helen Mirren as Tennison. The question is, can Tennison stay in control long enough to find the murderer of a missing girl? You really wonder as she deals with what has become blatant alcoholism, the death of her father, and the consequences of her choices in life.

Only Helen Mirren could have created the fully fleshed out, human character of Jane Tennison. Mirren is one of the greatest actresses of our time, perhaps of any time. And like a lot of English actresses, and though she's capable of great glamor, Mirren is not afraid of harsh lights, aging, and a few lines on the face. Her Jane is worn out and looks it. In working her last case, Jane comes up against the tragedy of losing her father, her uneasy relationship with her sister and niece, her retirement, and the bottle. In her loneliness and remembrance of a life with possibilities, she bonds with young Penny (Laura Greenwood), a troubled friend of the murdered girl - though the girl's father becomes a suspect.

I admit I had a problem understanding a lot of the dialogue in this - the British go in for that natural sound replete with background noise, heavy accents, and no body mikes. Also, this was a particularly noisy episode as nearly all the dead girl's mother did was scream at the top of her lungs, and she wasn't alone. Nevertheless, Mirren's performance cut across any problems I may have had. As Penny, Laura Greenwood, who resembles the American actress Amber Tamblyn, gave a truly marvelous performance. Doubtless we'll be seeing her in more British imports to come.

As part of the Masterpiece Theatre presentation, Mirren gave an interview about the role of Jane, and how she had been counseled by a police woman never to cry except in private, never to fold her arms across her body, and to touch people (a display of power). She stated that she stopped doing "Prime Suspect" for a time lest she be too closely identified with the role of Jane and cease being Helen Mirren, actress. As if she could ever be anything else.

Det. Supt. Jane Tennison (Helen Mirren) is weeks from retirement, worn-down, and alcoholic. 14 year old Sallie Sturdy goes missing. Principal's daughter Penny Philips is her best friend. Sallie's father is faced with suspicion and then her body is found. She was pregnant. Tennison's father is in the hospital "on the way out" with cancer and she is pushed to go to AA where she runs into Bill Otley.

This is a great final act for a great character played by a great actress. Tennison is beset with personal problems that are well earned. Bill Otley returns to tie up his relationship with her. It's a short reunion but a very powerful one due to their history. He's also given a terrific death. Another great relationship is Mirren with young Laura Greenwood who plays Penny. She is almost like a daughter that Tennison never had after her abortion. The final scene is an emotionally devastating conclusion to Tennison's career. Greenwood is incredible in the face of the legend next to her. The second part does have a slow spot in the middle and the last section does rush a little to the finish. However, the final interrogation cannot have ended the franchise any better.

The original 'Prime Suspect', an unusually tough police procedural thriller, was a landmark in early 1990s television, immediately making other hits series like 'Inspector Morse' appear tired and out-of-date. Since then, the series has retained some quality through its relatively infrequent outings, but still, the writing has not always been as good as in the first episode and in some cases has lapsed into the melodramatic cliché of the standard crime show. Gradually, I lost interest (I think about the fifth time that the whole direction of central character Jayne Tennyson's life was on the line if she didn't solve some murder in the face of the scepticism of her colleagues). But the series has always featured great acting from the incomparable Helen Mirren in that role, and in this final part she has arguably never been finer, there is some longer-term narrative development from the earlier episodes and Mirren exploits the character's growing history as the basis for a harrowing, wholly three-dimensional performance that almost seems out of place in a crime drama. Behind her performance, there's a nicely executed but less extraordinary tale of murder that could have come from any other cop show.

What's amazing about Mirren is how she truly inhabits the parts she plays: having recently seen her in Channel Four's 'Elizabeth', one can say the two series constitute a masterclass of televisual acting, ancient and modern. The series may be done; but the prime of Helen Mirren is far from over.

Having just finished watching all 7 chapters on DVD I must say this is the best drama of any kind I have seen. Overall it was so good I will miss watching it ! I have seen a great deal of Dame Helen Mirren's work and have enjoyed and marveled at her versatility and choice of roles. In the Prime Suspect character of Jane Tennison she has out done herself in my humble opinion. The stories touch on so many realms of police drama and were excellent stories in themselves. What I enjoyed most was the complexity of the character of Jane Tennison throughout the entire series. She was brilliant yet flawed, focused yet distracted, driven yet not particularly ambitious. She had a job to do and she did it very well despite roadblocks put up at every turn within the department, society or political higher ups. Unlike many a series in the US, the Final Act was I thought a great finish to a great series. Yes I would love to know where retirement led her. It is hard to see Jane Tennison spending her final years relaxing on the beach somewhere. It did though answer questions from earlier on and showed what a great toll her drive and dedication took on her personal life. I know some have said the conclusion did not live up to the standards of some of the earlier chapters. I have to disagree. I thought the story line itself was good and a very fitting retirement for an extraordinary character who could only have been played by Helen Mirren. For anyone who watched the Soprano's for so long to see how they chose to end it they will understand why I thought Prime Suspect was excellent not just chapters 1-6 but 1-7 ! Too bad Hollywood can't come up with something as original and gritty as Prime Suspect and follow it through instead of just doing knock offs of other programs ! The closest we have come was the 5 seasons of The Wire and it was a job well done for American TV. No single character will ever touch Jane Tennison though ! Although without the outstanding cast, writers,producers and everyone else involved It wouldn't have been the same either. Congratulations to one and all for a job very well done !