Crime en Aveyron

The scenery is gorgeous.

There is a lot of dialogue and if you don't pay attention, you might lose the plot. For a series intending to feature the vistas of the French countryside, watching the subtitles is counterproductive.

The use of both surname and given name to identify characters is unhelpful. It would be easier to follow the narrative if they picked one name and stuck with it.

There are a lot of strange choices for what I can only imagine as time filler. Things that don't add to the plot or the subplots, but are there anyhow.

Maybe this is the quality when you are on a deadline and no one can work overtime?

I like murder mysteries and my wife will let me pick almost anything if it is in French so she can practice listening. Otherwise, probably would skip.

Yes, France is beautiful but - having been to France several times and appreciating its natural beauty, well reflected in this fictional TV crime/romance series filmed all over the gorgeous place, I have to say that I find "Murder In" mysteries irritating and too easy to solve - but most MHz viewers including my husband love it so we've watched many episodes which follow the same formula but with an ever-changing cast: two detectives who can't stand each other and/or who have troubled pasts are thrown together to investigate so they start by arguing after a body has been found to have been ritualistically killed; second, there is an obscure local legend involving a medieval crypt or a pirate myth or storybook tale known only to one of the detectives plus of course the modern homicidal maniac imitating the obscure legend. Third, the arguing duo will soon be sleeping together because - voila! - this is France! Oh, and one of the detectives, after a long day of arguing and investigating and love-making, might find the time and energy to make a slow-cooking local dish Julia Child probably never heard of.

This is an episode that is part of a very poorly produced French TV series entitled "Murder in.....". It is intended to showcase different regions of France. Unfortunately, the beauty of the regions is really never put in the forefront, and the supporting story is more like a typical French farce with weak acting, obtuse dialog, and the usual "romance" between the middle aged actors. There is a lot of shouting and histrionic behavior, common in many French series, that I think is intended to pass for good acting. The plots are full of "fluff" but if you have nothing else to watch, this will pass an hour or so of time. Just be prepared to view it as a farce....not a serious mystery.

Some of the scenery is interesting as the peek at cheese making, but the tangled web of relationships among the locals is too convoluted to make sense of. I kept waiting for a car crash since everyone seems to race around the narrow country roads at breakneck speeds. The Deputy Prosecutor comes off as a insecure harridan at first and the immediate antagonistic behavior of her and the local investigator is off-putting. (And why she has to bring her son's cat with her is probably a bigger mystery than the one she's trying to solve.)

This is actually a whole series "Murder In.." with each episode in a different part of France .. and where the investigators are not always the same lead actors (although they do repeat at times). The cinematography is incredibly good and fascinating. And the local interest (economy, climate, etc.) is interesting. As for the murders, for me they are too complex (hence less credible); and the episodes too long (90min- hard for me to do in 1 sitting - but in splitting it over 2 nights, it's hard to remember from the 1st night). Some viewers might indeed relish complex crimes (and, granted, most murder mysteries - complex or not - are usually a bit contrived). The interaction between the investigators is well done ... as is the directing, casting, acting. So, I continue to watch these.